CAT 2017 Slot 2 — QA Question 29
Letters and Letter BoxesEasy
In how many ways can 8 identical pens be distributed among Amal, Bimal, and Kamal so that Amal gets at least 1 pen, Bimal gets at least 2 pens, and Kamal gets at least 3 pens?
Answer & solution
Answer: 6
Solution
Out of 8 pens, Amal, Bimal and Kamal get at least 1, 2 and 3 pens.
So out of 8, pens 8 – (1 + 2 + 3) = 2 identical pens are to be distributed amongst 3 people.
So the number of ways in which 2 identical pens can be distributed amongst 3 people
= 2+3-1C3-1 = 4C2 or 6 ways.
Hence, 6.