Lost Spring: Stories of Stolen Childhood" by Anees Jung

Class 12 English Core - Flamingo

THEME

The text explores the *grinding poverty and traditions that condemn poor children to a life of
exploitation*. It highlights how children like Saheb and Mukesh are forced into child labour,
losing their childhood, education, and dreams. The title "Lost Spring" is metaphorical: spring
= childhood, lost = stolen by poverty, apathy, and social structures. Key themes:

1. Child Labour & Exploitation

2. Cycle of Poverty

3. *Hollow Promises

4. Dreams vs Reality

5. *Tradition as Shackle*

CENTRAL IDEA

Anees Jung exposes the *plight of street children who are forced to live in perpetual poverty
and denial*. Through Saheb-e-alam and Mukesh, she shows that poor children are not free to
enjoy childhood or chase dreams. They are victims of a vicious system comprising poverty,
exploitation, greed of middlemen, and social stigma. The story is a call to break this cycle
through education and awareness.

MESSAGE

1. Childhood is a right, not a privilege

2. Poverty perpetuates itself

3. Apathy is complicity

4. Hope survives
SHORT ANSWER QUESTIONS - 30-40 words | 2 Marks*

Q1. Why is Saheb’s name ironic?

A:Saheb’s full name is Saheb-e-Alam, meaning 'Lord of the Universe'. The irony is that this
'lord' roams streets barefoot, picks garbage for survival, and has no roof or school. His name
contrasts with his miserable reality.

Q2. What does the author mean by ‘stolen childhood’?

A:‘Stolen childhood’ refers to children like Saheb and Mukesh who are deprived of school,
play, and freedom due to poverty and child labour. Their innocence and dreams are taken
away by economic hardship.

Q3. Why do bangle makers of Firozabad not organise into a cooperative?

A:They fear police, who will haul them to jail for illegal activity. Middlemen, sahukars, and
politicians exploit them. They lack leadership and are trapped by tradition and fear of losing
even meagre earnings.

Q4. What is Mukesh’s dream? What is ironical about it?

A:Mukesh dreams of becoming a motor mechanic. Ironically, he wants to drive a car, yet his
family has never owned one. He dares to dream unlike others in Firozabad who accept
bangle-making as destiny.

Q5. Why did Saheb not go to school earlier?

A:There was no school in his neighbourhood in Seemapuri. Even if one existed, parents
would not send him because survival came first. Ragpicking gave food, school gave no
immediate return.

LONG ANSWER QUESTIONS - 120-150 words | 5 Marks

Q1. ‘Garbage to them is gold.’ Explain with reference to Saheb and Seemapuri ragpickers.

*A: For ragpickers of Seemapuri, garbage is the only means of survival. It is 'gold' because
they find a rupee or even a ten-rupee note in it sometimes. For children it is wrapped in
wonder; for adults it is a roof over their heads and food for their stomachs. Saheb scrounges
through garbage dumps each morning for survival. They have lived there for 30 years without
identity or permits, yet ration cards and food are more important than identity. Thus, garbage
defines their existence. It is their livelihood, though it denies them education and a proper
childhood. The metaphor shows how poverty distorts value: what society discards is treasure
for them.

Q2. Describe the bangle makers of Firozabad. What makes their condition pathetic?

*A:Firozabad is famous for bangles, but its makers live in poverty. They work in glass
furnaces with high temperatures, in dingy cells without air and light. Eyes are more adjusted
to dark than light. They lose eyesight before adulthood. They are caught in a vicious circle of
sahukars, middlemen, police, and politicians. They cannot form cooperatives due to fear.
They believe it is their ‘karam’, a God-given lineage that cannot be broken. They have no
money to do anything except carry on bangle-making. Even after years of labour, they remain
impoverished, living in stinking lanes choked with garbage. Their sorrow is that they cannot
even dream, except Mukesh.

EXTRACT BASED QUESTIONS - 1x4=4 Marks

Extract 1:

_"I want to drive a car," Mukesh says. [...] "Do you know anything about cars?" I ask. "I will
learn to drive a car," he answers, looking straight into my eyes._

Q1. Who is ‘I’?

A: The author, Anees Jung.

Q2. What quality of Mukesh is shown here?

A: Determination, courage to dream, and willingness to break tradition.

Q3. Why is Mukesh’s answer significant?A: Unlike others in Firozabad who accepted fate,
Mukesh dares to dream and asserts his will to learn, showing hope.

Q4. What does ‘looking straight into my eyes’ suggest?*

A: Confidence and conviction. He is not ashamed of his dream.

Extract 2:

"Why not organise yourselves into a cooperative?" I ask a group of young men. [...] "Even if
we get organised, we are the ones who will be hauled up by the police, beaten and dragged to
jail for doing something illegal."

Q1. What does this show about the system?A: It shows exploitation, police-politician nexus,
and how law protects exploiters, not victims.

Q2. Why can’t they break the lineage?

A: Due to fear, poverty, lack of leadership, and belief that it is ‘god-given karam’.

Q3. What is the ‘something illegal’?

A: Forming a cooperative is seen as going against middlemen and sahukars, who brand it
illegal.

Q4. What is the author’s tone?

A: Critical and sympathetic towards the bangle makers’ helplessness.

VALUE BASED QUESTIONS - 100-120

words | 5 Marks

Q1. Child labour is a crime against humanity. What values should society adopt to end it?*

A:Value Points: Compassion, social responsibility, awareness, right to education. Society

must ensure free compulsory education, punish employers of child labour, and break poverty
cycles. NGOs and citizens should report cases. We must not buy products made by child
labour. Mukesh’s dream shows education and skill can break tradition. As responsible
citizens, we must support RTE Act and midday meals. Empathy and action, not sympathy,
will restore lost childhoods.

Q2. ‘Promises like mine abound in every corner of his bleak world’. What does this reflect
about the middle class? Suggest how we can be more responsible.

A: Value Points: Empty promises, insensitivity, accountability. The author casually tells
Saheb she’ll open a school, knowing she won’t. This reflects middle-class apathy where we
make promises to ease guilt. To be responsible,
Students Attempt Question

[Link] the character sketch of Saheb and Mukesh.

2. Write a speech in about 120-150 words on “Child Labour : A social crime. “