Statement—Courses of Action

Most situations that we face in life throw up the possibility of creating an improvement by following certain courses of action. In fact, deciding on a course of action in a given situation is a primary responsibility in any managerial job.

This question type tests you on your ability to decide on how a situation can be tackled/improved/followed up. Look through the following solved examples to get this question type clear.

Directions: In each of the following questions a statement is given followed by two courses of action. A course of action is taken for improvement, follow up, etc. Read the statement carefully and give your answer as

(a) If only course of action I follows.

(b) If only course of action II follows.

(c) Ifboth I and II follow.

(d) If neither course of action I nor II follows.

Example 1

Statement

The presence of mafiosi in the education system of UP has increased drastically.

Courses of Action

I. There should be a special taskforce constituted to clean the system of its ills.

II. The U.P. government should resign immediately.

Solution

Course of action I follows because it is necessary to tackle such antisocial elements.

Course of action II does not follow because the resignation of the government is unlikely to improve the situation. Hence, option (a) is correct.

Example 2

Statement

In a recent survey by the National Health mission it was showed that fruits and vegetables which contain certain vitamins have a higher effect on human health than capsules marketed by private companies that contain the same vitamins.

Courses of Action

I. Such vitamin capsules marketed by private companies should be banned with immediate effect.

II. People should prefer fruits and vegetables to capsules marketed by private companies.

Solution

Course of action I does not follow because we are only making a comparison between the effects of food and vegetables against the effect of capsules.

Course of action II follows because fruits and vegetables are preferable to capsules for their positive effect on health. Hence, option (b) is correct.

Example 3

Statement

It has been reported that water level is declining rapidly in India.

Courses of Action

I. There should be a public campaign to educate people about the need to reduce and eliminate the wastage of water.

II. New technologies should be researched and utilised to store rain water.

Solution

Both the courses of action are logical steps that could be taken to address the problem. Hence, option (c) is correct.

Example 4

Statement

Reliance Telecommunications is playing dirty tricks with its competitor Tata Indicom.

Courses of Action

I. Tata Indicom should also do the same.

II. Tata Indicom should decrease the tariff rate of phone calls.

Solution

Both the courses of action do not follow. Tata Indicom should not start playing dirty tricks but should approach the government and its regulatory bodies to help. The IInd course of action is also not valid because it will do nothing to stop the dirty tricks. Hence option (d) is correct.

Example 5

Statement

There is a proposal for the Maharashtra government to clear the slum areas in Mumbai for beautification and economic development.

Courses of Action

I. The Maharashtra Government should compensate the affected persons with reasonable amount.

II. The Maharashtra Government should stop beautification and economic development work immediately.

Solution

Only course of action I follows. Government should take care of affected people. It should pay reasonable amount to affected persons. Second course of action does not follow because it is illogical. Hence, option (a) is correct.

EXERCISE

Directions: In each question below is given a statement followed by two courses of action numbered I and II.

Given Answers

(a) If only I follows

(b) If only II follows

(c) Ifboth I and II follow

(d) If neither I nor II follows

1. Statement A sting operation conducted by a TV news channel proved to be a total failure as the reporter who carried out the sting was found to have created a fake sting in order to gain publicity and money.

Courses I. Disciplinary action must be initiated immediately against the of Action reporter.

II. The TV channel should be penalised and taken off air for a short period of time.

2. Statement Across the globe there is an increasing tendency to use child

soldiers for terrorist activities.

Courses I. The United Nations Security Council should try to address this of Action problem by asking its member states to crack down heavily on terrorist groups.

II. The U.S. led forces must attack such terrorist groups.

3. Statement A state-wide bandh called by opposition parties in Bihar led to a

total shut down of normal activities of Bihar’s people.

Courses I. The government should call a meeting with opposition parties to of Action work out an approach that does not affect the common man.

II. Opposition Parties must continue their agitation.

4. Statement There is a shortage of power in India.

Courses I. There should be more power projects initiated by the of Action government.

II. The government should encourage private investment in power projects.

5. Statement The reduction of the tax rates has led to an increase in the tax

collection as there has been higher compliance.

