Lost Spring

- ANEES JUNG
Summary
The author tells us stories of her interactions with children from deprived
backgrounds. She describes their poor condition and life in an interesting manner.
The story touches the reader and is thought-provoking.
The author described two of her encounters with children from deprived
backgrounds. Through them she wants to highlight the plight of street children forced
into labour early in life and are denied the opportunity of schooling. Also, she brings
out the callousness of society and the political class towards the sufferings of the
poor. The first encounter is with a rag picker boy named Saheb – E – Alam who
migrated from Bangladesh in 1971 and lives in Seemapuri in Delhi. These ragpicker
children look for ‘valuables’ in the garbage – things like a coin or torn shoes which
are as precious as ‘gold’ for them.
They could hardly manage some food for themselves, other things like identity,
education, shoes and sports are their unfulfilled dreams. Their parents scrounged
the garbage searching for things that helped them survive – afford food, clothing and
shelter for the family. The children hunted through the garbage heaps looking for
things which could partially fulfil their unfulfilled dreams.
One day the writer saw the boy, holding a steel can, going towards the milk booth.
He had got a job at a tea stall. He was happy that he would get eight hundred rupees
and all the meals. The writer noticed that Saheb had lost the freedom of being his
own master which he had enjoyed as a rag picker.
The second boy was Mukesh who belonged to a family of bangle makers in
Firozabad. The boy had a dream of becoming a car mechanic. On the contrary, his
family was traditionally engaged in bangle making, although the profession harmed
them physically and they hardly earned any money out of it.
Still, no one dared to dream of doing something else due to the fear of the police and
the middlemen. The family elders were content that other than teaching the art of
bangle–making to their children, they had been able to build them a house to live in.
The boy wanted to be a car mechanic. Cars were all that Mukesh had seen on the
roads of his town and so, he could not dream any further.

Theme of the Lesson

The sad position of poor children who are forced to have a wretched life and forgo
the fun times of childhood due to their social circumstances is the subject of the story
“Lost Spring.” These children are compelled to labour from an early age and are not
given the opportunity to pursue an education. Anees Jung, the writer, makes a
concerted effort to end child labour. She advocates for government enforcement of
strict laws prohibiting child work as well as enforce the education of children. The
word was spread so that child exploitation might be stopped and all children could
enjoy their happy, springtime days. She talks about her encounter with a slum
dweller kid named Saheb-e-Alam who is a ragpicker and wishes to play tennis and
go to a school. However, these wishes remain unfulfilled. Another boy named
Mukesh hails from a family of bangle makers from Firozabad. Their lives are
miserable because the profession does not provide a good livelihood and harms
them physically too. The boy dreams to do something different but his dreams are
restricted to the life that he has seen in his hometown. He aspires to become a car
mechanic.

The Lost Spring Explanation Notes

Story 1 – ‘Sometimes I find a Rupee in the garbage’

Passage: “Why do you do this?” I ask Saheb whom I encounter every morning
scrounging for gold in the garbage dumps of my neighborhood. 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.
Word Meaning
Scrounging – searching for
Amidst – in the middle of
Explanation of the above Passage: Every morning, the writer sees a young
ragpicker boy who visits the garbage dump near her house and searches for ‘gold’ in
it. The writer says that he searches for ‘gold’ ironically because although the
garbage dump is full of useless, thrown away things, still he shuffles it so minutely as
if he will get something as precious as ‘gold’ from it. The boy’s name is Saheb. His
home in Dhaka was in the middle of lush green fields. They had left it many years
ago and he does not remember it anymore. His mother had told him that there were
many storms that destroyed their homes and fields. So, they left home and shifted to
the cities in search of ‘gold’. The writer again says, “looking for gold in the big city”.
Gold here refers to something precious which was not available in their hometown.
Things like shoes, money, bags, etc. for the children and food, clothing, shelter as
means of survival for their parents. The boy searches for such precious things in the
garbage dumps. One day the writer questions Saheb and asks him the reason for
shuffling through the garbage.
Passage
“I have nothing else to do,” he mutters, looking away.
“Go to school,” I say glibly, realizing immediately how hollow the advice must sound.
“There is no school in my neighborhood. When they build one, I will go.”
“If I start a school, will you come?” I ask, half-joking.
Word Meaning
Mutters – to speak in a low voice
Glibly – speaking or spoken in a confident way, but without careful thought or
honesty
Hollow – meaningless
Explanation of the above Passage: Saheb replies to the writer that he has nothing
else to do other than rag picking. The writer suggests that he should go to school.
She realizes that her advice is meaningless for the poor boy. He replies that there
are no schools in the area where he lives. He also assures her that he will go to
school when one is built near his house. The writer asks him jokingly that if she
opened a school would he attend it.
Passage “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.
Word Meaning
Embarrassed – feeling ashamed
abound – exist in large numbers
bleak – empty
Explanation of the above Passage: Saheb says that he would join the writer’s
school and after a few days, he runs up to her to ask whether her school is ready.
The writer replied that it takes a lot of time to build a school. She felt ashamed at
making a false promise. She had said this as a joke and had never intended to open
a school, so she felt ashamed of herself. Saheb was not hurt because he was used
to such false promises as they existed in large numbers in his empty world. He was
surrounded by such false promises made by everyone around him. His world was
empty as no promise made to Saheb was ever fulfilled.

