(a) An educational institution is maintaining a database for storing the details of courses being offered. The database includes a table COURSE with the following attributes: C_ID: Stores the unique ID for each course. C_NAME: Stores the course's name. INSTRUCTOR: Stores the name of the course instructor. DURATION: Stores the duration of the course in hours. Table: COURSE | C_ID | C_NAME | INSTRUCTOR | DURATION | | --- | --- | --- | --- | | C101 | Data Structures | Dr. Alok | 40 | | C102 | Machine Learning | Prof. Sunita | 60 | | C103 | Web Development | Ms. Sakshi | 45 | | C104 | Database Management | Mr. Suresh | 50 | | C105 | Python Programming | Dr. Pawan | 35 | Write SQL queries for the following: (i) To add a new record with following specifications: C_ID: C106 C_NAME: Introduction to AI INSTRUCTOR: Ms. Preeti DURATION: 55 (ii) To display the longest duration among all courses. (iii) To count total number of courses run by the institution. (iv) To display the instructors' name in lower case. OR (b) Ashutosh, who is a manager, has created a database to manage employee records. The database includes a table named EMPLOYEE whose attribute names are mentioned below: EID: Stores the unique ID for each employee. EMP_NAME: Stores the name of the employee. DEPT: Stores the department of the employee. SALARY: Stores the salary of the employee. JOIN_DATE: Stores the employee's joining date. Table: EMPLOYEE | EID | EMP_NAME | DEPT | SALARY | JOIN_DATE | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | E01 | ARJUN SINGH | SALES | 75000 | 2019-11-01 | | E02 | PRIYA JAIN | ENGINEERING | 85000 | 2020-05-20 | | E03 | RAVI SHARMA | MARKETING | 60000 | 2018-08-14 | | E04 | AYESHA | NULL | 50000 | 2021-01-10 | | E05 | RAHUL VERMA | FINANCE | 40000 | 2017-06-25 | Write the output of the following SQL Queries: (i) Select SUBSTRING(EMP_NAME, 1, 5) from EMPLOYEE where DEPT = 'ENGINEERING'; (ii) Select EMP_NAME from EMPLOYEE where month(JOIN_DATE) = 8; (iii) Select EMP_NAME from EMPLOYEE where SALARY > 60000; (iv) Select count(DEPT) from EMPLOYEE;

> [!TLDR] > Part (a): INSERT C106; MAX(DURATION)=60; COUNT(*)=6 (after insert); LOWER(INSTRUCTOR) lowercases each name. > Part (b): (i) PRIYA, (ii) RAVI SHARMA, (iii) ARJUN SINGH & PRIYA JAIN, (iv) 4. ## Part (a) — writing queries on COURSE **(i) Insert a record.** Supply values in column order; strings quoted, the number bare. ```sql INSERT INTO COURSE VALUES ('C106', 'Introduction to AI', 'Ms. Preeti', 55); ``` **(ii) Longest duration.** `MAX` returns the largest DURATION. ```sql SELECT MAX(DURATION) FROM COURSE; ``` ```text MAX(DURATION) 60 ``` **(iii) Count of courses.** `COUNT(*)` tallies all rows. After part (i) the table holds 6 rows (5 originally). ```sql SELECT COUNT(*) FROM COURSE; ``` ```text COUNT(*) 6 ``` **(iv) Instructor names in lower case.** `LOWER()` converts each string to lowercase. ```sql SELECT LOWER(INSTRUCTOR) FROM COURSE; ``` ```text LOWER(INSTRUCTOR) dr. alok prof. sunita ms. sakshi mr. suresh dr. pawan …

(a) An educational institution is maintaining a database for storing the details of courses being offered. The

Question

(a) An educational institution is maintaining a database for storing the details of courses being offered. The database includes a table COURSE with the following attributes: C_ID: Stores the unique ID for each course. C_NAME: Stores the course's name. INSTRUCTOR: Stores the name of the course instructor. DURATION: Stores the duration of the course in hours.

Table: COURSE

C_ID	C_NAME	INSTRUCTOR	DURATION
C101	Data Structures	Dr. Alok	40
C102	Machine Learning	Prof. Sunita	60
C103	Web Development	Ms. Sakshi	45
C104	Database Management	Mr. Suresh	50
C105	Python Programming	Dr. Pawan	35

Write SQL queries for the following:

To add a new record with following specifications: C_ID: C106 C_NAME: Introduction to AI INSTRUCTOR: Ms. Preeti DURATION: 55
To display the longest duration among all courses.
To count total number of courses run by the institution.
To display the instructors' name in lower case. OR

(b) Ashutosh, who is a manager, has created a database to manage employee records. The database includes a table named EMPLOYEE whose attribute names are mentioned below: EID: Stores the unique ID for each employee. EMP_NAME: Stores the name of the employee. DEPT: Stores the department of the employee. SALARY: Stores the salary of the employee. JOIN_DATE: Stores the employee's joining date.

