The lost spring English II for class 12 for CBSE PDF

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Lesson -2 THE LOST SPRING By-Anees Jung

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1. The life of bangle makers of Firozabad was full of obstacles which forced themto lead a life of poverty and deprivation. Discuss with reference to Lost Spring. Key Points to Answer Bangle makers born in poverty, live in poverty, die in poverty. There is possibility of skin burn too-- the chances of losing one’s eye- sight People have been engaged in this trade since generations. Work in inhuman conditions. Although they work hard, their profit is small. Their hovels have crumbing walls, wobbly doors and no windows. They are overcrowded with humans and animals. Social customs, traditions, stigma of caste and people in authority combine so that they remain poor and uneducated Money lenders, middlemen, politicians and policemen are all against them. Unable to organize themselves into a co-operative unit due to lack of a leader. A vicious circle of the middlemen, Sahukars, policemen, keepers of law, the bureaucrats and the politicians exploit the bangle makers. They have lost the ability to dream. They can only talk but not act to improve their lot.

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2. In spite of having migrated in 1971, the rag pickers still continue to be Rag-pickers. Discuss. Key Points to Answer Migrated from Dhaka, live on the outskirts of Delhi.10,000 rag pickers Spend time only scrounging for gold in the garbage dumps. Live in a state perpetual poverty --- condition remains the same for the past thirty years Bare foot – appear like morning birds and disappear at noon. Living conditions--- mud houses, tarpaulin / tin roof – devoid of sewage, drainage No identity and permits, Have ration card and names on the voter list Struggle for survival than identity , no education for children Garbage to them gold - gives daily bread and roof over their heads. Reluctant to change their means of livelihood.

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SHORT ANSWER TYPE QUESTION : 1. What was Saheb searching in the garbage? Gold – things like plastics bags – found there would help him earn his livelihood, Even money at times.

2. What compelled them to leave their homes?

Frequent storms – homes and fields destroyed – Not able to make both ends meet. --- Starvation.

3. ‘Is your school ready?’ What happened to the author when the author asked him this and why? Felt ashamed of making a promise he did not mean. – realized that every one deceives them.

4. What would happen to Sahib if he learnt what his name meant? He would have a hard time believing it.

5. “Seemapuri” – a place on the periphery of Delhi and yet miles away from it. Explain. There lives are miserable – very different from the lives of people of Delhi 6. Describe the life of the people of Seemapuri. Seemapuri exists on the outskirts of Delhi – refugee camp people from Bangladesh, have left their home land for livelihood. – they live in dingy cells – small houses of mud with roof of tin and tarpaulin – no sewage, drainage or even fresh water- extremely poor – don’t have enough to eat.

7. The children and their parents have different views regarding rag picking. How does their viewpoint differ? i.

For adults- way of living & bread butter, rag picking is a fine art – a means to keep their body and soul together. ii. For children garbage is wrapped with wonders – find toys, money and amzing things at times.

8. How did Saheb come to own a pair of shoes? He was poor – couldn’t purchase one – some rich boy discarded the said shoes for there was a hole in one of them – may be during one of the rag picking sessions – he found them.

9. Why did the gate keeper allow Sahib in the club? The gatekeeper was himself poor and understood the child’s feelings -out of kindness he allowed him in.

10. What made Saheb feel the canister of milk seem heavier? /Why was he unhappy working in the tea stall? The canister was not his own – he was no longer his own master – he lost his freedom---so he was not happy, 11. Why was the author happy to know that Mukesh wanted to be a motor mechanic? Daring was not their part of growing up–they were illiterate-orthodox-profession was God given lineage– generally people did not prefer a change–not aware of their own rights- were being exploited. 12. Describe the plight of the Bangle makers. Description of poverty—Minimum achievements—Description of their Working conditions.— Dim lights etc-end up losing their eyesight. 13. What does Mukesh's grandmother think of the profession? Feels sorry about their poverty—accepts it as their destiny—A God given lineage can’t be changed. 14 Why did the bangle makers have no co-operative Societies? Illiterate –ignorant about their rights—have fallen into the vicious circle of middlemen from generations together - harassed by the police and political people. 15. ‘Listening to them I see two distinct worlds’. Mention the two worlds. The families of the bangle makers are caught in the web of poverty on one side and the other a vicious circle of the middlemen, sahukars, policemen, keepers of law, the bureaucrats and the politicians exploited the bangle makers. 16. Mukesh wants to be a mechanic but the garage is a long way from his home. Explain. Mukesh has a new way of thinking, fully decided to become mechanic, shows his determination, has a new profession in mind, does not have enough money but will-power, does not dream beyond his realities.

