Pranav first goes 10 km towards the north. Then he turns towards the west and covers 10 km. After that he turns towards the south and covers 5 km, and finally he turns towards the east and covers 10 km. In which direction is he now from his original starting point?

Introduction / Context:
This direction sense problem describes a path that resembles a rectangular route with unequal sides. The aim is to track Pranav position after moving north, west, south, and then east. Instead of only visualizing the path, we must compute the net displacement and then express the final direction from the starting point. Problems of this type are frequently used to test basic spatial reasoning and understanding of cardinal directions.

Given Data / Assumptions:

• Pranav starts from an origin point.
• He walks 10 km north.
• He then walks 10 km west.
• He then walks 5 km south.
• Finally, he walks 10 km east.
• All distances are in kilometres and all turns represent right angle changes of direction.

Concept / Approach:
We can regard his motions as vectors on a coordinate plane. Let the starting point be at (0, 0). Movements towards north add to the y coordinate, movements towards south subtract from y, movements towards east add to the x coordinate, and movements towards west subtract from x. After summing all movements, we interpret the final coordinate pair as a displacement from the origin and convert that into a simple directional statement.

Step-by-Step Solution:
Start at (0, 0). Move 10 km north to reach (0, 10). Move 10 km west to reach (-10, 10). Move 5 km south to reach (-10, 5). Move 10 km east to reach (0, 5). Final position relative to origin is (0, 5). This means Pranav is 5 km directly north of his starting point.

Verification / Alternative check:
Horizontally, Pranav goes 10 km west and then 10 km east, which cancel each other, leaving no net east west displacement. Vertically, he goes 10 km north and then 5 km south, so he remains 5 km to the north of the origin. Therefore his final direction from the starting point is simply north.

Why Other Options Are Wrong:
Option A: South is opposite to the actual net vertical movement.
Option C and Option D: East and West are incorrect because the net horizontal displacement is zero.
Option E: None of these is wrong because North is already present as a correct option.

Common Pitfalls:
Many learners erroneously assume that returning to the east after going west always brings them back to the same vertical line, which is correct, but then mistakenly conclude that the entire path forms a closed loop. Another pitfall is ignoring that the southward distance is less than the northward distance, which leaves a remaining northward displacement. Carefully comparing totals in each direction avoids these mistakes.

Final Answer:
Pranav is finally walking in the North direction from his starting point.