2. Lost Spring (Anees Jung)
Q.1 What is Saheb looking for in the garbage
dumps? Where is he and where has he come from?
Ans. Saheb is a
ragpicker like many of his companions. Sometimes he finds a rupee or a ten-rupee note. He lives in the Seemapuri area of Delhi. His family came to India from
Bangladesh in 1971. Searching garbage dumps for valuable things is a wonderful
job for him.
Q.2 What explanations does the author offer for
the children not wearing footwear?
Ans. The author
says that the rag-pickers do not wear shoes. To remain without shoes has
become a tradition for them, But she also thinks that it might be an excuse to
hide their poverty.
Q.3 Is Saheb happy working at the tea stall? Explain.
Ans. Saheb is not
happy working at a tea stall. Previously he was master of his own job. Now his
master is somebody else. It became a burden for him.
Q.4 Where did the author see Saheb one morning?
Why was he there?
Ans. One morning
Saheb was standing near the gate of a club. He was watching two young men
playing tennis. They were dressed in white. Saheb also liked to play tennis.
But he was not content(satisfied) to see them from a distance.
Q.5 What does the author say about the tennis shoes
that Saheb was wearing.
Ans. One day Saheb
was in tennis shoes. Those were discarded(thrown) by a rich boy. There was a
hole in one of them. To wear tennis shoes was Saheb’s dream come true. But to
play tennis was still out of his reach.
Q.6 Describe the people living in Seemapuri.
Ans. The people
living in Seemapuri are very poor. They are about 10,000 in number. They are
rag-pickers. They have no basic facility of life. Their houses are mud-built
with roofs of tin or tarpaulin. Food is more important to them than identity.
Q.7 What is the importance of garbage for the
people living in Seemapuri.
Ans. Garbage is a
gold mine for the people living in Seemapuri. They earn their bread from it.
They search for valuable things in the garbage. They get money by selling them.
Garbage has been the source of their livelihood.
Q.8 What does the writer, Anees Jung, tell Saheb
to do? How does she realise her mistake?
Ans. One morning
the writer, Anees Jung, asks Saheb as to why he does not go to a school. Saheb says that there is no school
in his neighbourhood, At this, she promises him to build a school for him. A
few days later, Saheb reminds her about the promise she had made. She realises
her mistake felt small in front of him.
Long Questions-Answer
Q.1 How does Anees Jung describe the life of
Seemapuri ragpickers?
Ans. Seemapuri
ragpickers live a life of hell. They cannot dream of living a normal life. They
came from Bangladesh in 1971. Since then, they are living in Seemapuri. Their
houses are of mud, with roofs of tin or tarpaulin. They have no basic facility
of sewage, drainage and running water. They are about 10,000. They are all rag
pickers. Garbage is gold mine for them. Their children help them in
rag-pickers. They are unable to go to school because of poverty. Food is more
important to them than anything else. Garbage is the only source of their
livelihood. As identity cards, they have only ration cards. They can buy grains
with their help of them.
Q.2 What does the writer Anees Jung, want Saheb
to do? How he makes her feel embarrassed (ashamed)?
Ans. The writer
sees rag pickers every morning. Saheb is one of them. One morning she asks him
why he does rag-picking. He replies that he has no other work to do. Then she
advises him to go to a school. At this, Saheb replies that there is no school
in his area. The writer promises him to open a school. She also tells him to
join her school then. A few days pass away. One day Saheb meets the writer. He
asks her if her school is ready. She replies that it takes time to build a school
but, at the same time, the writer feels embarrassed (ashamed). She should not
have made a false promise to Saheb.
. Lost Spring by
Anees Jung (Part 2)
Short-answer type Questions
(Notes made by Shish Pal
Chauhan: My YouTube Channel: Shish Pal Chauhan Yamuna Nagar)
Q1. Who was Mukesh? What was his dream?
Ans. Mukesh
was also one among thousands of boys, who are engaged in the odd work of making
bangles. His dream was to come out of the vicious circle of poverty. He wanted
to become a garage mechanic. For this, he would go on foot to reach the garage
to get his traing.
Q2. What makes the city of Firozabad famous? (Lesson 2: Lost Spring)
The city of
Firozabad is famous for the production of bangles of various colours. This odd
job is done by so many poor families engaged in this work. About 20,000
children are also engaged in this work.
Q3. What is the condition of the
children working in the glass bangles factories of Firozabad?
Or What are the hazards of working in the glass bangles industries of
Firozabad? (Important)
Ans. The glass bangles industries of
Firozabad do not provide good human conditions for the thousands of its
workers. They have to work in small rooms which have no ventilation for fresh
air and light to come there. Actually, the workers have put their eyes in danger
while working in these dark places with the light of furnaces only.
Q4. Describe the locality where
Mukesh lives?