Courses I. It should be made compulsory every Indian to pay tax. of Action

II. Tax rates should be further reduced and a further increase in tax collections can be expected on doing so.

6. Statement The number of people who die on the roads every year is so

alarming that the numbers every year are close to the numbers which can be attributed to the major diseases of the world.

Courses I. There should be an active campaign for sensitising people of Action towards road safety norms.

II. There should be an increased emphasis on enforcing speed limits, road safety rules and traffic management on roads across the world.

7. Statement In each of the three years from 2000-2002, shareholders of India’s Sensex lost between 15 to 30 per cent of the value of their assets. Yet the average value of the CEO’s package of the 30 companies that formed the Sensex was higher in 2002 than in 2000 by almost 50 per cent.

Courses I. Companies should include greater transparency of compensation of Action packages.

II. If a company is in loss, top executives should not get pay hikes.

8. Statement An unacceptable number of children die during the first year of their

lives. The high incidence of infant deaths is a major cause for concern for the health ministry.

Courses I. All government hospitals should be privatised to improve health of Action care facilities.

II. Governments should commit higher levels of their budget to health services.

9. Statement The cream of India’s cricket team is likely to retire in the next three

years leaving a vacuum which the Indian cricket team is going to struggle to overcome.

Courses I. The BCCI should start to induct youngsters into the team and start of Action to give them exposure to pressure situations.

II. There should be a rotation policy adopted for senior players in order to prolong their careers and keep them injury free.

10. Statement Amartya arrived an hour late for the examination. The cut off time to

enter the exam hall is maximum 15 minutes late.

Courses I. A rule is for everyone, so Amartya should not be allowed to of Action enter the exam hall and take the exam.

II. Amartya should be rusticated from his college for violating the rule.

11. Statement Studies of global warming show that the earth could be hotter by at

least 6^oC in the next 100 years, thanks to huge greenhouse gas emission.

Courses I. Since greenhouse gases are responsible for global warming, of Action steps should be taken to control their emission immediately.

II. All new industries should be immediately stopped from starting

12. Statement ^ζiNew^csffien⅛ⁿoFow∞l⅛ge^agetWightened by ragging. The ragging

prevalent in our college is also creating a bad name for our college”.

Courses I. The college authorities take stringent action against those who of Action are involved.

II. A strict anti ragging law should be passed to control ragging in our college.

13. Statement A lot of unscrupulous and non affiliated colleges have started to

lure unsuspecting students by giving attractive advertisements.

Courses I. Students should make appropriate enquiries while enrolling in of Action any course.

II. The government should initiate strict action against such college authorities.

14. Statement Higher education in America is very expensive. This is perhaps

because more and more graduates from across the world try to go to America for higher education.

Courses I. The American government should stop such migration of students of Action from other countries.

II. The American government should clamp down heavily on such institutions and universities which charge high for higher education.

15. Statement The lives of millions of people are likely to be endangered in the

future as thousands of active landmines are still undiscovered in the fields of Africa.

Courses I. The International community should immediately take action so of Action that no more landmines are laid down across the world.

II. It should be an offence against all humanitarian norms to continue using these landmines.

16. Statement There is an alarming and increasing trend of engineering and

technical graduates to opt for jobs rather than doing research.

Courses I. Universities must make research in engineering subjects more of Action attractive.

II. It should be made compulsory to pursue research after an engineering degree.

17. Statement The colony has suffered major thefts and break-ins due to lax

security systems.

Courses I. Security should be strengthened in the colony.

of Action

II. Residents and regular visitors and their vehicles should be provided with identity cards and stickers for better control of who is coming and going into the colony.

18. Statement The lack of employment and income during economic depression

leads to an increase in the crime rates.

Courses I. The government should provide an unemployment compensation of Action as done in advanced countries.

II. The government should encourage greater economic activity and increase the number of industries in order to reduce crime rates.

19. Statement The appreciation of the rupee has reduced the impact of the oil

price rise on the Indian economy although it has also created a problem for exporters.

