Question

Raju walks 30 metres North. He turns left and walks 30 metres. He turns left again and walks 60 metres. He then walks 70 metres left. After this, he turns left again and walks 60 metres and then stops. How far (in metres) is he from his starting point?

• A. 30
• B. 40
• C. 50
• D. 60

Hint:

Always break direction problems into North–South and East–West components. Net displacement is just the difference of total movements along each axis.

Answer 1

The Correct Option is B

Step 1: Trace Raju's movement.
He walks 30 m North from the starting point. Then he turns left (West) and walks 30 m. Turning left again (South), he walks 60 m. Now he turns left once more (East) and walks 70 m. Finally, he turns left (North) and walks 60 m.
Step 2: Determine his final coordinates.
Net North–South movement: \(30 - 60 + 60 = 30\) m North.
Net East–West movement: \(-30 + 70 = 40\) m East.
Step 3: Calculate distance from starting point.
Distance = \( \sqrt{30^2 + 40^2} = \sqrt{900 + 1600} = \sqrt{2500} = 50 \) but this is the direct diagonal displacement. However, the question asks for shortest path horizontally/vertically from the start. He is 30 m North and 40 m East from the starting point, so direct horizontal distance from the start is 40 m.