LOST SPRING

1. What is Saheb looking for in the garbage dumps? Where is he and where has he come from?
Ans. Saheb is looking for any precious thing which he cannot afford to buy. Things like a rupee,
silver coin or a pair of shoes. He has come to the garbage dump in the writer’s neighborhood.
He lives in Seemapuri in Delhi and has come from Dhaka.

2. What explanations does the author offer for the children not wearing footwear?
Ans. The author says that they do not wear footwear because it is a tradition in their families to
remain barefoot.

3. Is Saheb happy working at the tea-stall? Explain.

Ans. Saheb is happy that he has got work at the tea stall. He will get eight hundred rupees
every month and his meals too.

4. What makes the city of Firozabad famous?

Ans. Firozabad is famous for glass blowing industry.

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

Ans. People who work in the glass bangle industry lose their eyesight.

6. How is Mukesh’s attitude to his situation different from that of his family?
Ans. Mukesh dares to dream and has a way out of his situation. He aspires to become a motor
mechanic. On the other hand, his family does not dare to dream. They are too tired and scared
to do something to come out of their grim situation.

PART-2
Q1. What could be some of the reasons for the migration of people from villages to cities?
Ans. People migrate from villages to cities in search of a better life. They want to earn money so
that they can lead a good life and rear their children in a better way. As cities have more
opportunities for work, this makes them migrate from the villages to these big cities.

Q2. Would you agree that promises made to poor children are rarely kept? Why do you think
this happens in the incidents narrated in the text?
Ans. Yes, I agree that the promises made to poor children are rarely fulfilled. In the story the
writer jokingly offers the ragpicker boy to join a school that she would open. In fact, she does not
intend to open a school. She speaks mindlessly but the boy takes it to be true and later asks her
if the school has opened. There are many such hollow promises in the boy’s life because the
person who makes the promise never intends to fulfil it.

Q3. What forces conspire to keep the workers in the bangle industry of Firozabad in poverty?
Ans. The writer tells us that the bangle – makers of Firozabad are poverty – stricken. They are
burdened by the fact of the particular caste in which they are born – bangle – makers. They
have to continue the traditional profession. Further, the society has formed a harsh circle around
them. The money – lenders, middlemen, policemen, law – keepers, officers and politicians
altogether form a barrier around them and tie them in the grip of poverty. They cannot escape
from it.

Q4. How, in your opinion, can Mukesh realise his dream?

Ans. Mukesh dared to dream and wanted to become a motor mechanic. He wanted to drive cars
too. He took the initial step by aspiring to do something different from the family business. I think
that Mukesh can realize his dream with determination and hard work.

Q5. Mention the hazards of working in the glass bangles industry.

Ans. The poor bangle makers in Firozabad work in dangerous conditions. The furnaces have
very high temperatures and no ventilation. Hence, they are prone to ailments like lung cancer.
While polishing the bangles, the dust harms their eyes and many lose their vision. They remain
in dark for long hours and so are unable to see during the daytime.

Q6. Why should child labour be eliminated and how?

Ans. Forcing a child to work is a crime. This is so in order to prevent exploitation of children. If
forced to work, Children cannot enjoy their childhood. They cannot get proper education. Also,
when they are forced into hazardous works, they get ailments at a young age. This destroys
their future. Their parents overlook all these facts as they need money. So, the government has
to become proactive and take measures to check child labour and enforce the law strictly.

EXTRACT BASED QUESTIONS

A. “I will learn to drive a car,” he answers, looking straight into my eyes. His dream looms like a
mirage amidst the dust of streets that fill his town Firozabad, famous for its 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, wielding glass,
making bangles for all the women in the land it seems. Mukesh’s family is among them. None of
them know that it is illegal for children like him to work in the glass furnaces with high
temperatures, in dingy cells without air and light; that the law, if enforced, could get him and all
those 20,000 children out of the hot furnaces where they slog their daylight hours, often losing
the brightness of their eyes. Mukesh’s eyes beam as he volunteers to take me home, which he
proudly says is being rebuilt.