TEXTUAL QUESTIONS 1) What is sahib looking for in the garbage dumps? (IMP) Ans- Saheb is a rag-picker from Seemapuri which is a suburban colony of east Delhi. He is always looking for gold in the garbage dumps. For the children, garbage is wrapped in wonder and for the elders it is means of survival. It is the daily bread for the rag-pickers. Sometimes Saheb finds a rupee and even a ten rupee note or a silver coin. There is always hope of finding more. Saheb is living in Seemapuri where more than 10,000 rag-pickers stay. He has come from the green fields of Dhaka. His house and fields were swept away due to

the storms. There they were not getting enough food for survival but in Delhi they go to bed without an aching stomach.

2) What explanation does the author offer for the children not wearing footwear? Ans- The authoress sees he army of barefoot rag-pickers in her neighbourhood. They appear like morning birds and disappear at noon from the street. She points that she has seen children walking barefoot in the cities, village roads. She takes this habit of remaining barefoot as a tradition to stay barefoot. But remaining barefoot among the children is a perpetual state of poverty in their families. She notices many others like the rag-pickers in her neighbourhood remain shoeless. For the children who have never owned shoes in their childhood, getting shoes become a dream come true. Once Saheb gets a pair of tennis shoes with a hole. He wears it and does not mind any other thing. Lack of money is the real cause of not wearing footwear. 3) Is Saheb happy working at the tea-stall? Explain. Ans- One morning while going on his way to the milk booth, Saheb meets the authoress. He tells that he works ay the tea stall down the road. He says that he is paid 800 rupees and all his meals. But his face has lost his carefree look. He is no longer his own master at the tea stall. For him the steel milk canister seems heavier than his plastic bag that he would carry lightly over his shoulders. The canister belongs to the tea owner and the life under the master is not a life of happiness. 4)What makes the city of Firozabad famous? Ans- The city of Firozabad is famous for its bangles. Every other family in Firozabad is engaged in the business of making bangles. Firozabad is a centre of India’s glass blowing industry. Since generations the families are working around furnaces, welding glass and making bangles for all the women on the land. The bangles are symbolised as woman’s suhag. There are bangle makers in the narrow streets of Firozabad in every house. The heaps of the spirals of bangles can be seen on every place there in Firozabad. All the members of the family can be seen welding and soldering the glass bangles in the different colours of the rainbow. 4) Mention the hazards of working in the glass bangles industry. (M.IMP) Ans- Working in the glass bangle industry is full of numerous health hazards. The children work in the glass furnaces with high temperature. They work in the dingy cells here there is no light and no air. This spoils their health, eye-sight and other parts of the body. The bangle makers weld pieces of coloured glass into circles of bangles. They polish them and the dust of polishing along with the high temperature flames result in loosing their eye-sight before they

