XAT 2024 Question Paper

Read the following statement carefully.

___________like a fake can be a sign of___________, and clinging too tightly to what feels like one’s authentic self can ________that growth.

Fill in the blanks meaningfully, in the above statement, from the following options.

Read the following statement carefully and fill up the blanks from the given options.

As _________evolved and eventually moved to cities, close proximity ____________how we viewed and assessed each_________.

Read the following sentences carefully.

A. I shall be there at about 9: 00 a.m.
B. Keep off of the grass.
C. My old car was much faster than the new one.
D. I was angry at my friend.
E. Rohit is as capable as Virat.

Which of the following combinations has all the INCORRECT sentences?

Read the following sentences carefully.

A. Everybody accepts his responsibilities.
B. Nobody in that group have their reports up to date, as they should have.
C. Either of the boys is acceptable to do the errands.
D. Both of the mice is underfed.
E. It is I who am next.
F. The teacher told he and I to leave early.

Which of the following combinations has all the sentences grammatically CORRECT?

Read the following statements and answer the question that follows.

A. Back then, they were owned by companies and installed on their premises.
B. Rooms and servers began to replace computer mainframes in the 1990’s.
C. These were supplemented by processors from Intel, which by the mid-2000s translated its dominance of PC semiconductors into a near monopoly of the server market.
D. They mostly ran on chips made by IBM and HP, the big tech of the day.
E. Things started to change once again around a decade ago, when Amazon began selling some of its spare server capacity.

Which of the following combinations is the MOST logically ordered

Go through the statements below and answer the question that follows.

A. Maybe you have survived major trauma and have a hard time feeling safe.
B. You’ll probably discover that your fear and struggles make sense on account of what you’ve lived through.
C. Instead of beating yourself up for reacting in ways you don’t understand, you can develop compassion for yourself and what you’ve been through.
D. Perhaps you have experienced a sudden death, and you are often anxious about the health of your loved ones.
E. You may also find out that you have more strength than you knew, the same strength that has sustained you this far.

Which of the following combinations is the MOST logically ordered?

Read the following paragraph and answer the question that follows.

Fear is the greatest motivator of all time. Conflict born of fear is behind our every action, driving us forward like the cogs of a clock. Fear is desire’s dark dress, its doppelgänger. “Love and dread are brothers,” says Julian of Norwich. As desire is wanting and fear is not-wanting, they become inexorably linked; just as desire can be destructive (the desire for power), fear can be constructive (fear of hurting another); fear of poverty becomes desire for wealth.

Which of the following statements can be BEST concluded from the paragraph?

Read the following paragraphs and answer the question that follows.

Paragraph 1:

Here are some handy rules of thumb. Anyone who calls themselves a thought leader is to be avoided. A man who does not wear socks cannot be trusted. And a company that holds an employee-appreciation day does not appreciate its employees.

Paragraph 2:

It is not just that the message sent by acknowledging staff for one out of 260-odd working days is a bit of a giveaway (there isn’t a love-your-spouse day ... for the same reason). It is also that the ideas are usually so tragically unappreciative. You have worked hard all year so you get a slice of cold pizza or a rock stamped with the words “You rock”?

Which of the following BEST describes the relationship of the first paragraph with the second paragraph?

Read the following passage and answer the question that follows.

How do we choose one discovery over any other? The physician Lewis Thomas made a choice. He bluntly asserts: “The greatest of all the accomplishments of 20th-century science has been the discovery of human ignorance.”

The science writer Timothy Ferris agrees: “Our ignorance, of course, has always been with us, and always will be. What is new is our awareness of it, our awakening to its fathomless dimensions, and it is this, more than anything else, that marks the coming of age of our species.”

It is an odd, unsettling thought that the culmination of our greatest century of discovery should be the confirmation of our ignorance. How did such a thing come about?

Which of the following statements can be BEST concluded from the above passage?

Read the following paragraph and answer the question that follows.

You may accumulate a vast amount of knowledge but it will be of far less value to you than a much smaller amount if you have not thought it over for yourself; because only through ordering what you know by comparing every truth with every other truth can you take complete possession of your knowledge and get it into your power.

Based on the above information, which of the following statements MUST be true?

Read the following passage and answer the question that follows.

That’s how life plays out for all of us. We lose some. Like sportspersons, we too pack our gear and go to work. But unlike them, the gaze of the world is not upon us. Most of us do our business in anonymity, very few of us are emotionally wired to the outcomes of our day jobs. We don’t come back feeling like winners. Or losers. As sports fans we can summon empathy for those who stretch their bodies and minds to the limit in the pursuit of athletic excellence and provide such joys in the process.