1. Which of the following statements is NOT TRUE with reference to the extract?
A. Children work in badly lit and inadequately ventilated furnaces.
B. The children are not aware that it is forbidden by law to work..
C. Children work in the furnaces for hours which poorly affects their eyesight.
D. Firozabad has emerged as a budding producer of bangles in the country.
Ans: D

2. The simile ‘dream looms like a mirage amidst the dust of streets’ indicates that his dream was
A. a reality, yet seemed distant.
B. lost in the sea of dust.
C. illusory and indistinct.
D. hanging in the dusty air.
Ans: C

3. ‘I will learn to drive a car,’ he answers, looking straight into my eyes. This sentence highlights
Mukesh was
1. Determined 2. Fearless 3. Hopeful 4. Valiant 5. Ambitious 6. stern
A. 1 & 5
B. 2 & 4
C. 2 & 5
D. 3 & 6
Ans: A

4. Every other family in Firozabad is engaged in making bangles indicates that

A. bangle making is the only industry that thrives in Firozabad.
B. Everyone in Firozabad works in the bangle industry.
C. majority of the population in Firozabad is involved in bangle making.
D. bangle making is the most favoured occupation in Firozabad.
Ans: C

B. She still has bangles on her wrist, but no light in her eyes. “Ek waqt ser bhar khana bhi nahin
khaya.” she says, in a voice drained of joy. She has not enjoyed even one full meal in her entire
lifetime-that’s what she has reaped! Her husband, an old man with a flowing beard says, “I know
nothing except bangles. All I have done is make a house for the family to live in.” Hearing him
one wonders if he has achieved what many have failed in their lifetime. He has a roof over his
head! The cry of not having money to do anything except carry on the business of making
bangles, not even enough to eat, rings in every home. The young men echo the lament of the
elders. Little has moved with time, it seems in Firozabad, years of mind-numbing toil have killed
all initiative and the ability to dream.

1. Choose the term which best matches the statement ‘The young men echo the lament of their
elders.’
A. acceptance
B. reflection
C. reiteration
D. doubtfulness
Ans: C

2. ‘Years of mind-numbing toil have killed all initiative and the ability to dream’. This shows that
A. Although the bangle manufacturers are tired and exhausted, they are ambitious and have
dreams.
B. The drudgery of work has destroyed their willingness to improve their lot.
C. The grind of daily life has darkened and stolen the dreams of the bangle manufacturers.
D. There is no time for dreaming because the bangle manufacturers are working so hard.
Ans: B

3. ‘She still has bangles on her wrist, but no light in her eyes.’ This implies that
A. She is married, but the charm in her eyes has faded.
B. She is a married woman who has aged poorly and lost her grace.
C. Though she is married, her eyes are devoid of happiness.
D. She is a married woman with visual impairment.
Ans: C

4. ‘He has a roof over his head!’ The tone of the author is
A. pessimistic.
B. empathetic.
C. sympathetic.
D. optimistic.
Ans: D

C. “Why do you do this?” I ask Saheb whom I encounter every morning scrounging for gold in
the garbage dumps of my neighbourhood. Saheb left his home long ago. Set amidst the green
fields of Dhaka, his home is not even a distant memory. There were many storms that swept
away their fields and homes, his mother tells him. That’s why they left, looking for gold in the big
city where he now lives.

1. Saheb’s home, before Delhi, was in|

A. Bengal
B. Orissa
C. Dhaka
D. Bihar
Ans: C

2. Why did Saheb and his family move to Delhi?

A. because storms had swept away their fields and homes
B. their village was flooded
C. there were landslides
D. there was a deadly virus in the village
Ans: A

3. ‘Why do you do this?’ This question was asked by the author to

A. the bangle sellers
B. Mahesh
C. Saheb
D. Saheb’s mother
Ans: C
4. Saheb’s profession was that of a
A. cook
B. rag-picker
C. bangle seller
D. driver
Ans: B

D. “If I start a school, will you come?” I ask, half-joking.

“Yes,” he says, smiling broadly. A few days later I see him running up to me. “Is your school
ready?”
It takes longer to build a school”. I say, embarrassed at having made a promise that was not
meant. But promises like mine abound in every corner of his bleak world.”

Q1.Where does the line occur?

Ans: These lines occur in the prose “Lost Spring” written by Anees Jung.

Q2. Who is referred to as ‘I’?

Ans: Here in this extract from “Lost Spring”, the writer Anees Jung is referred to as ‘I’.

Q3. Why is the speaker embarrassed?

Ans: The speaker is embarrassed because she promised Saheb to enrol in her school after she
built it. But as she did not do it and Saheb enquired about her school, she was embarrassed.

Q4. Find out the word from the passage which means ‘plenty’?
Ans:The word ‘plenty’ means abound.

E. “Saheb left his home long ago. Set amidst the green fields of Dhaka, his home is not even a
distant memory. There were many storms that swept away their fields and homes, his mother
tells him.” That’s why they left, looking for gold in the big city where he now lives.
“I have nothing else to do,” he mutters, looking away. “Go to school,” I say glibly, realising
immediately how hollow the advice must sound.

Q1. Who is the speaker here?

Ans: Anne’s Jung,the author of ‘Lost Spring’ is the speaker here.