Table: EMPLOYEE

EID	EMP_NAME	DEPT	SALARY	JOIN_DATE
E01	ARJUN SINGH	SALES	75000	2019-11-01
E02	PRIYA JAIN	ENGINEERING	85000	2020-05-20
E03	RAVI SHARMA	MARKETING	60000	2018-08-14
E04	AYESHA	NULL	50000	2021-01-10
E05	RAHUL VERMA	FINANCE	40000	2017-06-25

Write the output of the following SQL Queries:

Select SUBSTRING(EMP_NAME, 1, 5) from EMPLOYEE where DEPT = 'ENGINEERING';
Select EMP_NAME from EMPLOYEE where month(JOIN_DATE) = 8;
Select EMP_NAME from EMPLOYEE where SALARY > 60000;
Select count(DEPT) from EMPLOYEE;

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Part (a)Concept understanding — Database Querying

Database Querying: Asking Questions of a Data Collection

Think of a library. You walk in, and instead of wandering through endless shelves, you go to the librarian and say: "I need all books by R. K. Narayan published after 1980." The librarian knows exactly where to look, finds the relevant books, and hands you a short list. That act of asking — of specifying exactly what you want from a large, organised collection — is the essence of querying.

A database is like that library, but for digital information. It stores data in a structured way, typically in tables with rows and columns. A query is simply a question you ask of that database. You don't need to know where the data lives or how it's stored internally. You just need to state what you want.

The Precise Meaning

In formal terms, a database query is a request for data or information from a database. The request is written in a special language that the database understands. The most common such language is SQL (Structured Query Language), but the concept of querying exists in every database system.

When you query a database, you are doing one of four things:

Retrieving data (the most common — "show me the customers who live in Delhi")
Inserting new data ("add this new student record")
Updating existing data ("change this address")
Deleting data ("remove this old order")

For a commerce or humanities student, the retrieval part is where the real power lies. You are not just pulling out raw data — you are filtering, sorting, and combining it to get answers.

Why It Matters

A database without querying is like a library with the lights off. The data exists, but you cannot use it. Querying turns stored facts into actionable information.

Consider a small business owner who keeps customer records in a spreadsheet. Without querying, they might scroll through hundreds of rows to find customers who haven't purchased in six months. With a query, they type one request and get the answer instantly. That answer might lead to a targeted marketing campaign, which brings in revenue.

Note

Querying is not about memorising commands. It is about thinking in terms of conditions and relationships. The skill is learning to translate a real-world question — "Which products are out of stock?" — into a precise, unambiguous request the database can process.

The Intuition Behind It

Every query has a simple structure at its core:

What data do you want? (Which columns or fields?)
Where is it? (Which table or collection?)
Under what conditions? (Which rows match your criteria?)

If you can answer those three questions in plain English, you are already thinking like someone who queries databases. The technical language (SQL) is just a way to write those answers down so the computer understands.

A Real-World Example …

Part (b)Concept understanding — Database Querying

Database Querying: Asking Questions of a Data Collection

The Precise Meaning

When you query a database, you are doing one of four things:

Retrieving data (the most common — "show me the customers who live in Delhi")
Inserting new data ("add this new student record")
Updating existing data ("change this address")
Deleting data ("remove this old order")

For a commerce or humanities student, the retrieval part is where the real power lies. You are not just pulling out raw data — you are filtering, sorting, and combining it to get answers.

Why It Matters

A database without querying is like a library with the lights off. The data exists, but you cannot use it. Querying turns stored facts into actionable information.

Note

The Intuition Behind It

Every query has a simple structure at its core:

What data do you want? (Which columns or fields?)
Where is it? (Which table or collection?)
Under what conditions? (Which rows match your criteria?)

A Real-World Example …

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Part (a) — COURSE queries

(i) Insert the new course:

INSERT INTO COURSE VALUES ('C106', 'Introduction to AI', 'Ms. Preeti', 55);

(ii) Longest duration:

SELECT MAX(DURATION) FROM COURSE;

Returns 60.

(iii) Total number of courses:

SELECT COUNT(*) FROM COURSE;

Returns 6 (after the insert in (i); 5 on the original table).