become adult. They live and work in stinking lanes and thereby their health goes on deteriorating. The bangle makers with their families work for the whole day and fail to have enough food to eat. They could hardly succeed in putting on proper clothes and a roof over their head. They remain in the perpetual state of grinding poverty. The glass bangle industry of Firozabad is one of its kind which illegally employs the child labour. About 20,000 are employed in this hazardous work and do not have an access to education. A vicious circle of sahukars, middlemen, policemen, keepers of law, bureaucrats and politicians are responsible for their sorry state of affairs and they cannot start a cooperative. Most of them hardly reap their one time full meal in their full life time. 5) How is Mukesh’s attitude to his situation different from that of his family? Ans- Mukesh is a boy with a daring attitude to drive a car. His family is engaged in making bangles. But his dream seems like a mirage. His family believes in ‘karam theory’. But Mukesh insist on being his own master. So he announces, I will be a motor mechanic. He repeats ‘‘I want to be a motor mechanic.’’ He says he will go to a garage and learn. Though the garage is a long distance from his house, yet he will walk to the garage. He does not dream of flying a plain. He is content to dream of cars that he sees hurtling down the streets of his town. This shows that Mukesh has an attitude of doing something different from that of his family. £££££££££££££££££££££££££££££££££££££££££££££££££££££££££££££££££££££££££££ £££££££££££££££££££££££££££££££££££££££££££££££ UNDERSTANDING THE TEXT A) What could be some of the reasons for migration of people from villages to cities? (V.IMP) Ans- Due to urbanisation, education, employment, safety and other basic amenities more and more people are migrating from villages to cities. In the lesson at hand, people have fled from Bangladesh because their fields and houses were swept away by the storm. There they could not get enough food to fill their belly. The settlement of Seemapuri is a fine example of his kind. In addition to this one can see that the pressure on the land has increased due to population and mechanical farming. So the requirement of labour is very acute. Consequently people flee to cities for work. In earlier days means of education, transport etc were very few. Only a few could get education. Agriculture was their main profession. With extensive and renovate education, the youths run from post to pillar in search of job. They do not want to stay in unhygienic and unhealthy rural surrounding.

Not to speak of this, all sorts of village crafts have been replaced by machines. The market is full of competition, quality and cheap goods. The villagers fail to compete with the new system of heavy industrialisation. So the people migrate from villages to cities. B) Would you agree that promises made to the poor children are rarely kept? Why do you think this happens in the incidents narrated in the text? ANS- There is no denying to the fact that the promises made to the poor children are rarely kept. In our modern democratic India, people living in slum colonies, resettlement areas and jhuggi and jhopari colonies hardly have an access to civic amenities and the education. They are meant for casting their votes or show attendance in political rallies. Their grieves are hardly adhered to by the bureaucrats. The writer has given two current examples of Seemapuri and Firozabad. In Seemapuri one can see more than 10,000 rag-pickers who live in structures of mud, with roofs of tin and tarpaulin. They are devoid of sewage, drainage or running water. They live without an identity except a ration card for voting and buying grains. They remain barefoot and garbage to them is gold. The writer asks Saheb a rag-picker for school. The boy replies that there is none in his neighbourhood. He further says if they build it, he will go, But this never done. In the same way about 20,000 children work in bangle factories and work in glass furnaces with high temperature. They live in dingy cells and stingy lanes choked with garbage. They pass their lives in grinding poverty and fail to get proper food. Thus the poor have no dreams and no initiatives. They are the safest targets of exploitation. C) What forces conspire to keep the workers in bangle industry of Firozabad in poverty? Ans- In her lesson, the writer points out that the bangle makers of Firozabad live in the state of grinding poverty. These people are burdened with the stigma of caste in which they are born,. All the members of the family are engaged in doing various jobs pertaining to the bangle making. Before they become adult and dare to do something, they fall to their ancestral profession. They are unable to go away from the god given lineage and believe in karam theory. Thus they go on looming in their own world. Further there are other forces that conspire them to work in bangle industry. The sahukars, the middlemen, the policemen, the keepers of law, the bureaucrats and the politicians all eat in parts, the flesh of the bangle makers. They cannot run a co-operative. Together they push them to a sorrowful state and became often blind before becoming an adult. Thus more than 20,000 children are working in this hazardous profession against the law. The parents, society and the bureaucrats all are responsible to this sorry state of affairs. £££££££££££££££££££££££££££££££££££££££££££££££££££££££££££££££££££££££££££ £££££££££££££££££££££££££££££££££££££££££££££££