Q2. Who are ‘they’?

Ans: Here ‘they’ refers to the family of Saheb.

Q3. From where did ‘they’ come?

Ans: They came from Dhaka in Bangladesh.

Q4. What do they do now?

Ans: Now they pick rags in the dustbins in Delhi.

Q5. What has been swept away by storms?

Ans: The homes and fields of Saheb’s family were washed away by storms.

F. Food is more important for survival than an identity. “If at the end of the day we can feed
our families and go to bed without an aching stomach, we would rather live here than in
the fields that gave us no grain,” say a group of women in tattered saris when I ask them
why they left their beautiful land of green fields and rivers. Wherever they find food, they
pitch their tents that become transit homes. Children grow up in them, becoming partners
in survival. And survival in Seemapuri means rag-picking. Through the years, it has
acquired the proportions of a fine art. Garbage to them is gold. It is their daily bread, a roof
over their heads, even if it is a leaking roof. But for a child it is even more. (SQP 2020-21)

Q1. The phrase ‘transit homes’ refer to the dwellings that are
A. unhygienic.
B. inadequate.
C. fragile.
D. temporary.
Ans: D. temporary.

Q2. Identify the figure of speech used in the sentence “Garbage to them is gold”.
A. hyperbole
B. simile
C. synecdoche
D. personification
Ans: A. hyperbole

Q3. Choose the term which best matches the statement ‘Food is more important for survival
than an identity.”?
A. immorality
B. necessity
C. obligation
D. ambition
Ans: B. necessity

Q4. What does ‘acquired the proportions of a fine art’ mean?

A. Rag-picking has regained its lost status.
B. A segment of rag pickers are skilled in fine arts.
C. Rag-picking has attained the position of a skill.
D. Only a few people are experts in rag-picking.
Ans: C. Rag-picking has attained the position of a skill.
G. “I have nothing else to do,” he mutters, looking away. “Go to school,” I say glibly, realising
immediately how hollow the advice must sound. “There is no school in my neighbourhood.
When they build one, I will go.” “If I start a school, will you come?” I ask, half-joking. “Yes,” he
says, smiling broadly. A few days later I saw him running up to me. “Is your school ready?” “It
takes longer to build a school,” I say, embarrassed at having made a promise that was not
meant. But promises like mine abound in every corner of his bleak world. (SQP 2021-22)

Q1. Saheb’s muttering and ‘looking away’ suggests his

A. anger
B. shyness
C. embarrassment
D. Anxiety
Ans: C. embarrassment

Q2. Of the four meanings of ‘glibly’, select the option that matches in meaning with its usage in
the extract.
A. showing a degree of informality
B. lacking depth and substance
C. being insincere and deceitful
D. speaking with fluency
Ans: B. lacking depth and substance

Q3. Who do you think Saheb is referring to as ‘they’, in the given sentence? “When they build
one, I will go”
A. The officials
B. The inhabitants
C. The teachers
D. The journalists
Ans: A. The officials

Q4. Select the option that lists the feelings and attitudes corresponding to the following: (1) I ask
half-joking (2) …he says, smiling broadly

A 1.​ Part arrogance, part C 1.​ Part amusement, part

seriousness irritation

2.​ Hesitation 2. Submissiveness

B 1.​ Part concern, part hurt D 1.​ Part humour, part

earnestness

2.​ Pride 2. Self belief

Answer: D
Q5. Select the option that lists reasons why Saheb’s world has been called ‘bleak’.
(1) The absence of parental presence
(2) The poor socio-economic conditions
(3) His inability to address problems
(4) His lack of life-skills
(5) The denied opportunities of schooling
A. (1) and (4)
B. (2) and (5)
C. (3) and (5)
D. (2) and (4)
Ans: B. (2) and (5)

SHORT ANSWERS
Q1. Why can’t the bangle makers of Firozabad organise themselves into a cooperative?
(Comptt. Delhi 2013)
Ans: The makers of bangles are locked in a vicious cycle that starts with poverty, progresses
through apathy, greed, and injustice, and ends with injustice. Their hopes and goals are crushed
by mindless labour. Because they were caught in a vicious loop of sahukars, intermediaries,
police, bureaucrats, and politicians, the Ferozabad bangle producers were unable to organise
themselves into a cooperative. Collectively, priviledged people had imposed baggage on these
individuals that they were unable to shed.

Q2. What is Mukesh’s dream? Do you think he will be able to fulfil his dream? Why? Why not?
(Comptt. Delhi 2014)
Ans: Mukesh wants to become a mechanic and learn how to drive. He appears to be
determined to see his dream realised, which increases the likelihood that it will come true.
Regardless of the distance between his house and the garage, he is prepared to walk there in
order to learn despite all the odds against him.

