Lost Aspring by Anees
The story "Lost Spring" written by Anees Jung shows the pitiable conditions of poor children who are forced to live in slums and work hard to survive in dirty conditions. The story has two parts.
The first part is about the life of poor ragpickers who have migrated from Bangladesh but now settled in Seemapuri area of Delhi. It is about a boy named Saheb, a poor ragpicker, who looks for some coins and other things in a garbage heap. The homes and fields of Saheb like other people had swept away by storms. They had nothing to eat. They had come here and started living in Seemapuri. There were a number of ragpickers like Saheb. They were all barefoot. They used it as an excuse to hide their poverty. According to Saheb, for children like Saheb garbage becomes something wrapped in wonder but for elders, it is a means of survival. They feel free in this work. Later on, Saheb started working on a tea stall. Though he was paid 800 rupees and all the meals he is not free now eight hundred rupees.
Q. To which country did Saheb's parents originally belong? Why did they come to India? (Compartment 2014)
Or
Why did Saheb's parents leave Dhaka and migrate to India? (Compartment 2014)
Or
Why had the ragpickers come to live in Seemapuri? (Foreign 2014)
Ans. Saheb's parents belonged to Dhaka in Bangladesh. There they lived amidst green fields. They and the other ragpickers left their homes many years ago and migrated to India in search of a livelihood, as their homes and fields were destroyed in storms.
Q. What job did Saheb take up? Was he happy? (All India 2014)
Ans. Saheb took up work at a tea stall. There he had to perform several odd jobs which he did not like. He was given 800 rupees and all his meals but he was not happy there because he had lost his independence. He was no longer his own master now. He had to work under the owner of the tea stall.
Q. In what sense is garbage gold to the ragpickers? (Compartment 2014)
Or
Garbage to them is gold; why does the author say so about the ragpickers? (Delhi 2008)
Ans. Garbage is gold to the ragpickers of Seemapuri because it provides them items which can be sold for cash, which can buy them food and is a means of survival. Moreover, it is gold because the ragpickers can find stray coins and currency notes in it.
Q. How is Mukesh different from the other bangle makers of Firozabad? (Delhi 2014)
Ans. The other ragpickers o Seemapuri have suppressed all their hopes and desires. They does not have any courage to dream. They have submitted themselves to their fate. Unlike them Mukesh has the courage to dream big in spite of all adversity. He refuses to follow the 'God-given lineage of bangle making. He wants to become a motor mechanic when he grows up.
Q. Whom does Anees Jung blame for the sorry plight of the bangle makers? (Compartment 2014)
Ans. Anees Jung blames the middlemen, the policemen, the lawmakers, the bureaucrats and the politicians for the sorry plight of the bangle makers. These people conspire against and exploit the poor bangle makers. They pay them meagre wages. They do not let them form co-operatives, and compel their children to join the same trade at an early age.
Q. What is Mukesh's dream? Do you think he will be able to fulfil his dream? Why? Why not? (Compartment 2014)
Or
What was Mukesh's dream? In your opinion, did he achieve his dream? (Foreign 2009)
Or
Is it possible for Mukesh to realise his dream? Justify your answer. (All India 2009)
Ans. Mukesh's dream is to become a motor-mechanic. It is no doubt difficult for Mukesh to achieve his dream, as he is torn between his desires and his family tradition, which he cannot escape. Besides, he has to face a number of obstacles in the form of sahukars, middlemen, bureaucrats, law makers, politicians etc. However, his determination and strong will power could make him achieve his dream.
Q. In spite of despair and disease pervading the lives of the slum children, they are not devoid of hope. How far do you agree? (Delhi 2013)
Ans. In spite of growing up amidst despair and disease, children who live in the slum have the desire to achieve something big in life, like Mukesh. This shows that they are not devoid of hope. Saheb, a ragpicker, is eager to go to a school and learn. Mukesh, who works in dark, dingy cells making bangles, dreams of becoming a motor mechanic, which is very much against his family tradition.
