This document discusses operational research and assignment techniques. It begins by defining operational research as a scientific approach to problem solving aimed at reducing costs. It then provides examples of how operational research is used in various sectors like transportation, healthcare, and banking. The document outlines the characteristics and limitations of operational research. It proceeds to define assignment techniques as a way to allocate jobs and resources in the lowest cost manner. The remainder of the document details the specific steps involved in solving an assignment problem using a matrix-based approach to find an optimal solution.