This page covers SSC CHSL Scheduling / Day-Month Puzzle with complete concept notes, 21 graded practice MCQs, key points and exam-specific tips. Free to study.
Core ConceptRead this first — the foundation of the topic
Scheduling/Day-Month puzzles are arrangement problems where you place people or items in specific time slots. These puzzles test your logical thinking and data organization skills. You get clues about who meets whom on which day or month, then arrange them correctly.
Key RulesCore rules you must know cold
Three Main Types
1) Day-wise scheduling (7 days of week), 2) Month-wise scheduling (12 months), 3) Date-wise scheduling (1-31 dates). Each type follows similar solving patterns but has different reference points
Formula for Gap Calculation
If X meets 'n' days after Y, and Y is on day 'd', then X is on day 'd+n'. For circular arrangements (like days of week), use modulo 7. If result exceeds 7, subtract 7.
Exam PatternsWhat examiners ask — read before attempting PYQs
SSC CGL typically asks 2-3 questions from scheduling puzzles. Common formats include 'On which day does X meet?', 'Who meets on Friday?', 'How many people meet between A and B?'. Most puzzles involve 6-8 people and 6-8 time slots.
Powerful Shortcut: Create a possibility chart. List all people vertically and all days/months horizontally.
Mark 'YES' for confirmed positions and 'NO' for impossible ones. This visual method prevents confusion and speeds up solving.
Worked ExampleSolve this step-by-step before moving on
1
Step 1
Place direct clues. B = Wednesday, E = Sunday (last day).
2
Step 2
F meets immediately before B, so F = Tuesday.
3
Step 3
From condition 1, if C = Monday, then A = Wednesday. But B is already on Wednesday. So C cannot be Monday.
4
Step 4
If C = Thursday, then A = Saturday. Check condition 3: D must be between C and A, so D = Friday. This works!
5
Step 5
Remaining person goes to remaining day. So the arrangement is: Monday = (remaining), Tuesday = F, Wednesday = B, Thursday = C, Friday = D, Saturday = A, Sunday = E.
Worked Example 2: Four people meet in different months. P meets in April. Q meets two months before R. S meets in the month having 30 days, immediately after R.
1
Step 1
P = April (given).
2
Step 2
Since S meets immediately after R, and S meets in a 30-day month, possible months for S are April, June, September, November.
3
Step 3
S cannot be April (P is there). If S = June, then R = May. Check: Q meets two months before R means Q = March. This works!
4
Step 4
Final arrangement: Q = March, P = April, R = May, S = June.
Top
ShortcutsUse these to save 30–60 seconds per question
(1) Always solve step-by-step, don't jump to conclusions. (2) Use the 'assume and check' method when stuck. (3) Remember months with 30 days: April, June, September, November.
Most
Exam TrapsCommon mistakes students make — avoid these
Students confuse 'after' and 'before'. If A meets 2 days after B, it means A's day comes later than B's day. Many students reverse this relationship.
Always draw a timeline to avoid confusion.
Another frequent error is miscounting gaps. 'Two days after Monday' means Wednesday, not Tuesday. Count carefully: Monday (start) → Tuesday (1 day after) → Wednesday (2 days after).
Key Points to Remember
Read all conditions first before attempting to place anyone
Use elimination method - mark impossible positions with 'NO'
Formula: If X is 'n' days after Y on day 'd', then X is on day 'd+n'
Create possibility charts with people vs days/months grid
Direct clues (A meets Monday) are easier than indirect clues (A meets after B)
For circular weeks, use modulo 7 for date calculations
Months with 30 days: April, June, September, November
Count gaps carefully - 'two days after Monday' means Wednesday
Use assume-and-check method when multiple possibilities exist
Always verify final arrangement satisfies all given conditions
Exam-Specific Tips
Months with 31 days: January, March, May, July, August, October, December
Months with 30 days: April, June, September, November
February has 28 days in normal year, 29 days in leap year
Days of week cycle: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday, Sunday
First quarter months: January, February, March
Second quarter months: April, May, June
SSC CGL typically includes 2-3 scheduling puzzle questions per paper
Most common puzzle size involves 6-8 people and 6-8 time slots
Practice MCQs
Scheduling / Day-Month Puzzle — Practice Questions
21graded MCQs · easy to hard · full solution & trap analysis · showing 20 of 21
Ravi has a task schedule for a week. He works on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. He rests on Tuesday and Thursday. On Saturday, he works double shift. On Sunday, he rests. How many days does Ravi work in total during the week?