Q. Who is Mukesh? What is his dream? (Delhi 2012)
Ans. Mukesh is a child labourer who works in a glass bangle making factory that is situated in Firozabad. Though Mukesh belongs to a poor family which is engaged in bangle making, he dreams of becoming a motor mechanic when he grows up.
Q. Why could the bangle makers not organise themselves into a cooperative? (All India 2012)
Ans. The bangle makers could not organise themselves into a cooperative because they were trapped in the vicious circle of sahukars, middlemen, policemen, up bureaucrats and politicians. If they tried to organise themselves, they would be beaten by up the police and put in jail.
Q. Mention any two hazards of working in the bangle industry. (Foreign 2011)
Ans. The glass bangle industry offers a very unhealthy and hazardous environment to the people working in it. They have to work in the glass furnaces with high temperature in dingy cells without air and light. Workers, including child labourers, lose their eyesight at an early age. They have to work for long hours. As a result it has also adverse effects on their bodies.
Q. Why does the author say that the bangle makers are caught in a vicious web? (All India 2010)
Ans. The bangle makers in Firozabad are exploited at the hands of the Sahukars, middlemen policemen, law makers, bureaucrats and politicians. They toil day and night, but are not paid appropriate wages and have to lead a life of poverty. They cannot cooperatives for their betterment. Moreover heir chil;dren are also compelled to join the same trade at an early stage.
Q. What is Saheb looking for in the garbage dumps? Where is he and where has he come?
Ans. Saheb is a rag picker. He is looking for bits of paper, rags, plastic items in the garbage dumps. He makes his living by selling these things. These things are no less than gold for him. He is living in Seemapuri, which is on the outskirts of Delhi. He has come from Dhaka in Bangladesh.
Q. What explanations does the author offer for the children not wearing footwear?
Or
Why did Saheb's parents leave Dhaka and migrate to India? (Compartment 2014)
Or
Why had the ragpickers come to live in Seemapuri? (Foreign 2014)
Ans. Saheb's parents belonged to Dhaka in Bangladesh. There they lived amidst green fields. They and the other ragpickers left their homes many years ago and migrated to India in search of a livelihood, as their homes and fields were destroyed in storms.
Q. What job did Saheb take up? Was he happy? (All India 2014)
Ans. Saheb took up work at a tea stall. There he had to perform several odd jobs which he did not like. He was given 800 rupees and all his meals but he was not happy there because he had lost his independence. He was no longer his own master now. He had to work under the owner of the tea stall.
Q. In what sense is garbage gold to the ragpickers? (Compartment 2014)
Or
Garbage to them is gold; why does the author say so about the ragpickers? (Delhi 2008)
Ans. Garbage is gold to the ragpickers of Seemapuri because it provides them items which can be sold for cash, which can buy them food and is a means of survival. Moreover, it is gold because the ragpickers can find stray coins and currency notes in it.
Q. How is Mukesh different from the other bangle makers of Firozabad? (Delhi 2014)
Ans. The other ragpickers o Seemapuri have suppressed all their hopes and desires. They does not have any courage to dream. They have submitted themselves to their fate. Unlike them Mukesh has the courage to dream big in spite of all adversity. He refuses to follow the 'God-given lineage of bangle making. He wants to become a motor mechanic when he grows up.
Q. Whom does Anees Jung blame for the sorry plight of the bangle makers? (Compartment 2014)
Ans. Anees Jung blames the middlemen, the policemen, the lawmakers, the bureaucrats and the politicians for the sorry plight of the bangle makers. These people conspire against and exploit the poor bangle makers. They pay them meagre wages. They do not let them form co-operatives, and compel their children to join the same trade at an early age.
