SSC CGL 2025 Tier-I · 24 September 2025, Shift 2 · Quantitative Aptitude · Question 1 of 100

We transcribed this text from the pictures on a candidate's response sheet for this shift; the answer is the key SSC colour-marked on that sheet. Solution last reviewed 13 September 2026.

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SSC does not publish CGL question papers or a public answer key. From 2025 the candidate response sheet prints every question and option as a picture, so the text here is transcribed from those pictures for this shift and checked against them independently; where the layout carries meaning, the picture is shown as well. Each answer is the key SSC colour-marked on that sheet. SSC released a tentative key for challenge and later its final one, both only to candidates behind a login, and the sheet does not say which of the two it carries. The solutions are written by UnlockIAS.

Vidhya lent Rs. 6000 to Kavya for 3 years at the rate of 4% per annum compound interest. Calculate the amount that Vidhya will get after 3 years.

(a)6,849.18
(b)6,750.18
(c)6,749.18
(d)6,649.18

Answer

Why

Correct — C. Grow the principal by 4% once for each year: multiply by 1.04 three times.

Year 1: 6000 × 1.04 = 6240
Year 2: 6240 × 1.04 = 6489.60
Year 3: 6489.60 × 1.04 = 6749.184

Round to paise: ₹6,749.18 → option (c)

Why the others are wrong

(a)
6,849.18 — ₹6,849.18 is exactly ₹100 above the true 6,749.184. It implies ₹849.18 of interest, but three years at 4% earn ₹720 simple and only ₹29.18 more when compounded.
(b)
6,750.18 — ₹6,750.18 is ₹1 too high. Its paise match the true 6,749.184, so a rough estimate cannot separate it from the key. Work the rupee figure out exactly.
(d)
6,649.18 — ₹6,649.18 is below the simple-interest amount, 6000 + 720 = ₹6,720. Over more than one year compound interest always earns more than simple interest, so this cannot be the amount.

Concept

Under annual compounding, Amount = P × (1 + r⁄100)ⁿ. Each year's interest is charged on the previous year's amount, not on the original ₹6,000.

That is why the interest grows year by year here: ₹240, then ₹249.60, then ₹259.58.

Simple interest would add a flat ₹240 each year. The gap after three years, ₹29.18, is interest earned on earlier interest.

The question asks for the amount, principal plus interest. The compound interest alone is ₹749.18, which is not among the options.

Key facts

Amount under annual compounding = P × (1 + r⁄100)ⁿ.
1.04³ = 1.124864, so ₹6,000 grows to ₹6,749.184 in three years.
For three years, CI − SI = P × (r⁄100)² × (3 + r⁄100). Here 6000 × 0.0016 × 3.04 = ₹29.184.

Study next

Finding the principal or the rate when the compound amount is givenThe CI − SI difference over two and three yearsHalf-yearly compounding: halve the rate, double the number of periods

Common traps

Rounding 1.04³ to 1.125 gives ₹6,750.00, a rupee away from the key and easy to confuse with ₹6,750.18.
Adding 3 × 4% = 12% flat. That is simple interest and gives ₹6,720.

The compound amount after three years also decides 13 Sep 2025, 16:00, Quant Q.13, where ₹1,00,000 at 10% grows to ₹1,33,100 and the keyed answer is 3 years.

At 14 Sep 2025, 09:00, Quant Q.10 the amount after two years at 12% is given and the principal has to be recovered.

Related PYQs

No directly related past PYQ was found.

Topic: Interest — all 82 SSC CGL questions on it, every solved shift.