Q3. Describe the irony in Saheb’s name. (Delhi 2016)

Ans: Saheb’s full name is Saheb-e-Alam which means ‘Lord of the Universe’. Saheb, though, is
a destitute ragpicker who relies on garbage dumps to support himself. His name offers a stark
contrast to his sad situation.

Q4. How was Mukesh different from other bangle makers? (Comptt. Delhi 2016)
Ans: Mukesh was different from other bangle makers because he wanted to be his own master.
When other bangle manufacturers did not even dare to dream and had accepted their fate,
Mukesh had an ambition of becoming a mechanic.

Q5. Which industry was a boon and also bane for the people of Firozabad? How? (Comptt.
Delhi 2017)
Ans: The glass-bangles making industry was a boon and also bane for the people of Firozabad.
Although the industry has provided them with a means of support, the dangerous working
conditions in the hot furnaces have a negative impact on their physical well-being.
Q6. The youngsters echo the lament of their elders who have been doing the mind-numbing toil
of bangle-making since long. This is the reason that the writer says that little has moved with
time, it seems, in Firozabad. (SQP 2020-21)
Ans: The young people share the sorrow of their elders who have been engaged in the
mind-numbing labour of producing bangles for a long time. Because of this, the author claims
that hardly much seems to have changed over time in Firozabad.

Q7. Why does Anees Jung say that the bangle makers are caught in a vicious web? (CBSE
SQP 2019-20)
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 are steeped in poverty. They cannot form cooperatives for their
betterment. Moreover, their children are also compelled to join the same trade at an early age
and cannot dare to take up any other profession.

Q8. Why do you think Mukesh is content to dream of cars and doesn’t dream of flying a plane?
Ans: Mukesh was drawn towards being a motor mechanic and not a pilot because he had seen
a lot of cars going around his place but had hardly seen any plane flying past and hence, he
made a more realistic or practical decision to be a mechanic instead of a pilot.

Q9. Do you believe that ‘God-given lineage can be broken’? Support your position with a
rationale. (QB)
Ans: Yes, – God given lineage can be broken.Hardwork and determination always pays off and
makes us reach our dreams or goals. Mukesh was a hard-working man. He could achieve his
dream of becoming a motor mechanic by constant hard work towards life and towards the
dream.

Q10. How do you think the author’s life might have been impacted after her interactions with the
children and their families mentioned in ‘Lost Spring’? (QB)
Ans: In the chapter ‘Lost Spring,’ the author ‘Anees Jung’ discusses the bleak world in which
people in positions of power make promises but never try to keep them. We learned from her
interactions with Saheb and Mukesh that the author cares about the lower class and oppressed
people. She believes that child labour should be prohibited in our country so that children who
want to study can do so.

Q11. What do we come to know about the author of Lost Spring, Anees Jung, through her
interactions with Saheb and Mukesh? (SQP 2022-23)
Ans: In the chapter ‘Lost Spring,’ the author ‘Anees Jung’ discusses the bleak world in which
people in positions of power make promises but never try to keep them. We learned from her
interactions with Saheb and Mukesh that the author cares about the lower class and oppressed
people.
Q27. What does the description of Mukesh’s family in Lost Spring reveal about gender
roles?(SQP 2022-23)
Ans: Mukesh’s family in Lost Spring reveals patriarchy and inequality in the treatment of men
and women. Women in the Mukesh family are still assigned to stereotypical gender roles, such
as doing household chores and caregiving, whereas men are assigned to earning work.

LONG ANSWERS
Q1. Would you agree that promises made to poor children are rarely kept? Why do you think
this happens in the incidents narrated in the text ?
Ans. We agree that promises made to underprivileged kids are frequently broken. We host
several chat shows to end child labour, however the majority of child labourers worldwide are
found in India. Children who work as children suffer both physical and mental suffering. The
author of the lesson “Lost Spring” painted a clear picture of children working in the bangle and
rag-picking professions. As she realised the plight of rag pickers, she asked Saheb if he would
attend a school if she decided to create one in the area. Eventually, she felt ashamed for making
a youngster a promise that she had no intention of keeping.Both child labourers in Firozabad
and rag pickers in Seemapuri had never attended school. All of their initiative, desire, and
capacity for dreaming were killed when they were persuaded to choose that line of work.

Q2. Mention the hazards of working in the glass bangle industry.

