In the given diagram, the direction of current is given. Due to the presence of the current carrying wire, the loop ABCD will be
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 3
The correct answer is Option (3) → repelled by the wire
Two parallel wires carrying current in the same direction attract each other, and wires carrying current in opposite directions repel. The force per unit length also falls with distance, \( F/l \propto 1/d \), so the nearer wire matters more.
The current \( i_2 \) runs D → C along the top, so it goes round the loop as D → C → B → A → D.
Side AD (nearest to the wire) carries current upward, opposite to \( i_1 \) which flows downward, so AD is repelled.
Side BC (farther from the wire) carries current downward, in the same direction as \( i_1 \), so BC is attracted, but the force is smaller because BC is farther away.
Sides DC and AB carry opposite currents at the same distances from the wire, so their forces are equal and opposite and cancel.
The repulsion on AD is larger than the attraction on BC, so the loop is pushed away from the wire.
NCERT (2026-27):
Force Between Two Parallel Currents, the Ampere – “… We have seen from above that currents flowing in the same direction attract each other. One can show that oppositely directed currents repel each other. Thus, Parallel currents attract, and antiparallel currents repel.”