But we will never experience the highs that are their reward. And we will never know the depth of their lows, which are their burden.

Still, no one will know better than Rohit and Dravid that its already a new day. There might never be a World Cup win for them. But there are loved ones to go to. Life awaits still.

Which of the following statements BEST summarizes the above passage?

Which of the following statements BEST conveys the theme of the poem?

What do the lines “the drunken yellow flames/know where her lonely body hides” BEST represent?

Which of the following is the BEST interpretation regarding reductive instincts?

Why would a realist novel consist of “innumerable conditions made meaningful only in unpredictable moments?”

Based on the passage, which of the following CANNOT be inferred about beauty?

Based on the passage, which of the following BEST explains beauty to be simultaneously a “blessing” and a “site of conversion?”

Which of the following BEST describes the civilization-barbarism axis?

Which of the following BEST explains the author’s usage of the term moral frames?

Which of the following can BEST be concluded from the above passage?

Which of the following statement is NOT true about an ignorant mind?

Based on the passage, what does the author BEST mean when he says, “we are all engines of misbelief?”

With which of the following statements will the author agree the MOST?

Based on the passage, which of the following CANNOT be concluded?

Why does the author think about vaccination as a “banking of immunity?”

Based on the last paragraph of the passage, which of the following would the author BEST agree with?

What BEST can be concluded about the value of x?

How many applicants DID NOT have advanced expertise in any of the three given fields?

Which of the following is a possible value of B?

Based on the information recorded, which of the following can be the average work experience of the thirteen teachers?

While rechecking her original notes to re-enter the smudged values of A and B in the records, the student found that one of the eleven recorded work experience values that did not get smudged was recorded wrongly as half of its correct value. After re-entering the values of A and B, and correcting the wrongly recorded value, she recalculated all the summary measures. The recalculated average value was 15. What is the value of B?

What is the value of N?

In which of these pairs of over numbers, the team could have scored 22 runs in total?

In which of the following over numbers, the team MUST have scored the least number of runs?

Four customers used four different discount coupons for their respective transactions in such a way that they obtained a total discount of Rs. 710. Which discount coupon was not used?

Four customers used four different discount coupons for their respective transactions in such a way that nobody used any discount coupon sub-optimally. (A discount coupon is used sub-optimally if using another discount coupon could have resulted in a higher discount for the same transaction.) What was the minimum combined spend (before application of any discount)?

A family wanted to purchase four products worth Rs. 1000 each, and another product worth Rs. 300. They were told that they could:
I) pay for the five products through one or more transactions in any way they wanted, as long as the purchase amount of any one product would not get split into different transactions, and
II) use the same discount coupon repeatedly for separate transactions, if they opt for more than one transaction.
What was the maximum discount that they could obtain for their purchase?

In a small college, students are allowed to take only one specialization. Traditionally, only two specializations are offered: Science and Arts. Students enrolled to specialize in Science must take Physics and Mathematics subjects, while students enrolled to specialize in Arts must take Economics and Political Science subjects. Students enrolled in Science are not allowed to take either Economics or Political Science, while students enrolled in Arts are not allowed to take either Physics or Mathematics.

Recently, the college has started a third specialization called MatEco that requires students to take Economics and Mathematics. However, MatEco students would not be allowed to take either Physics or Political Science. When the college opens this new specialization for enrolment, it allows students, originally enrolled in Science or Arts, to switch to MatEco.

From among the students originally enrolled in Arts, 20 students switch to MatEco. This makes the number of Science students twice the number of Arts students. After this, from among the students who originally enrolled in Science, 45 students switch to MatEco. This makes the number of Arts students twice the number of Science students.

In total, how many students, from among those originally enrolled in Science or Arts, are now taking Economics?

In a school, the number of students in each class, from Class I to X, in that order, are in an arithmetic progression. The total number of students from Class I to V is twice the total number of students from Class VI to X.

If the total number of students from Class I to IV is 462, how many students are there in Class VI?

A flight, traveling to a destination 11,200 kms away, was supposed to take off at 6:30 AM. Due to bad weather, the departure of the flight got delayed by three hours. The pilot increased the average speed of the airplane by 100 km/hr from the initially planned average speed, to reduce the overall delay to one hour.