Q. What is Mukesh's dream? Do you think he will be able to fulfil his dream? Why? Why not? (Compartment 2014)
Or
What was Mukesh's dream? In your opinion, did he achieve his dream? (Foreign 2009)
Or
Is it possible for Mukesh to realise his dream? Justify your answer. (All India 2009)
Ans. Mukesh's dream is to become a motor-mechanic. It is no doubt difficult for Mukesh to achieve his dream, as he is torn between his desires and his family tradition, which he cannot escape. Besides, he has to face a number of obstacles in the form of sahukars, middlemen, bureaucrats, law makers, politicians etc. However, his determination and strong will power could make him achieve his dream.
Q. In spite of despair and disease pervading the lives of the slum children, they are not devoid of hope. How far do you agree? (Delhi 2013)
Ans. In spite of growing up amidst despair and disease, children who live in the slum have the desire to achieve something big in life, like Mukesh. This shows that they are not devoid of hope. Saheb, a ragpicker, is eager to go to a school and learn. Mukesh, who works in dark, dingy cells making bangles, dreams of becoming a motor mechanic, which is very much against his family tradition.
Q. Who is Mukesh? What is his dream? (Delhi 2012)
Ans. Mukesh is a child labourer who works in a glass bangle making factory that is situated in Firozabad. Though Mukesh belongs to a poor family which is engaged in bangle making, he dreams of becoming a motor mechanic when he grows up.
Q. Why could the bangle makers not organise themselves into a cooperative? (All India 2012)
Ans. The bangle makers could not organise themselves into a cooperative because they were trapped in the vicious circle of sahukars, middlemen, policemen, up bureaucrats and politicians. If they tried to organise themselves, they would be beaten by up the police and put in jail.
Q. Mention any two hazards of working in the bangle industry. (Foreign 2011)
Ans. The glass bangle industry offers a very unhealthy and hazardous environment to the people working in it. They have to work in the glass furnaces with high temperature in dingy cells without air and light. Workers, including child labourers, lose their eyesight at an early age. They have to work for long hours. As a result it has also adverse effects on their bodies.
Q. Why does the author say that the bangle makers are caught in a vicious web? (All India 2010)
Ans. The bangle makers in Firozabad are exploited at the hands of the Sahukars, middlemen policemen, law makers, bureaucrats and politicians. They toil day and night, but are not paid appropriate wages and have to lead a life of poverty. They cannot cooperatives for their betterment. Moreover heir chil;dren are also compelled to join the same trade at an early stage.
Q. What is Saheb looking for in the garbage dumps? Where is he and where has he come?
Ans. Saheb is a rag picker. He is looking for bits of paper, rags, plastic items in the garbage dumps. He makes his living by selling these things. These things are no less than gold for him. He is living in Seemapuri, which is on the outskirts of Delhi. He has come from Dhaka in Bangladesh.
Q. What explanations does the author offer for the children not wearing footwear?
Ans. The author sees Saheb and other poor children without footwear or chappals. One explanation is that it has become a tradition for them to remain barefoot. But the author feels that it is only an excuse to explain away a continuous state of poverty.
Q. Is Saheb happy working at the tea-stall? Explain.
Ans. One day the author finds Saheb on the way to the milk booth. When the author asked her, he told her that he worked at a tea stall and got 800 per month plus meals. But his face doesn't show the carefree look of the old days. He doesn't seem to be happy working at the tea stall.
Q. What makes the city of Firozabad famous?
Ans. The city of Firozabad is famous for its bangles. Almost every other family is engaged in making bangles. It is the center of India’s glass-blowing industry. Here families have spent generations working around furnaces, welding glasses making bangles for all the women of the country.
Q. Mention the hazards of working in the glass bangles industry.
Ans. The workers in the glass bangle industry work in dark cells without air and light. They go blind even before they become old. The dust from polishing the glass bangles makes them blind. Thus working in the glass bangles industry is hazardous, dangerous and unhealthy.
Q. How is Mukesh’s attitude to his situation different from that of his family?
Ans. Mukesh belongs to a family of bangle makers. They are very poor and work in miserable conditions. Their work is hazardous. But they have accepted their destiny. However, Mukesh's attitude is different. He does not follow the occupation of his family. He wants to become a motor mechanic.
No comments:
Post a Comment