LOST SPRING BY ANEES JUNG-NCERT SOLUTIONS- CLASS XII ENGLISH CBSE

NCERT QUESTIONS

Q.1.Who is Saheb? What is he looking for in the garbage dumps and where has he come from?

Ans: Saheb is a rag-picker of Seemapuri. The writer encounters him every morning scrounging for gold in the garbage dumps in her neighbourhood. He hails from Dhaka and he was migrated from Bangladesh in 1971. His house and fields were destroyed by storm.


Q2. Why did people migrate from the villages to cities?

There are many factors that cause migration of people from villages to cities. Some villagers voluntarily move to the cities in search for jobs and better civic and health facilities, etc. Others are forced to migrate when natural disasters like flood, storm, drought, famine, etc. destroy their houses and properties. History has records of large scale migrations caused by wars. Also, many villagers who are better off than others manage to send their children to study in the cities. In the lesson ‘Lost Spring’, Saheb and his family migrates to Seemapuri from Dhaka after their houses were destroyed in the storms.

Q3 What explanations does the author offer for the children not wearing foot wear?

When the author asked the children why they were always barefoot , one said it was because his mother had not pulled his shoes from the shelf while the other explanation was that it was a tradition in their community to walk barefoot. The author did not quite believe it and realized that it was their perpetual state of poverty which was responsible for their moving around in that manner.

Q4. What makes the city of Firozabad famous?

Firozabad is famous for bangles. Every other family in Firozabad is engaged in making bangles. It is the centre of India’s glass blowing industry where families have spent generations working around furnaces, welding glass, making bangles for women all over India.

Q5.How is Mukesh's attitude to his situation different from that of his family?

Mukesh’s family has been engaged in the profession of bangle making for decades. Mukesh’s grandmother thinks that this God-given lineage can never be broken. His family members have resigned to their fate, and have suppressed all their hopes and desires. But Mukesh has dared to dream and insists on being his own master. He wants to be a motor mechanic and is willing to walk a long distance from his home to fulfil his dream.

 

Q6. What forces conspire to keep the workers in the bangle industry of Firozabad in poverty?

Lack of education and awareness, stigma of being born in the caste of banglemakers, vicious nexus of sahukars, middlemen, politicians and police suppresses the bangle makers and keep them poverty stricken. Broken spirit, dormant initiative, fear of being beaten and dragged to jail, absence of leadership are the other forces which conspire to keep them in poverty.

Q7.Mention the hazards of working in the glass bangles industry.

The glass bangle industry of Firozabad employs children and they work in very unhealthy and hazardous conditions. They are made to work in the glass furnaces with high temperatures, in dingy cells without air and light. Workers, including child labourers, lose their eyesight at an early age.

 Q8. Is Saheb happy working at the tea stall? How do you know? 

 Saheb is not happy working at the tea stall. He is paid a fixed wage of Rs 800, and also receives all his meals free. But the author notices that his face has lost its carefree look, which makes it evident that he is not happy. The steel canister seems to be heavier than the plastic bag he used to carry. He has lost his freedom, and is no longer his own master.