Passage: After months of knowing him, I ask him his name. “Saheb-e-Alam,” he
announces. He does not know what it means. If he knew its meaning — lord of the
universe — he would have a hard time believing it. Unaware of what his name
represents, he roams the streets with his friends, an army of barefoot boys who
appear like the morning birds and disappear at noon. Over the months, I have come
to recognize each of them.

he would have a hard time believing it – it would be difficult for him to believe that his
name meant ‘the Lord of the Universe’
 Learn more
Word Meaning
barefoot – wearing nothing in the feet
Explanation of the above Passage: The writer had known Saheb for a few months
when she asked him his name. He replied as if he was making an announcement
that his name was Saheb – E – Alam. The writer thought that the boy did not know
the meaning of his name and if he came to know that his name meant “Lord of the
Universe” he would not be able to believe it. His name was opposite to his life. He
went around the streets with a group of friends. It was like an army of boys who did
not wear any footwear. They appeared in the morning like the morning birds and
disappeared at noon. The writer could recognize all of them as she had been seeing
them for the past few months.
Passage:
“Why aren’t you wearing chappals?” I ask one.
|“My mother did not bring them down from the shelf,” he answers simply.

The writer asked one of them that why was he not wearing any footwear. The boy
simply replied that his mother did not get them down from the shelf. As they were
beyond his reach, he did not wear them

“Even if she did he will throw them off,” adds another who is wearing shoes that do
not match. When I comment on it, he shuffles his feet and says nothing. “I want
shoes,” says a third boy who has never owned a pair all his life. Travelling across the
country I have seen children walking barefoot, in cities, on village roads. It is not lack
of money but a tradition to stay barefoot, is one explanation. I wonder if this is only
an excuse to explain away a perpetual state of poverty.
Word Meaning
Shuffles – slides them over each other
excuse – a reason to justify a fault
perpetual state of poverty – never-ending condition of being poor
Explanation of the above Passage: Another boy who was wearing a different shoe
in each foot said that even if his mother would have given him the footwear, he
would have thrown it away. He meant that the boy was not wearing footwear
because he did not want to wear one. The writer asked the second boy the reason
for wearing a different shoe in each foot. He did not reply and shuffled his feet as he
tried to hide the shoes. A third boy spoke that he was eager to get a pair of shoes as
he had never owned one all his life. The writer takes the example of shoes to
highlight the condition of these boys. They search the garbage dumps looking for
such precious things. She further tells us that as she travelled across the country,
she had seen many children walking barefoot in the cities as well as the villages.
They reasoned that they were barefoot not due to lack of money to buy footwear, but
being barefoot was a tradition for them. The writer wondered and concluded that the
reason of it being a tradition was a mere excuse to hide the fact that they were so
poor that they could not afford footwear.
Passage: I remember a story a man from Udipi once told me. As a young boy he
would go to school past an old temple, where his father was a priest. He would stop
briefly at the temple and pray for a pair of shoes. Thirty years later I visited his town
and the temple, which was now drowned in an air of desolation. In the backyard,
where lived the new priest, there were red and white plastic chairs. A young boy
dressed in a grey uniform, wearing socks and shoes, arrived panting and threw his
school bag on a folding bed. Looking at the boy, I remembered the prayer another
boy had made to the goddess when he had finally got a pair of shoes, “Let me never
lose them.” The goddess had granted his prayer. Young boys like the son of the
priest now wore shoes. But many others like the ragpickers in my neighborhood
remain shoeless
Word Meaning
Desolation – the state of being empty
Panting – taking short and quick breathes
Explanation of the above Passage: The writer narrates a story told to her by a
man from Udipi. (Udipi is a town in Karnataka). When he was a young boy, he would
walk to his school. On the way, he would cross a temple where his father worked as
a priest. He would stop at the temple and pray to God to bless him with a pair of
shoes. After thirty years the writer visited the town and the temple. Now the place
was nearly empty. The new priest lived in the backyard of the temple. Plastic chairs
in red and white colour were kept there. A young boy came running. He was wearing
grey coloured school uniform, socks and shoes. He had a school bag hung on his
shoulders. He threw it on the bed and ran away. The writer wants to say that the
financial position of the priest at the temple had improved over the last thirty years.
Now, he could afford shoes for this children. She was reminded of another boy who
got a pair of shoes. He prayed to the goddess that he may never lose the shoes that
he had got. The goddess had granted his prayer as the boy never lost his footwear.
This shows us that the underprivileged value anything that they get because they
have been longing for it.

