Explain the method of solving blood-relation problems with suitable examples.

1. 1 · Open in two lines. Blood-relation questions describe a family in words and ask how two people are related. Turning the words into a family tree makes the answer visible.
2. 2 · Draw the family-tree symbols. [Diagram: three levels (grandparents, parents, children); + male, − female, = married couple; vertical line from parent to child; horizontal line between siblings]
3. 3 · Relation words.
   • Father's brother: paternal uncle; mother's brother: maternal uncle.
   • Brother's or sister's son or daughter: nephew or niece.
   • Uncle's or aunt's child: cousin.
   • Son's wife: daughter-in-law; sister's husband: brother-in-law.
4. 4 · Steps to solve.
   • Start from the end of the sentence and work inward.
   • Keep one generation on one level.
   • Mark sex only when it is given.
   • Read the answer from the side of the person asked about.
5. 5 · Example 1: pointing type. 'His mother is the only daughter of my mother,' says Kavya. The only daughter is Kavya herself, so the boy is her son.
6. 6 · Example 2: coded relations. If × means father, + brother and − sister, then P × Q + R − S makes P the father of Q, R and S. So P is S's father.
7. 7 · Use in competitive exams. Bank, SSC and railway papers set pointing, coded and family-tree puzzles; the tree method solves all three.
8. 8 · Close in one line. Draw first, then read: a neat family tree makes every blood-relation answer certain.

Scoring tip: Draw the tree even in a 2-mark answer; it shows your working and prevents generation slips.