Courses I. The government should allow a further rise in the value of the of Action rupee.

II. The government should provide some additional incentives to exporters.

20. Statement The U.S. and its allies have been claiming that Iran is developing

dangerous chemical, biological and nuclear weapons.

Courses I. The international community should boycott Iran, of Action

II. The U.S. should wage war against Iranjust as it did against Iraq a few years ago.

21. Statement Fordon Motors has found that its managerial manpower is not

efficient.

Courses I. It should fire all its managers.

of Action

II. It should organise training programs for its managers.

22. Statement The TV channel Kal Tak has shown a video recording of some policemen taking bribes from car drivers.

Courses I. The cops should be suspended after an inquiry

of Action

II. The guilty cops should be warned for future.

23. Statement The Maharashtra State Electricity Board has been unable to provide

24 hours electricity leading to tremendous economic loss.

Courses I. The Government must provide for increasing electricity of Action consumption.

II. The government should check the electricity theft cases.

24. Statement The flood relief sanctioned for the purpose never reached the

intended beneficiaries.

Courses I. Those who are responsible should be checked and suspended, of Action

II. The Government of India should resign taking moral responsibility for the same.

25. Statement It has been observed that commercial banks refrain from giving

loans to people from poor backgrounds because they cannot provide assets for security.

Courses I. The finance ministry must look into the matter immediately, of Action

II. The finance minister should initiate an enquiry into the matter.

Answer Key

Solutions

1. Both the courses of action are logical. Hence, option (c) is correct.

2. Only the first course of action is logical in this situation as a crack down on terrorist organisations is the responsibility of every country. US attacking terrorist groups across the world is an infeasible solution. Hence, option (a) is correct.

3. The first course of action follows since it is the responsibility of all parties concerned to ensure that the common man is not affected. The second course of action does not follow as it is opposite what should happen. Hence, option (a) is correct.

4. Both the courses of action follow logically in order to solve the power crisis. Hence, option (c) is correct.

5. Only the second course of action fits in. Hence, option (b) is correct.

6. Both courses of action are correct. Hence, option (c) is correct.

7. Both courses of action are correct. Hence, option (c) is correct.

8. Only the second course of action is logical. Hence, option (b) is correct.

9. Both courses of action are likely to help the Indian cricket team transit from one

generation to the next smoothly. Hence, option (c) is correct.

10. Only the first course of action is valid. The second is too drastic. Hence, option

(a) is correct.

11. Only the first course of action is valid. We need to take immediate steps to control the emission of green house gases. The second is too drastic. Hence, option (a) is correct.

12. Obviously we need to control the ragging menace. In such a case both options are correct. Hence, option (c) is the answer.

13. Both the courses of action are logical and recommended in the given situation. Hence, option (c) is correct.

14. Neither of the two courses of action are valid since the government should just allow the market economics to prosper. Hence, (d) is the correct option.

15. Both the courses of action are valid logically. Hence, option (c) is correct.

16. Only course of action I is correct. Hence, option (a) is correct.

17. Both courses of action are logical and would help in the improvement of security in the colony. Hence, option (c) is the answer.

18. Both the courses of action are valid. Hence, option (c) is correct.

19. The first course of action will further affect exporters and will make Indian exports unviable in the international markets. Providing some support to exporters at this juncture might be a good idea since it will have to improve the position of Indian exporters which has been jolted by the rupee appreciation. Hence, option (b) is correct.

20. Neither course of action is logical because both are too drastic just on the basis of claims made by one party against the other. Hence, option (d) is correct.

21. Course of action II is logically correct as training is likely to improve the efficiency of the managers. Firing all the managers is illogical and likely to be counterproductive. Hence, option (b) is correct.

22. Course of action I follows, II does not. Hence, option (a) is the answer.

23. Only course of action I follows as the government must make provisions to increase the generation of power. However the course of action II does not follow because the government cannot be expected to check electricity theft cases since that is the work of the Electricity Board and not the government. Hence, option (a) is the answer.

24. Course of action I is logical. Hence, option (a) is the answer.

25. Both the courses of action are logical. Option (c) is correct.