(iv) Instructor names in lower case:

SELECT LOWER(INSTRUCTOR) FROM COURSE;
``` …

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Part (a): INSERT C106; MAX(DURATION)=60; COUNT(*)=6 (after insert); LOWER(INSTRUCTOR) lowercases each name.

Part (b): (i) PRIYA, (ii) RAVI SHARMA, (iii) ARJUN SINGH & PRIYA JAIN, (iv) 4.

Part (a) — writing queries on COURSE

(i) Insert a record. Supply values in column order; strings quoted, the number bare.

INSERT INTO COURSE VALUES ('C106', 'Introduction to AI', 'Ms. Preeti', 55);

(ii) Longest duration. MAX returns the largest DURATION.

SELECT MAX(DURATION) FROM COURSE;

MAX(DURATION)
60

(iii) Count of courses. COUNT(*) tallies all rows. After part (i) the table holds 6 rows (5 originally).

SELECT COUNT(*) FROM COURSE;

COUNT(*)
6

(iv) Instructor names in lower case. LOWER() converts each string to lowercase.

SELECT LOWER(INSTRUCTOR) FROM COURSE;

LOWER(INSTRUCTOR)
dr. alok
prof. sunita
ms. sakshi
mr. suresh
dr. pawan …

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Same / Similar Concept — real previous-year questions on the same or a closely similar concept, not this exact question.

CBSE 2024Set 91/41 markMCQ
$Q. The SELECT statement when combined with ____ clause, returns records without repetition. (A) DISTINCT (B) DESCRIBE (C) UNIQUE (D) NULL$
›Reveal solutionSolution
SQL's DISTINCT keyword filters out duplicate rows from query results, ensuring each record appears only once. The answer is (A).

When you query a database table, you often retrieve multiple rows that may contain identical values across all selected columns. Think of a customer orders table where the same customer ID appears dozens of times—one for each order. If you only want to see which customers have placed orders (not how many times), you need a mechanism to collapse duplicates into a single representative row.

The SELECT statement by itself returns every row that matches your conditions, duplicates and all. SQL provides the DISTINCT keyword specifically to eliminate repetition: it compares the entire result set row-by-row and keeps only unique combinations.

How each option relates to SQL

DISTINCT – This is the standard SQL keyword placed immediately after SELECT to remove duplicate rows. For example:

SELECT DISTINCT customer_id FROM orders;

returns each customer ID exactly once, no matter how many orders they placed.

DESCRIBE – A command (or keyword in some databases) used to show the structure of a table—its column names, data types, constraints—not to filter query results. It's a metadata inspection tool, not a result-set modifier.

UNIQUE – In SQL, UNIQUE is a constraint applied to columns during table creation to enforce that no two rows have the same value in that column. It's not a clause you combine with SELECT to filter results. You might see it in:

CREATE TABLE users (email VARCHAR(100) UNIQUE); …
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CBSE 2020Set 91/D1 mark
$Q. Which clause is used with a SELECT command in SQL to display the records in ascending order of an attribute?$
›Reveal solutionSolution
The ORDER BY clause is used with the SELECT command in SQL to display records in ascending order of an attribute.

When we work with databases using SQL (Structured Query Language), the SELECT command is our primary tool for retrieving information. Imagine a vast library of books; SELECT is like asking the librarian to fetch specific books or details about them. However, when the librarian hands you the books, they might not be in any particular order – perhaps by the order they were found, or by some internal system. For us to make sense of the data, especially when dealing with many records, we often need them arranged in a logical sequence.

This need for structured presentation is where ordering comes in. Displaying records in ascending order of an attribute means arranging them from the smallest value to the largest, or alphabetically from A to Z for text. For instance, if you're looking at a list of students, you might want them sorted by their roll numbers from lowest to highest, or by their names alphabetically. This makes the data much easier to read, analyze, and understand.

To achieve this specific ordering in SQL, we use a special clause called ORDER BY. This clause is appended to the SELECT statement and tells the database system exactly how we want the retrieved records to be sorted.

Important

The ORDER BY clause is crucial for presenting query results in a meaningful and organized manner, making data analysis and reporting much more efficient.

Here's how the ORDER BY clause works:

Specifying the Attribute: You must specify one or more attributes (columns) by which you want to sort the data. For example, if you have a table of Students with columns like RollNo, Name, and Marks, you could choose to sort by RollNo or Name.

Ascending Order (ASC): By default, if you just specify an attribute with ORDER BY, the records will be sorted in ascending order. However, it's good practice to explicitly use the ASC keyword to make your intention clear. ASC stands for Ascending. This means numbers will go from smallest to largest, and text will go from A to Z. …
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Part (a) — writing queries on COURSE

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