Had the pilot increased the average speed by 350 km/hr from the initially planned average speed, when would have the flight reached its destination?

Consider the equation $\log_5(x - 2) = 2 \log_{25}(2x - 4)$, where x is a real number.
For how many different values of x does the given equation hold?

The cost of running a movie theatre is Rs. 10,000 per day, plus additional Rs. 5000 per show. The theatre has 200 seats. A new movie released on Friday. There were three shows, where the ticket price was Rs. 250 each for the first two shows and Rs. 200 for the late-night show.
For all shows together, total occupancy was 80%. What was the maximum amount of profit possible?

FS food stall sells only chicken biryani. If FS fixes a selling price of Rs. 160 per plate, 300 plates of biriyani are sold. For each increase in the selling price by Rs. 10 per plate, 10 fewer plates are sold. Similarly, for each decrease in the selling price by Rs. 10 per plate, 10 more plates are sold. FS incurs a cost of Rs. 120 per plate of biriyani, and has decided that the selling price will never be less than the cost price. Moreover, due to capacity constraints, more than 400 plates cannot be produced in a day.
If the selling price on any given day is the same for all the plates and can only be a multiple of Rs. 10, then what is the maximum profit that FS can achieve in a day?

A farmer has a triangular plot of land. One side of the plot, henceforth called the base, is 300 feet long and the other two sides are equal. The perpendicular distance, from the corner of the plot, where the two equal sides meet, to the base, is 200 feet. To counter the adverse effect of climate change, the farmer wants to dig a circular pond. He plans that half of the circular area will be inside the triangular plot and the other half will be outside, which he will purchase at the market rate from his neighbour. The diameter of the circular plot is entirely contained in the base and the circumference of the pond touches the two equal sides of the triangle from inside.
If the market rate per square feet of land is Rs. 1400, how much does the farmer must pay to buy the land from his neighbour for the pond? (Choose the closest option.)

A group of boys is practising football in a rectangular ground. Raju and Ratan are standing at the two opposite mid-points of the two shorter sides. Raju has the ball, who passes it to Rivu, who is standing somewhere on one of the longer sides. Rivu holds the ball for 3 seconds and passes it to Ratan. Ratan holds the ball for 2 seconds and passes it back to Raju. The path of the ball from Raju to Rivu makes a right angle with the path of the ball from Rivu to Ratan. The speed of the ball, whenever passed, is always 10 metre per second, and the ball always moves on straight lines along the ground.
Consider the following two additional pieces of information:
I. The dimension of the ground is 80 metres × 50 metres.
II. The area of the triangle formed by Raju, Rivu and Ratan is 1000 square metres.
Consider the problem of computing the following: how many seconds does it take for Raju to get the ball back since he passed it to Rivu? Choose the correct option.

The least common multiple of a number and 990 is 6930. The greatest common divisor of that number and 550 is 110.
What is the sum of the digits of the least possible value of that number?

The roots of the polynomial $P(x) = 2x^3 - 11x^2 + 17x - 6$ are the radii of three concentric circles.
The ratio of their area, when arranged from the largest to the smallest, is:

A local restaurant has 16 vegetarian items and 9 non-vegetarian items in their menu. Some items contain gluten, while the rest are gluten-free.
One evening, Rohit and his friends went to the restaurant. They planned to choose two different vegetarian items and three different non-vegetarian items from the entire menu. Later, Bela and her friends also went to the same restaurant: they planned to choose two different vegetarian items and one non-vegetarian item only from the gluten-free options. The number of item combinations that Rohit and his friends could choose from, given their plan, was 12 times the number of item combinations that Bela and her friends could choose from, given their plan.
How many menu items contain gluten?

Consider the system of two linear equations as follows: $3x + 21y + p = 0$; and $qx + ry - 7 = 0$, where p, q, and r are real numbers.
Which of the following statements DEFINITELY CONTRADICTS the fact that the lines represented by the two equations are coinciding?

Consider a 4-digit number of the form abbb, i.e., the first digit is a (a > 0) and the last three digits are all b.
Which of the following conditions is both NECESSARY and SUFFICIENT to ensure that the 4-digit number is divisible by a?

Consider a right-angled triangle ABC, right angled at B. Two circles, each of radius r, are drawn inside the triangle in such a way that one of them touches AB and BC, while the other one touches AC and BC. The two circles also touch each other (see the image below).
If AB = 18 cm and BC = 24 cm, then find the value of r.

