Chapter 2 Lost Spring Solutions
Question - 21 : - What is MukeshтАЩs dream? Do you think he will be able to fulfil his dream? Why? Why not?
Answer - 21 : -
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Who is Mukesh? What is his dream?
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Is it possible for Mukesh to realise his dream? Justify your answer.
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What was MukeshтАЩs dream? In your opinion, did he achieve his dream?
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Mukesh belongs to the bangle-makers of Firozabad where each family is engaged in bangle-making. On asking, Mukesh says, тАЬI will be a motor mechanic. I will learn to drive a car.тАЭ Thus, he wants to be his own master. However, because he is caught up in the vicious cycle created by others, he will not be able to realize his dream and will remain a bangle-maker.
In spite of despair and disease pervading the lives of the slum children, they are not devoid of hope. How far do you age?
Answer - 22 : -
In spite of growing up amidst despair and disease, children who live in slums have the desire to achieve something big in life. 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, against his family tradition.
Question - 23 : - Why could the bangle-makers not organise themselves into a cooperative?
Answer - 23 : -
The bangle-makers could not organize themselves into a cooperative because they were trapped in the vicious circle of sahukars, middlemen, policemen, bureaucrats and politicians, who exploited them.
If they tried to organize themselves, they would be beaten by the police and put in jail.
Question - 24 : - Mention the hazards of working in the glass bangles industry.
Answer - 24 : -
The glass bangles industry has a very hazardous working environment. People work in the glass furnaces with high temperatures, in dingy cells without air and light. Most end up losing their eyesight even before they become adults. Adding to their misery, they are caught in a vicious circle of people who exploit them.
Question - 25 : - Why does the author say that the bangle-makers are caught in a vicious web?
Answer - 25 : -
The bangle-makers in Firozabad are exploited at the hands of the sahukars, the middlemen, the policemen, the law makers, the bureaucrats and the politicians. Thus they remain 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, thus remaining in the vicious web.
Question - 26 : - What does the title тАШLost SpringтАЩ convey?
Answer - 26 : -
Spring is associated with childhood. Just as spring is the season when flowers bloom, similarly, childhood isтАЩ the period when an individual blooms and grows. Anees Jung here presents the horrific truth about the life of children in India who are victims of child labor and are not allowed to grow and bloom freely. Their childhood or springtime is lost.
Question - 27 : - What explanations does the author offer for the children not wearing footwear?
Answer - 27 : -
Some of the children simply do not care to take the trouble of taking their slippers down from the shelf to wear them. Another explanation she receives is that not wearing footwear is a tradition. However, she feels that it is simply an excuse to hide a perpetual state of poverty, as many families cannot afford to buy footwear for their children.
Question - 28 : - What makes the city of Firozabad famous?
Answer - 28 : -
Firozabad is famous for its bangle-making industry. Beautiful bangles can be seen all over. Every second family is engaged in the business of bangle-making. It is the center of IndiaтАЩs glass-blowing industry where families have spent generations working around furnaces.
Question - 29 : - What would be some of the reasons for the migration of people from villages to the cities?
Answer - 29 : -
People migrate from villages to cities in search of a better livelihood. Poverty and poor facilities in the villages are a major тАШpushтАЩ factor. Life in the cities has a charm of its own and attracts the villagers. Many people also come to the cities looking for work, leaving behind fields which are unproductive.
Question - 30 : - Why should child labour be eliminated and how?
Answer - 30 : -
Children are the future of the nation and, if brought up properly, can serve as strong pillars in a countryтАЩs development. Child labor robs the children of the very essence of childhood, and often leaves them overburdened, undernourished, uneducated and diseased. Increased awareness and strict enforcement of laws can help in eliminating child labor.