Poonam told Akshay that yesterday she defeated Sneha, who is described as the daughter of Akshay's only sister, in a school Taekwondo competition. In this blood relation question, how is Akshay related to Sneha?

Introduction / Context:
This is a short and direct blood relation problem about Akshay and Sneha. Poonam gives a description that Sneha is the daughter of the only sister of Akshay. The task is to determine how Akshay is related to Sneha. Questions like this check whether you can immediately recognise standard relations such as niece and uncle from a brief description.

Given Data / Assumptions:
• Akshay has exactly one sister.• Sneha is the daughter of this only sister.• There is no information that would change the normal meaning of sister or daughter.

Concept / Approach:
If Sneha is the daughter of Akshay's sister, then Akshay is the sibling of Sneha's mother. A male sibling of one's parent is an uncle. Therefore, Akshay is the maternal uncle of Sneha, because he is the brother of her mother. Recognising this pattern is the key to answering the question quickly.

Step-by-Step Solution:
Step 1: Identify Akshay's only sister, call her S.Step 2: Sneha is said to be the daughter of S.Step 3: That makes S the mother of Sneha.Step 4: Akshay is the brother of S, so he is the brother of Sneha's mother.Step 5: The brother of a child's mother is the child's maternal uncle.Step 6: Hence Akshay is the uncle of Sneha.

Verification / Alternative check:
From the perspective of Sneha, her mother has a brother, Akshay. There is no other close male relative described. In every culture that uses these reasoning questions, the term for brother of the mother is uncle, and because the connection is through the mother, it is more specifically maternal uncle. There is no sign that Akshay is a grandparent, parent or cousin of Sneha, so uncle is the only consistent role.

Why Other Options Are Wrong:
Grandfather of Sneha: This would require Akshay to be the father of Sneha's parent, which is not stated.Father of Sneha: The question clearly identifies Sneha's mother as Akshay's sister, not as his daughter.Cousin of Sneha: Cousins share grandparents, but Akshay is one generation above Sneha.Brother of Sneha: A brother shares parents with you; Akshay does not share parents with Sneha but with her mother.

Common Pitfalls:
Some candidates rush and confuse the direction of the relationship, thinking Sneha might be Akshay's cousin because the word sister appears. Others forget to check the generation. Keeping track of who is parent and who is child is enough to see that Akshay is in the generation above Sneha and is her uncle, not a cousin or sibling.

Final Answer:
Akshay is the uncle of Sneha.