Ans. The glass bangle industry is highly dangerous to work in. Employees spend a lot of time
close to the glass furnaces, which operate at high temperatures. They toil during the day in
dismal cells with inadequate ventilation and illumination. Rather than the light and open air
outside, their eyes become more accustomed to the gloom that prevails inside their workshop.
They frequently lose their vision as a result of the dust that is released during the polishing of
glass bangles. Despite the fact that child labour is illegal under the law, young children are
mostly employed in this dangerous occupation. They work in a dimly lit hut with their parents or
other other adults, shaping bits of coloured glass into lovely round bangles.They become more
prone to accidents as a result of working in such poor sanitary conditions, and their desire to
follow their dreams and escape their family’s constraints is also killed.

Q3. How in your opinion, can Mukesh realise his dream?

Ans. Mukesh came from a family of bangle makers who practised their ancestors’ trade, thought
it was a calling from God, and accepted the hardship, pain, and exploitation that went along with
it as a part of their fate. Mukesh chose the profession of his choice with a tender heart. H e was
ready to leave the glass-making family’s legacy and its vicious cycle. He refused to let poverty
thwart his ambitions. He desired to work as an apprentice in a garage since he had an ambition
of becoming a mechanic. He aspired to get his driver’s licence so he could maybe work as a
mechanic or a mechanic’s assistant, and he was willing to travel a significant distance to go to
the garage.In this way, he dared to fulfil his dream.
Q4. Mukesh is not like the others. His dreams loom like a mirage amidst the dust of streets that
fill his town Firozabad‟. Justify the statement in the light of contrast in the mindsets of Mukesh
and the people of Firozabad. (SQP 2018-19)
Ans. Mukesh belongs to a family of glass bangle makers in Firozabad. Even though the children
of such families usually carry on their family profession, Mukesh wants to be a motor mechanic
and drive a car. Unlike his family members, and others of his community, he has dared to
dream. His grandmother’s words about the unbreakable lineage represent the attitude they have
towards their situation in life. They believe that it is their destiny to toil as bangle makers.
Mukesh was different from the others of his community. His dreams look like a mirage amidst
the dust of street that fill his town Firozabad. By daring to dream, he has already taken the first
step towards a big change. He wants to become a motor mechanic and drive a car. He can
realise this dream with determination and hard work. There might be many obstacles on his way
but a strong willpower will help him move towards the path of success. The resolute boy is
willing to walk a long distance from home to learn to be a mechanic.

Q5. How does the story, ‘Lost Spring’ highlight the apathy of society and those in power to end
the vicious cycle of poverty? Support your answer with textual evidence.
Ans. In this story, ‘Lost Spring’s Saheb and Mukesh were the two main characters in two
different stories and both of them suffered extreme poverty. In the first story Saheb was a child
who did rag picking with his family to fulfil their needs. After a few days he started working in a
tea stall and he is no longer his own master as he worked under someone.On the other side
mukesh belonged to a family of bangle makers and works in bangle making industry along with
his family but he was focused and determined for his aim to become a motor mechanic. Both
Saheb and Mukesh were unable to move out of poverty and live a normal life,as they got no
opportunities and it was almost impossible for them to fulfil their dreams. This was because the
upper class people, politicians and officials did not help them at all ,rather they pushed them
down in poverty for their greed. Also they did not have much knowledge about their rights and
the importance of education, as no one told them about this.They both just followed the old
customs and worked in poverty as no one guided them. Even the people who have the power to
help them showed lack of interest in helping them. That is why this vicious cycle of poverty
continues and the poor people become more poor and the rich become richer. If the upper class
people and the men in power would have helped them to get out of poverty and get educated,
then both Saheb and Mukesh would definitely be able to fulfil their dreams and enjoy their life
like others. Also, it is the duty of common people to make them aware of their rights and tell
them how they can move out of poverty stricken life so as to make them succeed in life.

Q6. Certain traditions and lineage, condemn thousands of children to a life of abject poverty and
choke their aspirations. • Do you agree? Explain. • How can we change this? Suggest some
ways to tackle this issue. (QB)
Ans. Yes, I do agree that ‘Lost Spring’ narrates the grinding poverty and traditions that condemn
thousands of people who have succumbed. The story written by Anees Jung revolves around
the pitiable condition of poor children who have been forced to live in the slums and work hard
in dirty conditions. The first part tells the writer’s impression about the life of poor rag pickers
who have migrated from Bangladesh but now are settled in the Seemapuri area of Delhi. The
second part narrates the miserable life of the bangle-makers in the town of Firozabad. The stark
reality of these families is that, in spite of back-breaking hard work that they put in, they cannot
have two square meals a day. Besides, false and blind belief in traditions does not let their
children take up other respectable and better paying jobs which will improve their financial
situations.