Practice 2easy
Five friends — Aman, Bhavna, Chirag, Diya, and Ertika — have scheduled their doctor appointments on five different days of the same week (Monday to Friday). Using the clues below, determine on which day does Chirag have his appointment?
Clues:
1. Aman's appointment is on Wednesday.
2. Bhavna's appointment is 2 days after Aman's.
3. Diya's appointment is on the day immediately before Ertika's.
4. Chirag's appointment is not on Monday and not on Friday.
5. Diya's appointment is before Chirag's appointment.
Practice 3easy
A library has opening hours from 9 AM to 6 PM on weekdays and 10 AM to 4 PM on weekends. If a student visits on Wednesday at 2 PM and stays for 3 hours, at what time does the student leave?
Practice 4easy
Five friends—Arun, Bhavna, Chetan, Diya, and Esha—are scheduled to give presentations on five consecutive days: Monday to Friday. Based on the following clues, on which day does Chetan give his presentation?
Clue 1: Arun presents on Monday.
Clue 2: Bhavna presents the day after Arun.
Clue 3: Chetan presents two days after Bhavna.
Clue 4: Diya presents on Friday.
Clue 5: Esha presents on the remaining day.
Practice 5easy
Four tasks—A, B, C, and D—are scheduled across four weeks: Week 1, Week 2, Week 3, and Week 4. Each task is assigned to exactly one week. Based on the clues, in which week is task C scheduled?
Clue 1: Task A is scheduled in Week 1.
Clue 2: Task B is scheduled in the week immediately after task A.
Clue 3: Task C is scheduled in the week immediately before task D.
Clue 4: Task D is not scheduled in Week 1.
Practice 6easy
Five events—E1, E2, E3, E4, and E5—occur on five consecutive days starting from Monday. Based on the clues, on which day does E3 occur?
Clue 1: E1 occurs on Monday.
Clue 2: E2 occurs two days after E1.
Clue 3: E4 occurs one day after E2.
Clue 4: E5 occurs on Friday.
Clue 5: E3 occurs on the remaining day.
Practice 7easy
Six meetings—M1, M2, M3, M4, M5, and M6—are scheduled on six different dates in a month: the 3rd, 8th, 13th, 18th, 23rd, and 28th. Based on the clues, on which date is M3 scheduled?
Clue 1: M1 is scheduled on the 3rd.
Clue 2: M2 is scheduled on the 8th.
Clue 3: M4 is scheduled exactly 10 days after M2.
Clue 4: M5 is scheduled on the 28th.
Clue 5: M6 is scheduled on the 23rd.
Clue 6: M3 is scheduled on the remaining date.
Practice 8easy
A train schedule shows departures at 8:00 AM, 10:30 AM, 1:15 PM, and 4:45 PM. If a passenger arrives at the station at 11:00 AM, which is the next train the passenger can catch?
Practice 9easy
Four friends—Aman, Bina, Chetan, and Diya—have meetings scheduled on different days of a week (Monday to Thursday). Aman's meeting is on Tuesday. Bina's meeting is two days after Aman's. Chetan's meeting is on the day before Bina's. Diya's meeting is on Monday. On which day is Chetan's meeting scheduled?
Practice 10easy
A project has deadlines on the 5th, 12th, 18th, and 25th of a month. If today is the 3rd of the month, how many deadlines are still pending (including today)?
Practice 11medium
Seven tasks—1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7—are scheduled over seven consecutive days: Monday through Sunday. Each task is scheduled exactly once. Based on the following clues, on which day is task 4 scheduled?