A king has distributed all his rare jewels in three boxes. The first box contains 1/3 of the rare jewels, while the second box contains k/5 of the rare jewels, for some positive integer value of k. The third box contains 66 rare jewels.
How many rare jewels does the king have?

Aman decides to buy only onion, in whatever maximum quantity possible (in positive integer kilogram), with the money he has come to the market with. How much money will he be left with after the purchase?

Aman decides to buy only onion and potato, both in positive integer kilogram, in such a way that the money left with him after the purchase will be insufficient to buy a full kilogram of either of the two vegetables.
If all such permissible combinations of purchases are equally likely, what is the probability that Aman buys more onion than potato?

Which of the following years is NOT a leap year?

Which two teams competed in the final match of the Women's Premier League (WPL) 2023, held on March 26, 2023 in Mumbai?

Which city hosted the recently concluded Asian Games 2022 (which happened in 2023)?

Which of the following countries has NOT been invited to join the BRICS in the BRICS’ expansion plan for 2024?

Why has Dr. Akshata Krishnamurthy been in the news recently?

Who received the Nobel Peace Prize in 2023?

The movie Oppenheimer was directed by:

Matthew Perry, who died in 2023, was famously known for playing which character in the sitcom called Friends?

Claudia Dale Goldin was awarded the Nobel Prize in Economics in 2023 in recognition of her groundbreaking research in the field of:

Which country has formally pulled out of “Treaty on Conventional Armed Forces in Europe?”

What is the name of Air India’s Artificial Intelligence-powered chat assistant that introduced a generative AI virtual agent?

In November 2023, which state government declared a fish named “Ghol” as the state fish?

Which Indian city set a world record by illuminating 22.23 lakh earthen lamps on the eve of Diwali 2023?

Which rocket was used to launch Aditya-L1?

Which company has launched a dedicated air cargo service in India to speed up deliveries?

What is X-37B?

Which of the following prefectures of Japan was MAJORLY afftected by an earthquake on
January 1, 2024?

Which of the following Indian states does the River Ganges not flow through?

Arrange the following historic capital cities of Indian kingdoms in the order of their geographic locations, from north to south.

(a) Kannauj
(b) Karur
(c) Pataliputra
(d) Rajahmundry

Match the following books with their authors.

What is the common terminology used to describe the following applications: ChatGPT, Google Bard, Chatsonic?

Which of the following governors-general of India introduced the policy of “doctrine of lapse?"

What is Nabanno?

Arrange the following famous battles in the order of their occurrence:

(a) Battle of the Hydaspes
(b) First Battle of Tarain
(c) Battle of Khanwa
(d) Battle of Talikota
(e) Battle of Buxar

Match the following national capitals with their respective countries/territories.

Tech predictions often fail not because of wrong models or a lack of imagination, but due to lack of humility in admitting our uncertainty about the future.( Maximum 250 words )

Implementing more stringent regulations on social media platforms is crucial to effectively combat the proliferation of fake news. (Maximum 250 words)

"Things which matter most must never be at the mercy of things which matter least."(Maximum 250 words)

Sharda was contemplating whether she should inform Vimla that she found Mr. Singh’s ring.
Which of the following considerations will BEST dissuade Sharda in sharing the information about the ring with Vimla?

Two months passed, and owing to Sharda’s improved health and dedication, Sharda started working in three more houses. However, Vimla was dismissed from her jobs in two more houses primarily due to the ring incident. News of the discovery of the lost ring had not become public, and Sharda wanted to help Vimla. Sharda is contemplating over possible actions.
Which of the following actions, by Sharda, will BEST help Vimla?

The news of the discovery of the lost ring eventually became public. The domestic helps in the society were chagrined by the treatment meted out to Vimla and the fact that the news of the discovery was not made public immediately. They wanted to ensure that they would not get targeted every time if something goes missing.
Which of the following policy options will BEST minimize the chance of employers suspecting their domestic workers of theft in the future?

Shalini’s comments deeply hurt Nalini, especially since she had always considered Shalini to be a close friend. Nalini felt like declining the bonus, given her respect for and relationship with Shalini.
Which of the following reasons, if true, will BEST dissuade Nalini from declining the bonus?

Since receiving the performance bonus, Nalini noticed a change in how her teammates behaved with her; they appeared indifferent towards her. Although there were no major issues, Nalini could not help but sense that her teammates began to perceive her as having a closer relationship with the top brass, following her recent accomplishment. Nalini assumed that her teammates might be influenced by Shalini; consequently, they seemed to be avoiding informal interactions with her.
As Nalini had to rely on the support of her teammates, what could Nalini BEST do to normalize her relationship with them?

