Lost Spring (Stories of Stolen Childhood)

-Anees Jung
Introduction:
The narrator describes the deplorable condition in which the ragpickers of Seemapuri live.
For them, food is more important for survival than an identity. The narrator highlights the
pathetic condition of the bangle makers of Firozabad, where child labour is rampant and the
people are in the clutches of the wretched middlemen.
Summary:
Lost Spring by Anees Jung is a powerful narrative that exposes the harsh reality of child labor
and poverty in India. The chapter tells the stories of Saheb and Mukesh, two children trapped
in cycles of exploitation, representing millions of Indian children who are denied their
fundamental right to education.
"Lost Spring" explores the hardships faced by poor children in India, focusing on two real-
life examples — Saheb from Seemapuri and Mukesh from Firozabad. Saheb is a ragpicker
who migrated from Dhaka after natural calamities ruined his family’s land. Though he
dreams of education and better life, poverty forces him into labour. His name ironically
means “lord of the universe,” but his reality contrasts this meaning. He eventually takes up a
job at a tea stall, losing his carefree spirit.
The second story is about Mukesh, a child from a family of bangle makers in Firozabad.
Trapped in generations of glass-blowing work, his family has accepted poverty as fate.
However, Mukesh dares to dream — he wants to be a motor mechanic. The essay shows how
poverty, caste, and societal neglect rob children of their childhood. Jung's narrative voice
mixes empathy with irony to highlight the human cost of economic survival.

 Part 1: Saheb-e-Alam (The Ragpicker):

Saheb, a young refugee from Dhaka, lives in Seemapuri (periphery of Delhi) without basic
amenities.

o He searches through garbage for "gold" (daily survival).

o The author notes many children roam barefoot, not as tradition, but due to extreme poverty.

o Saheb eventually takes a job at a tea stall, losing his freedom and carefree life for a meagre
salary, represented by the heavy steel canister he carries.

 Part 2: Mukesh (The Bangle Maker):

o Mukesh lives in Firozabad, the center of India's glass-blowing industry.

o Families work in hazardous, dark, and hot furnaces, leading to early blindness and chronic
poverty.

o They are trapped by a vicious circle of middlemen, police, and bureaucrats.

o Unlike others, Mukesh dreams of becoming a motor mechanic, breaking the family tradition,
and refusing to accept his fate.


 Core Themes:

o Stolen Childhood: Poverty forces children into labour (rag-picking/bangle making).

o Perpetual Poverty: The inability to escape due to systemic injustice.

o Hope and Resilience: Mukesh’s ambition, despite his harsh surroundings.

Conclusion
The chapter highlights the contrast between the lives of privileged children and those who
lose their "spring" (childhood) due to poverty and exploitation.

Carefully read the following phrases and sentences taken from the text. Can you
identify the literary device in each example?(TO BE MARKED IN THE TEXT BOOK)
[Link]-e-Alam which means the lord of the universe is directly in contrast to what Saheb is
in reality. Hyperbole
[Link] in an air of desolation - Metaphor
[Link], a place on the periphery of Delhi yet miles away from it, metaphorically.
Contrast
[Link] the children it is wrapped in wonder; for the elders it is a means of survival. Contrast
[Link] her hands move mechanically like the tongs of a machine, I wonder if she knows the
sanctity of the bangles she helps make. Simile
[Link] still has bangles on her wrist, but not light in her eyes. Contrast
[Link] airplanes fly over Firozabad. Hyperbole
[Link] of poverty. Metaphor
[Link] for gold. Metaphor/ Hyperbole
[Link] survival in Seemapuri means rag-picking. Through the years, it has acquired the
proportions of a fine art. Hyperbole
[Link] steel canister seems heavier than the plastic bag he would carry so lightly over his
shoulders. Contrast

I. Answer the following:

[Link] do you think Mukesh is content to dream of cars and doesn’t dream of flying a plane?
Ans. Mukesh is content only to dream of cars because no aeroplanes fly over Firozabad.
Mukesh is truly not like other children. He has not allowed the harsh realities of his life kill
his dreams. Though he is forced to work as child labour in bangle-making industry, he has a
dream of becoming a motor mechanic. However, the possibility of his dream becoming a
reality is bleak. His circumstances are not encouraging. The grinding poverty of his family,
nefarious nexus of middlemen, sahukars, corrupt policemen, bureaucrats and indifferent
Government are apathetic to his dream. It appears his dream will remain a mere dream.
2. Describe the irony in Saheb’s name.
Ans. Saheb’s full name was Saheb–e–Alam. It means the ‘Lord of the Universe’. However,
the irony was that the poor boy was not even his own master. He was a rag–picker and a
refugee from Bangladesh whose family had settled down in Seemapsuri after their fields were
destroyed by storms and floods. Instead of being a lord, he wandered on the roads along with
other barefooted poor boys like him.

3. 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.
Ans. Mukesh stands apart in Firozabad by daring to dream of becoming a motor mechanic,
breaking the generational curse of bangle-making that has resigned others to poverty. While
his community accepts their fatalistic, dusty, and dangerous existence, Mukesh’s ambition is
"like a mirage" because it seems unattainable given his impoverished surroundings and lack
of opportunity.

4. ‘Garbage to them is gold.’ Why does the author say so about the ragpickers of Seemapuri?
Ans. ‘Garbage to them is gold’ is an apt statement for the ragpickers of Seemapuri because
they lead a life of misery and perpetual poverty. Garbage is gold to the rag pickers because it
is a means of sustenance to them, it gives them their daily bread and a roof over their heads.
Finding a coin or a one rupee note in garbage gives them extreme happiness, as it is the only
source of their survival. So, they do not stop scrounging because there is always a hope of
finding more.

II. Long answer:

Why do the bangle makers of Firozabad have to live in poverty?
III. Read the extract and answer the questions that follow:

She still has bangles on her wrist, but no light in her eyes. …………………………………….
killed all initiative and the ability to dream.

1.‘She still has bangles on her wrist, but no light in her eyes.’ This implies that
A. She is married but has lost the charm in her eyes.
B. She is a married woman who has lost her grace and beauty.
C. Though she is married, her eyes are devoid of happiness.
D. She is a married woman who has lost her eyesight.
Ans. Option (C) is correct.
2. Complete the sentence with ONE word.
‘He has a roof over his head!’ The tone of the author is Optimistic.

3. What does the statement ‘The young men echo the lament of their elders’ mean?
Ans. The young generation held their forefathers responsible for their present despicable
condition.
4. ‘Years of mind-numbing toil have killed all initiative and the ability to dream’. This shows
 that:
A. The bangle makers are exhausted yet they are enterprising and have dreams.
B. The drudgery of work has destroyed their willingness to improve their lot.
C. The daily grind has stolen the dreams of the bangle makers and made them dull.
D. The bangle makers have been working so hard that there’s no time to dream.
Ans. Option (C) is correct.
5. Why could the young bangle makers not organise themselves into a cooperative?
Ans. The young generation was exploited by wealthy middlemen and so couldn’t be a part of
any organization working for their improved condition.
6. Identify the line from the text that bears evidence to the fact that the old man has achieved
what many have failed in their lifetime.
Ans. The line “All I have done is make a house for the family to live in” shows that the old
man has achieved something great which many have failed to do.
MINDMAP(Take printout and stick in the class work)