Study the following then answer the question – Statement : The petrol prices have gone up during the past few weeks. Courses of action : I The government should set up an expert committee to study the trend of prices. II The government should immediately reduce taxes on petrol. III The government should advise the general public to refrain from purchasing petrol for few weeks. Decide which of the suggested course of action follows.

Correct — option (2), Only II.

A course of action follows when it is practical, within the power of whoever is to act, and deals with the problem in the statement. Here the problem is that petrol prices have gone up during the past few weeks.

Course I: the government should set up an expert committee to study the trend of prices. The statement already reports the trend, a rise over the past few weeks. A study of that trend does not lower the price or ease its burden, so I does not follow.

Course II: the government should immediately reduce taxes on petrol. The course itself refers to taxes on petrol, which are part of what buyers pay. Reducing them acts directly on the price that has risen, and setting taxes is within the government's power. II follows.

Course III: the government should advise the public to refrain from purchasing petrol for a few weeks. People use petrol to get about in daily life, so the advice cannot practically be followed, and it does nothing to the price. III does not follow.

So the answer is Only II.

The idea to remember: a course of action follows when it is practical and acts on the problem itself; studying a problem already established, or asking people to go without, does not.

Why the others are wrong

• (1)
  Only I — Option (1) accepts a study in place of a remedy. The statement already establishes the trend, a rise in petrol prices over the past few weeks, and a committee to study it does nothing about the rise.

  It also rejects course II, which acts directly on the price by reducing the taxes that are part of it.

• (3)
  Only III — Option (3) accepts advice that cannot practically be followed. People rely on petrol for daily travel, and not buying it for weeks does not act on its price.

  It also rejects course II, the one step that is practical, within the government's power, and aimed at the price itself.

• (4)
  None of these — Option (4) rightly rejects courses I and III but also rejects course II. II is practical and within the government's power.

  The course refers to taxes on petrol, which are part of the price buyers pay, so reducing them deals directly with the stated problem, a rise in that price.

In statement-and-courses-of-action reasoning, the statement reports a problem, and each course proposes a step. Take the statement as true and judge each step on its own.

A course follows when it is practical, within reach of whoever is to act, and likely to reduce the problem or deal with its cause.

It does not follow when it cannot practically be carried out, when it is drastic out of proportion, when it creates a larger problem, or when it only restates or studies what the statement has already established.

More than one course can follow, and so can none.

Key facts

• A course of action follows when it is practical, within the actor's power, and deals with the stated problem or its cause.
• A course does not follow if it cannot practically be carried out, is out of proportion, or only studies what is already established.
• PPAC FAQ (last updated 13 January 2021): petrol prices were made market determined effective from 26 June 2010.
• PPAC FAQ: public sector oil marketing companies decide petrol prices in line with international market prices and other market conditions.
• Here course II, a tax cut, acts on the price; course I only studies it, and course III cannot practically be followed.

Common traps

• Accepting a prudent-sounding study. A committee to study the trend sounds careful, but the statement already establishes the rise, and the study does not act on it.
• Accepting advice that cannot be followed. Telling people not to buy petrol for weeks disrupts daily travel and leaves the price untouched.
• Rejecting a course because it has a cost. A course can follow even if it has costs, provided it is practical and acts on the stated problem.

• practice — not a real PYQ

  Statement : Many students in a town's government schools have failed in mathematics this year. Courses of action : I. Extra classes in mathematics should be arranged for these students. II. Mathematics should be removed from the syllabus. Which of the courses of action follows?

  • (a)Only I
  • (b)Only II
  • (c)Both I and II
  • (d)Neither I nor II
  Answer(1) — I is practical and deals with the problem, so it follows. II is drastic and removes the subject instead of helping the students, so it does not. Option (2) reverses them, option (3) accepts II, and option (4) rejects I.
• practice — not a real PYQ

  Statement : The price of onions has risen sharply in several cities over the past two weeks. Courses of action : I. The government should increase the supply of onions to the markets in those cities. II. People should be advised to stop using onions for a year. Which of the courses of action follows?

  • (a)Only II
  • (b)Only I
  • (c)Neither I nor II
  • (d)Both I and II
  Answer(2) — I adds supply to the markets where the price has risen, which acts on the price, and is practical, so it follows. II asks people to go without for a year and does not deal with the supply, so it does not. Option (1) reverses them, option (3) rejects I, and option (4) accepts II.