Chapter: Lost Spring ; Stories of Stolen Childhood
Author: Anees Jung
About the Author – Anees Jung (born 1944) is a renowned Indian author, journalist,
and columnist known for highlighting social issues, women’s rights, and marginalized
communities in India. Hailing from an aristocratic Hyderabad family, she is best known
for Unveiling India and Lost Spring, featuring empathetic, interview-based narratives on
social disparities
Part I: "Sometimes I find a Rupee in the garbage"
Protagonist: Saheb-e-Alam, a young ragpicker in Seemapuri, Delhi, whose
family migrated from Bangladesh after storms destroyed their homes.
The Irony: His name means "Lord of the Universe," yet he spends his days
barefoot, scrounging through garbage heaps for "gold"—anything valuable to help
his family survive.
Loss of Freedom: Saheb eventually gets a job at a tea stall earning ₹800 a
month and meals. While he has financial security, he loses his independence and
carefree look, as he is no longer his own master.
Part II: "I want to drive a car"
Protagonist: Mukesh, a boy from Firozabad, the center of India's glass-blowing
industry.
The Vicious Circle: Generations of families are trapped making bangles in dark,
dingy furnaces with high temperatures, often losing their eyesight before reaching
adulthood. They are exploited by a "vicious circle" of middlemen, moneylenders,
policemen, and bureaucrats who prevent them from organizing for better
conditions.
A Spark of Hope: Unlike his family, who accepts this life as their "karma" or fate,
Mukesh dares to dream of becoming a motor mechanic and driving a car.
Theme of the Chapter – Lost Spring depicts the harsh realities of grinding poverty,
where children are forced into labor and lose their childhood to systemic exploitation,
apathy, and the loss of freedom. It highlights how a vicious cycle traps individuals, while
juxtaposing the "lost" potential of youth against the cruel, unfulfilled promises of a
society indifferent to their plight.
Think as you read:
Q1: What is Saheb looking for in the garbage dumps? Where is he and where has he
come from?
Answer: Saheb is looking for coins, rupee notes and any other useful objects in the
garbage dumps.
Saheb and his family have migrated to Seemapuri, a slum area on the outskirts of Delhi,
looking for a source of living after they were uprooted from their native village in Dhaka,
Bangladesh.
Q2: What explanations does the author offer for the children not wearing footwear?
Answer: The author comes across many shoeless rag-picker children in her
neighbourhood. According to her, one explanation of this habit of remaining barefoot is
that it is a tradition among the poor children of this country. However, the author quickly
mentions that calling it a tradition could be just a means of justification of the utter
destitution.
Q3: Is Saheb happy working at the tea-stall? Explain.
Answer: Saheb is not really happy working at the tea-stall because working for a master
meant sacrificing his freedom and his “carefree look”. Even though the job at the tea-
stall pays him 800 rupees and all his meals, he seems less contented than before. The
weight of his master’s steel canister seems heavier than his rag-picking plastic bag.
Think as you read
Q.4) What makes the city of Firozabad famous?
Answer: Firozabad is famous for its glass bangles. The place is the centre of India’s glass-
blowing industry.
Q.5) Mention the hazards of working in the glass bangles industry.
The impoverished workers in the glass bangles industry toil in potentially hazardous
working conditions while welding. The furnaces they work in have extremely high
temperature and lack proper ventilation. Persistently working in low light conditions,
without any protective eye gear, leaves them blind. Even burns and cuts are quite
common. The workers are quite prone to ailments such as lung cancer.
Q.6) How is Mukesh’s attitude to his situation different from that of his family?
Answer: 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. But Mukesh dreams of a better and safer
career. The resolute boy is willing to walk a long distance from his home to learn to be a
mechanic, exemplifying the saying, ‘where there is a will, there is a way’.
Understanding the text :
Q1: What could be some of the reasons for the migration of people from villages to
cities?
Answer: 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.
Q.2) 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?
Answer: Yes, the promises made to poor children are seldom kept. Often, they are not
taken seriously or have been made on the pretext of retaining a child’s fancy for
something. This keeps the child hoping for a better possibility till he/she realises the
truth. It is difficult for people to shatter the children’s dreams; while it is also painful to
see these children thrive of false hopes given to them.