TALKING ABOUT THE TEXT A) How in your opinion can, Mukesh realise his dream? Ans- Mukesh belongs to the family of bangle makers who prepare colourful bangles like that of a rainbow. But his attitude to his situation is different from others. He is a daring boy and he announces ‘‘I will be a motor mechanic. I will learn to drive a car.’’ Though the garage is a long way from his home; yet he insists ‘‘I will go to the garage and learn.’’ The determination and strong will of becoming a motor mechanic and learning to drive a car, seems to be as strong as a rock in Mukesh. That is why he says I will walk to the garage. There he must see the owner of the garage and request him to become a motor mechanic. He must request for any petty work pertaining to the garage. Trough his sincere efforts and hard work and the guidance of his owner, he can attain the skills of a mechanic and then gradually that of car driving. It is sure that he can get his dream materialised properly. B) Mention the hazards of working in the glass bangle industry? (EXPECTED) Ans- The glass blowing industries of Firozabad employs local families and these families have spent generations working around furnaces, welding glass and making bangles of different colours. Working around the high temperature furnaces is very injurious to our growing bodies. The dark dingy cells without light and air worsen the working conditions of the children. The dazzling and sparkling of welding light and the high temperature render the situation hellish. About 20,000 children spend their day light hours and often loose the brightness of their eyes before they become adults. The bangle makers lead their lives in utter misery and grinding poverty. They could never prosper working in this industry. They hardly get a belly full of meal in their lifetime. Thus they are not only underfed but also prone to ailments and education. The dingy cells and stinking smell of garbage choke their bodies. There are flames of flickering oil lamps, the blinding, polishing and the welding work put a deep impact on their complete bodies. Those who work in, loose their eye-sight before they become adults. C) Why should child labour be eliminated and how? Ans- The child labour employed in any form of hazardous work is an offence. It is banned under law. Yet it goes on unabated, at the industrial towns like Firozabad, Shivakasi, mirzapur and so on. The child labour is hazardous in nature. It inflicts physical and mental harm to the boys. The work in the glass bangle industry often ends up them loosing their eye-sight before they become adults. The mind-numbling toil of bangle making kills all their initiative, drive and ability to dream in life. They are even deprived of the school education and proper growth.

According to Anees Jung about 20,000 children are working in the glass bangle industry of Firozabad. Some of the industrialist conspire in unison with the sahukars, the middlemen, the policemen and the politicians and then go on stealing their childhood for some extra coins. The only possible solution lies with the government and the society to punish the wrong doers very strictly; and to keep a careful watch and vigil over them. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------SHORT ANSWER TYPE QUESTIONS 1) What does Anees Jung want to reveal in her story ‘Lost spring’ stories of lost childhood? Ans- Anees Jung has portrayed two stories in ‘Lost spring’ and both depict the grinding poverty, pitiable condition of life and the other traditions that condemn the children to a life of exploitation. For the rag-pickers of Seemapuri, garbage is gold and means of survival. The bangle makers of Firozabad live in dingy cells and stinking lanes. Even after much toil, they do not get full meal. 2) Who is Saheb and where does he hail from? OR 2)What is Saheb looking for in the garbage dumps and where has he come from? (V.IMP) Ans- Saheb is a rag-picker of Seemapuri. The writer encounters him every morning scrounging for gold in the garbage dumps in his neighbourhood. Saheb hails from Dhaka and he has migrated from Bangladesh in 1971. His house and green fields were destroyed by storm. Their poverty forced them to migrate but Saheb does not have a faint memory of his original name. 3) What makes the authoress embarrassed at having made a promise that was not meant? (V.V.IMP) Ans- On encountering Saheb, the authoress asks him to go to school. Immediately at the second thought she realises that the advice must sound very hollow. On the other hand, Saheb replies that there is no school in his neighbourhood and he will go if the authorities make one. The authoress asks half jokingly if she starts to school, will he go? Saheb goes on asking her ‘‘Is your school ready?’’ She feels embarrassed at having made a promise that was not meant. 4) What is the unusual morning scene in the streets of the authoress Anees Jung? OR

4)How does the writer come to recognise each of the rag-pickers in her neighbourhood? Ans- Saheb along with hi army of barefoot boys roam in the neighbourhood of Anees Jung. They go on scrounging for gold in the garbage dumps. They appear like the morning birds and disappear at noon. The authoress is in a good position to recognise each of them very well as she has watched all of them with great interest. 5) Why do these children remain barefoot? (M.IMP) Ans- Throughout the country the authoress has seen the rag-pickers roaming about in the streets barefoot. More than10,000 children in Seemapuri are engaged in their task of survival. On asking about not wearing chappals, some reply that it is a tradition to remain barefoot. It is not the lack of money. The authoress feels that it is an excuse to ‘‘explain a perpetual stat...