The Group Planning Exercise (GPE) is a key component of the Group Task (GT) series at the SSB, designed to evaluate a candidate’s planning, teamwork, and problem-solving skills. In a typical GPE, you will be presented with a map, a situation, and several problems to tackle within a limited timeframe. You and your group must come up with a detailed, logical plan to address all issues effectively.
Below, you will find a situation. Read it carefully, analyse the information, and then propose a step-by-step plan in the comments section.
Sample GPE Map
Sample GPE Story
You are traveling by bus from village A to village B to write an exam at 2 p.m. At Junction J, you find a boy carrying an injured scientist on his cycle, shot in his hand. He said few people stole scientists’ car and scientific codes which are important for the experiment in the defense lab, or else the results could be catastrophic. Also, the scientist overheard that the miscreants are going to hand over the stolen scientific codes to his members reaching through helicopter at 1.15 p.m. on the airstrip. Given the scientific experiment requires the code at 1.30 p.m., the scientist tells them he can delay the effect by 30 minutes. Meanwhile, one of you was supposed to deliver a package from village A to the resort owner, but the resort owner said it is the wrong package. Hence, he tells you that it is important. Please get the right package ASAP. While you were at the resort, you saw a group of school children waiting for the early bus who came to visit the island. But the teacher informs you that one student is left behind at the island and the ferry also has returned due to an approaching storm. Mobile communications are not working. The time now is 12.30 p.m. As young students, what will you do?
Sample GPE Priority-wise Problems
| PRIORITIES | DEADLINE | PROBLEMS |
| 1 | 1:15 PM | Prevent stolen scientific codes from being handed over at Airstrip |
| 2 | 1:30–2 PM | Deliver codes to Defence Lab for critical experiment |
| 3 | ASAP | Rescue child stuck on island |
| 4 | Flexible | Deliver correct package to Resort Owner |
| 5 | 2:00 PM | Attend exam in Village B |
Sample GPE Group Division (Assuming 8 Students)
| GROUPS | MEMBERS | ASSIGNED TASKS |
| A | 2 | Intercept miscreants at Airstrip |
| B | 2 | Rush scientist + stolen codes to Defence Lab |
| C | 2 | Rescue stranded child at the Island |
| D | 2 | Deliver correct package from Village A to Resort |
Sample GPE Solution Timeline
| GROUPS | TASKS | DISTANCE | START | END | TIME TAKEN |
| A | Stop code transfer | 5 km | 12:30 PM | 12:50 PM | 20 mins |
| B | Hand over codes | 3 km | 1:00 PM | 1:20 PM | 20 mins |
| C | Rescue student from the island | 1 km | 12:30 PM | 1:10 PM | 40 mins |
| D | Deliver correct package to Resort | 30 km | 12:30 PM | 1:30 PM | 1 hour |
For more detailed solution, check out Sample GPE With Detailed Solution For SSB Interview – Part 20