Once, while interacting with Saheb, the narrator ends up encouraging him to study and
jokingly talks about opening a school herself. At that time she fails to realise that
unknowingly she has sown a seed of hope in Saheb’s heart. She becomes conscious of
her mistake when, after a few days, Saheb approaches her, enquiring about her school.
Her hollow promise leaves her embarrassed.
Q.3) What forces conspire to keep the workers in the bangle industry of Firozabad in
poverty?
Answer: The unfavourable social and legal systems, the deceptive middlemen, and their
own sad destinies keep the workers in the bangle industry of Firozabad in perpetual
poverty.
Talking about the text
Q1: How, in your opinion, can Mukesh realise his dream?
Answer: Mukesh was different from the others of his community. 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 way to success. The fact that he is willing to walk a long distance in order to
learn the vocation, underlines his firm resolve. The only thing left for him to do is to
make that first journey to that garage and request the owner to take him in and guide
and direct him on his journey as a mechanic.
Q.2) Why should child labour be eliminated and how?
Answer: Child labour should be eliminated because it takes away from the child his
childhood and the prospect of elementary education. Moreover, since the child labourers
are cheap, and consequently engaged in hazardous and dangerous employment, they
are often vulnerable to mental and physical illness. In order to curb this problem, it is
important to make education easily accessible. Apart from that, the parents must be
made aware of the consequences of working in harmful environments. It is also
important to make the public aware of the fact that child labour is a criminal offence and
is punishable under law. The government must ensure stricter child labour laws and that
the offenders are punished.
Chapter: Keeping Quiet
Author: Pablo Neruda
About the Author: Pablo Neruda (1904–1973) was a celebrated Chilean poet-diplomat
and politician, widely considered one of the most influential 20th-century poets. Awarded
the 1971 Nobel Prize in Literature, he is famous for his passionate love poems, surrealist
works, and political writings, including Twenty Love Poems and a Song of Despair
Central Idea of the Poem:
The central idea of Pablo Neruda's "Keeping Quiet" is the urgent need for silence,
introspection, and a collective pause in our hectic lives to foster self-awareness, mutual
understanding, and peace. By stopping all activity momentarily, humanity can move past
violence, environmental damage, and personal unhappiness, leading to profound self-
reflection and global harmony.
Key points regarding the central idea:
Introspection over Haste: The poem calls for a momentary halt to our rushed, noisy
lives to allow for internal reflection.
Universal Peace and Unity: This shared silence serves as a tranquil, neutral moment
where the barriers of language, nationality, and conflict vanish.
Environmental Consciousness: It suggests a "non-active" period allows nature to heal
and allows humans to reconsider their destructive tendencies.
Self-Awareness: The silence helps individuals understand themselves and the "injuries"
they have brought upon themselves by excessive, mindless work.
In essence, Neruda promotes a momentary stillness to move humanity toward a more
empathetic, conscious, and peaceful existence.
Think it out:
Q.1) What will counting up to twelve and keeping still help us achieve?
Answer: According to the poet, taking a break from our monotonous routine by 'counting
up to twelve' and 'keeping still' will help us understand ourselves and those around us
better.
The quietness will aid our understanding of the significance of peace and tranquility in
this age of futile activities. Thus, they will help us in introspection and self-analysis.
Q. 2) Do you think the poet advocates total inactivity and death?
Answer: Although the poet believes that silences assist in introspection and help in
taking a break from the world of frenzy activity, he does not advocate total inactivity and
death. Rather, he believes that observing stillness once in a while helps people to spring
back in action, rejuvenated.
Q.3) What is the 'sadness' that the poet refers to in the poem?
Answer: The poet refers to the 'sadness' of failing to understand oneself in the
monotonous every day existence. He also finds it sad that the humanity is moving
towards its own ruin owing to its unanalyzed actions. He regrets the rush of outdoing
others that has made us forget the values of humanity.
Q.4) What symbol from Nature does the poet invoke to say that there can be life under
apparent stillness?
Answer: The poet uses the symbol of the earth to illustrate the point that there can be
life under apparent stillness.