Ans. The locality in which Mukesh lives is
not a Healthy place to live in. The streets are narrow and one can notice
heaps of garbage lying there. The domestic animals and human beings
love in those streets emit a foul smell. The huts they live in have no windows
and the doors are about to fall anytime.
Q5. What does the author say about
the girls and boys working in dark hutments?
Ans. In the dark huts, small boys and girls sit near the flickering oil lamps.
They weld the pieces of coloured glass into circles of bangles. Their eyes are
more adjusted to the darkness rather than the light of the day. That is the
reason why they lose their eyesight before reaching adulthood.
Q6. Who is Savita? What is she doing?
What does the writer wonder about her?
Ans. Savita is a young girl, who is
sitting near an elderly woman. She is in pink dress and soldering pieces of
glass. The writer wonders if she knows about the sanctity of bangles that she
is helping in.
Q7. How, in your opinion, can Mukesh
realize his dream? How is his attitude different from his parents'? Or Is it possible for Mukesh to realize his
dream? Justify your answer. (Important) (2009)
Ans. The author noticed a spark of
hope in Mukesh’s
eyes. He was determined to break the lineage of his forefathers by becoming a
garage mechanic. It is possible for him to realise his dream because all
hurdles are removed if the person is determined. He would walk the long
distance to reach the garage. His parents believe in destiny, which they think
cannot be changed.
Some
More Important Short Answer Type Questions :
Q.1 Who is Mukesh? What is his aim?
Ans. Mukesh is the
son of a bangle-maker. He also makes bangles. The spring (childhood) of his
life is also lost. He does not go to school. His aim is to become a motor mechanic.
He wants to become his own master.
Q.2 What is the condition of children working in
the glass furnace of Firozabad?
Ans. The condition
of children there is very bad. They have to work in unbearable heat. The rooms
are very small and without air and light. It badly affects their eyes and
health.
Q.3 What kind of locality does Mukesh live in?
Ans. He lives in a
dirty locality. The streets are narrow, full of garbage. A foul smell comes all
the time. The walls and doors of the houses are about to crumble (fall down).
There is no window. Even animals also live with human beings.
Q.4 Mention the hazards of working in the glass
bangles industry.
Ans. The workers of
this industry have to work in unhealthy conditions. They work near hot furnaces.
The rooms are very small. There are without air and light. The workers lose the
brightness of their eyes at an early age. The powder falling while polishing
bangles is very harmful to their eyes.
Q.5 What does the writer say about boys and
girls working in dark hutments?
Ans. These boys and
girls also live in the same conditions in which their parents are living. They
weld pieces of glass into bangles. The hutments are without proper light and
fresh air. Such unhealthy conditions badly affect their eyes and health.
Q.6 Who are the people responsible to keep the
bangle-makers in constant poverty?
Ans. The
bangle-maker of Firozabad are victims of a conspiracy ‘Sahukars’, middlemen,
policemen, bureaucrats and politicians are responsible for the poverty of
these people. They do not let these people come out of poverty - the vicious
(evil) circle.
Q.7 How is Mukesh’s attitude different from that
of his family?
Ans. The members of
Mukesh’s family believe in fate. His grandmother believes that poverty is
because of their ‘Karma’. They have accepted it as inevitable (unavoidable).
But Mukesh thinks differently. He wants to become a motor mechanic - the master
of himself. The writer had seen a ray of hope in his eyes.
Long Q/Ans. (“I
want to drive a car”)
Q.1 Describe the life of families engaged in
making bangles in Ferozabad.
Ans. Many families
in Ferozabad are engaged in making bangles. These families have been doing this
job for many years. They work near furnaces. They weld glass and make bangles.
Women of different parts of India wear them. About 20,000 children work near
these hot furnaces. They endanger their eyes while doing their work. The
bangle-makers of Ferozabad are very poor. They live in inhuman conditions. The
streets are very narrow. There are full of garbage. The walls and doors of
their houses are in crumbling (about to fall) condition. Mukesh’s family also
lives in the same area. They are the victims of middlemen, police, and
politicians.
Q.2 What did the writer see when Mukesh took him
to his home?
Ans. The condition
of that area was very bad. The streets were full of garbage. Those were full of
foul smells. The houses were in crumbling condition. The walls and doors were
about to fall down. There were no windows. Families of humans and animals lived
together in those little houses. Some houses had thatched roofs. Mukesh’s house
was a half-built shack (like a shed). There was a firewood stove (hearth). A
big vessel was placed on it. A young and weak woman was cooking the evening
meal. She was Mukesh’s elder brother’s wife. She is the ‘Bahu’ of the house.
She had to cover her face with a veil on her face in front of the elder male
members. It was a custom, Mukesh’s father was a poor person. He wanted to
repair the house. He also wanted to send his two sons to school. But he failed
to do so. Mukesh’s grandfather had become blind due to the dust of the bangles.
His grandmother thought it was her ‘Karma’.