A significant project recently arrived at Symbolis, and Nalini was chosen to spearhead it. She was given the autonomy to create her own team to collaborate and drive this project to success. Nalini wanted to build a team where each of the team members worked with great comradery. As Shalini had previous experience of working with the client, Nalini offered her to join the team. However, Shalini expressed her willingness to work on the project only on the condition that she would be appointed as a team leader.

Nalini was aware that the client was very difficult to work with. Of the three previous projects with the client, only the one, where Shalini was a team member, was successfully completed.
What should be the BEST course of action for Nalini regarding the inclusion of Shalini in the team?

Flying Groceries was planning to implement a much-needed update to enhance the functionality and user experience of their app. According to Suraj, the update was expected to take at least six months to complete. Suraj wanted Raman to lead this project because his leadership was critical for the project’s success. However, Raman knew that he would be there only for three months; he was not sure whether he should accept the project.
Which of the following information, if true, will BEST assist Raman in accepting the role of leading the project?

After a couple of months, Raman resigned. Suraj was shocked by Raman’s resignation and asked him to reconsider his decision. When Raman expressed his inability to continue, Suraj felt betrayed. This led to a series of heated arguments between them, and they swore to never work together again.

Raman joined the business school; however, he soon realized that that summer internship placements were approaching. Consequently, he would require verification of his responsibilities from Flying Groceries.
Which of the following actions is the MOST appropriate for Raman to obtain his verification?

Raman received a verification letter from Flying Groceries outlining his basic job responsibilities during his tenure there. However, Raman required a document to substantiate the additional responsibilities he undertook at Flying Groceries by going beyond his call of duty. Sadly, he did not have any documentation of such additional responsibilities.
Which of the following options will BEST help substantiate the additional responsibilities Raman undertook?

Prabhu decided to increase the taxi fare for all future trips. He planned to charge Rs. 3000 for a one-way trip to the airport, and Rs. 1000 more for a round trip.
Which of the following facts will BEST help Prabhu’s regular customers in accepting the increase in fare?

After Prabhu increased his charges by 30%, the revenue flow was promising in the beginning, especially from the steel plant’s official trips. After a few months, he noticed a dip in private bookings. On exploring further, Prabhu realized that while women travelling solo still preferred Prabhu’s service, some of his regular customers were choosing his competitors when travelling as a family. However, he knew that his competitors, while charging lower than him, were still tardy and sometimes cancelled at the last minute.
Which of the following options will BEST help Prabhu to retain his revenue flow?

Saroj, the new Chief Financial Officer (CFO) at the steel plant, used the services of Manoj when he first travelled from the Michaelganj airport to the plant. Manoj was a rival of Prabhu in the taxi service business at Kasta. Manoj, upon learning that Saroj would be responsible for hiring taxi services for the steel plant, charged Saroj only Rs. 1500 for that trip. Further, he assured Saroj to charge the same for a one way-trip and additional Rs. 500 for a round trip to the airport.

Upon realizing that the plant utilized Prabhu’s services for all official trips to the airport, Saroj contacted Prabhu to discuss the rates offered by Manoj and inquired why the plant should continue using his service when Manoj provided the same at a lower price. Prabhu realized that Manoj charged an extremely low price just to push Prabhu out of his business in the Steel Plant.

Which of the following reasons given by Prabhu will BEST help his cause?

Due to her old car’s frequent breakdowns, Vineeta decided it was a time to replace it. She was afraid whether buying a Diplomatico SUV from Balaji Motors, as suggested by Shyam, will be a right decision for her.

Which of the following pieces of additional information will help her the MOST in taking the right decision?

Shyam’s satisfaction from meeting the month’s quota for selling SUVs turned to dismay when one of his young executives nervously told him that he mistakenly punched an extended warranty for free to Vineeta’s purchase contract earlier that morning. This could not be reversed from the company’s system and meant a loss of Rs. 19,000 for the dealership. The executive was very sorry and was ready to take accountability. However, the amount was too large to be borne by the executive.

Shyam was not concerned about placing accountability, but rather the recovery of the loss. He was unsure whether he should ask Vineeta for the money.