1. Task 1 is scheduled on Monday.
2. Task 3 is scheduled on Friday.
3. Task 5 is scheduled exactly two days after task 2.
4. Task 4 is scheduled before task 5.
5. Task 6 is scheduled on Sunday.
Practice 12medium
Six tasks—P, Q, R, S, T, U—are scheduled over six consecutive weeks: Week 1 through Week 6. Each task is scheduled exactly once. Based on the following clues, in which week is task R scheduled?
1. Task P is scheduled in Week 3.
2. Task Q is scheduled exactly three weeks before task T.
3. Task S is scheduled in Week 5.
4. Task R is scheduled after task Q but before task T.
Practice 13medium
Five events—A, B, C, D, E—are scheduled on five consecutive days: Monday through Friday. Each event occurs exactly once. Based on the following clues, on which day does event C occur?
1. Event A is on Wednesday.
2. Event B is on Monday.
3. Event D is exactly two days after event C.
4. Event E is not on Friday.
Practice 14medium
Four friends—Aman, Bina, Chetan, and Diya—are born in four different months: January, April, July, and October. Based on the following clues, in which month is Chetan born?
1. Aman is born in January.
2. Bina is born exactly three months before Diya.
3. Chetan is not born in January or October.
Practice 15medium
Five employees—Arun, Bhavna, Chitra, Deepak, and Esha—are scheduled for meetings on five consecutive days: Monday through Friday. Each person meets exactly once. Based on the following clues, on which day does Chitra have her meeting?
1. Arun's meeting is on Wednesday.
2. Bhavna's meeting is exactly two days before Esha's meeting.
3. Deepak's meeting is on Friday.
4. Chitra's meeting is not on Monday or Tuesday.
Practice 16hard
Eight employees—Aman, Bhavna, Chitra, Deepak, Esha, Faisal, Gita, Hira—are assigned to eight consecutive time slots (Slot 1 to Slot 8) for interviews. Each employee occupies exactly one slot. Based on the following constraints, in which slot is Chitra assigned?
1. Aman is in Slot 4.
2. Bhavna is in Slot 2.
3. Esha is exactly 2 slots after Deepak.
4. Gita is in Slot 7.
5. Hira is in Slot 1.
6. Chitra is not in Slots 1, 2, 3, or 4.
7. Faisal is in Slot 6.
Practice 17hard
Six tasks—P, Q, R, S, T, U—must be completed on six consecutive days: Monday through Saturday. Each task is assigned to exactly one day. Based on the following clues, on which day is task R scheduled?
1. Task P is scheduled on Wednesday.
2. Task Q is scheduled exactly 3 days after task S.
3. Task T is scheduled on Friday.
4. Task R is scheduled before task Q.
5. Task U is scheduled on Saturday.
Practice 18hard
Five friends — Arun, Bina, Chitra, Devi, and Eshaan — are scheduled to give presentations on five consecutive days: Monday to Friday. Each person presents on exactly one day, and no two people present on the same day.
The following conditions must be satisfied:
1. Arun presents on Wednesday.
2. Bina presents the day immediately after Chitra.
3. Devi presents on Friday.
4. Eshaan does not present on Monday.
5. Chitra presents before Arun.
On which day does Eshaan present?
Practice 19hard
Seven events—A, B, C, D, E, F, G—are scheduled on seven consecutive days: Monday through Sunday. Each event occurs exactly once. Based on the following clues, on which day does event E occur?
1. Event A is on Wednesday.
2. Event C is on Friday.
3. Event B is exactly 3 days after event D.
4. Event G is on Sunday.
5. Event E is not on Monday, Tuesday, or Wednesday.
6. Event F is on Thursday.
Practice 20hard
Five employees—Arun, Bhavna, Chitra, Deepak, and Esha—are scheduled for meetings on five consecutive days: Monday through Friday. Each person meets exactly once. Based on the following clues, on which day does Chitra have her meeting?
1. Arun's meeting is on Wednesday.
2. Bhavna's meeting is exactly 2 days before Deepak's meeting.
3. Esha's meeting is on Friday.
4. Chitra's meeting is not on Monday or Tuesday.
5. Deepak's meeting is not on Thursday.
1 more practice questions in the Study Panel
Difficulty-graded, bookmarkable, with timed mode. Free account — no credit card.