The following pieces of information are available to Shyam:
A. Shyam is aware that Vineeta is very happy with the deal he gave her for the car.
B. Shyam feels that Diplomatico’s software system is complicated for new employees, which might have also played a role in the error.
C. Vineeta has a wide network and can connect Shyam with many potential customers.
D. Vineeta’s brother, a car enthusiast, has enough knowledge of how car dealers operate.
E. Shyam feels that if he maintains the current sales volume, he might be able to persuade Diplomatico to write off the amount (Rs. 19,000).

Which of the following combinations, of the above pieces of information, will MOST likely stop Shyam from trying to recover the money from Vineeta?

Three months passed. While returning from a friend’s house, Vineeta’s new SUV was hit by another car. Fortunately, she was not injured, but the SUV was badly damaged. Surprisingly, when Vineeta took the car for repairs to Balaji Motors, she was told that the repairs would not cost her anything as the extended warranty on her car covered such accidents. Vineeta could not recall purchasing such a warranty; hence, she contacted Shyam. Shyam informed her that the extended warranty was mistakenly punched into her contract by an executive. As this mistake could not be reversed due to the company’s rigid policies, Shyam bore the cost of Rs. 19,000. He further added that Vineeta should consider it a gift from Balaji Motors for purchasing the highest-priced Diplomatico SUV.

As Vineeta rode back home, she wondered if she should pay Rs. 19,000 to Shyam since the extended warranty came to her aid that day.

Which of the following is the MOST compelling rationale for Vineeta to justify not paying Rs. 19,000 to Shyam?

Recently, some alumni of ABC threatened that their children should be given preference in admissions, or they would withdraw as recruiters. The director was, however, hesitant about allowing alumni to interfere in running the school because the fairness of the admissions process had earned ABC high respect within the corporate world that recruited from the school.

Which of the following reasons, if true, will BEST help the director NOT to worry about pandering to those alumni?

Across the country, business schools were ranked by popular magazines. A few business schools in the same region were applying for rankings, hoping that rankings will affect their visibility among corporate houses and recruiters. To achieve a good rank, ABC faculty members, who have primarily focused on teaching thus far, would need to actively engage in research and consulting activities. The director was aware that asking the faculty to switch to research and consulting would not be easy.

Which of the following facts will BEST help the director not to worry about applying for rankings?

A few faculty members complained to the director regarding the lack of attendance and seriousness among many students during classes and exams. The director knew that this had been the case for decades but became more rampant in the last few years. He was also aware that the classes were mostly rituals, conducted to tell the world that ABC believed in education and had little bearing on placements. However, he believed that students must be told to attend classes and take exams with serious attitude.

Which of the following announcements by the director will BEST ensure that faculty stop complaining about student attendance?

GoValve has recently proposed a maintenance package for the valves to DeepSea, which includes a clause that whenever a valve at Level 3 malfunctions, all valves at that level will be replaced. Accepting the clause will cost a significant premium. The management of DeepSea have the following pieces of additional information under consideration:

A. The valves are known to be prone to malfunction.
B. Any malfunction in one valve often results in leakage from the neighboring valves.
C. GoValve is ready to negotiate a discount if the clause is accepted.
D. Replacing the valves at Level 3 is a very difficult job, which is best done by GoValve.
E. The chances of pressure buildups are higher near the seabed.

Which of the following combinations, of the above pieces of additional information, will help the management of DeepSea the MOST in accepting the clause?

A startup, SafeValve, has started importing a technologically superior brand of valves from abroad, which boasts a significant reduction in gas leakage. SafeValve has established a large inventory of these imported valves but is struggling to gain foothold in the local market. An NGO, working for the protection of marine lives, has appealed to DeepSea to replace their existing valves with the product from SafeValve. However, the installation of this new valve will require substantial modification in the pipeline, entailing unknown challenges in installation and maintenance.

Which of the following reasons, if TRUE, can DeepSea BEST cite to publicly reject the appeal?

A startup, SafeValve, has started importing a technologically superior brand of valves from abroad, which boasts a significant reduction in gas leakage. An update to industry safety regulations has come out, which allows a lower number of valves in a pipeline network, if technologically superior valves, similar to those imported by SafeValve, are used for the entire network.

DeepSea is aware that the more the number of valves, the better is DeepSea’s ability to contain blowouts. However, a higher number of valves increases the chance of a leakage. Therefore, DeepSea is contemplating a proposal to reduce the number of valves to almost half, by replacing the existing valves (by GoValve) with the valves sold by SafeValve. A team, tasked with evaluating the proposal, has made some observations, listed below.

Which of the following observations is the MOST helpful in REJECTING the proposal?