Passage: My acquaintance with the barefoot ragpickers leads me to Seemapuri, a

place on periphery of Delhi yet miles away from it, metaphorically. Those who live
here are squatters who came from Bangladesh back in 1971. Saheb’s family is
among them. Seemapuri was then a wilderness. It still is, but it is no longer empty. In
structures of mud, with roofs of tin and tarpaulin, devoid of sewage, drainage or
running water, live 10,000 ragpickers.
Word Meaning
Acquaintance – contact
periphery- outer area
metaphorically–symbolically
squatters – a person who unlawfully occupies an uninhabited building or unused
land
wilderness- a wasteland
tarpaulin- heavy-duty waterproof cloth
Explanation of the above Passage: The writer describes the area where these rag
picker boys live. Seemapuri, located on the outskirt of Delhi was very different from
the capital of the country. In 1971 when these rag pickers had migrated from
Bangladesh, the area had been a wasteland. Seemapuri was still a wasteland but
now it was not empty as almost ten thousand rag pickers lived there in structures
made of mud, with roofs made of thin sheets of tin or plastic material called
tarpaulin. There was no sewage, drainage or running water facility in Seemapuri.
They lived in unhygienic conditions. It was a piece of wasteland where the garbage
of the city was collected. These people had started living there illegally.
Passage: They have lived here for more than thirty years without an identity, without
permits but with ration cards that get their names on voters’ lists and enable them to
buy grain. 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.
Word Meaning
Permits – legal documents
Tattered – torn
Explanation of the above Passage: The ragpickers had been living illegally in
Seemapuri for the last thirty years. They have occupied the area without government
permission or ownership. The politicians of the area have provided them ration cards
and voter identity cards. They got grocery for their family through these ration cards
and in return, they cast their votes in favour of the politician who had helped them.
The writer asked a group of women who were wearing torn saris that why did they
leave their homes in Dhaka. They replied that if they were able to satisfy the hunger
of their families and sleep well at night, they were happier to live in Seemapuri than
their fields in Dhaka which were ruined and gave them no food.

Passage: 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.
Word Meaning
Transit homes – a temporary home
Explanation of the above Passage: These people travelled in search of food and
wherever they found it, they set up temporary homes and started living there. Their
children kept on growing there and gradually, they also started helping their parents
in seeking means of survival. For those who lived in Seemapuri, the means of
survival was rag picking. As they had been doing it for many years, they became
trained at rag picking and did it well. For the rag pickers the garbage was as
precious as gold. These families searched the garbage dumps and got things which
they sold to fund their food. They gathered torn or damaged sheets which were used
to cover the roof of their homes. These did not cover them well but still provided
them with some protection. For the children, the garbage dumps were more than a
means of survival.
Passage: “I sometimes find a rupee, even a ten-rupee note,” Saheb says, his eyes
lighting up. When you can find a silver coin in a heap of garbage, you don’t stop
scrounging, for there is hope of finding more. It seems that for children, garbage has
a meaning different from what it means to their parents. For the children it is
wrapped in wonder, for the elders it is a means of survival.
Word Meaning
Lighting up – show joy and happiness
Explanation of the above Passage: Saheb was happy to say that sometimes he
found a rupee and even a ten – rupee note in the dump. As one often finds even a
silver coin in the garbage dump, he kept on searching hoping to find more. For the
children, the garbage dump was a means of fulfilling their dreams although partially
while for their parents, it was a means of aiding survival by providing the basics –
food, clothing and shelter.

Passage: One winter morning I see Saheb standing by the fenced gate of the
neighbourhood club, watching two young men dressed in white, playing tennis. “I like
the game,” he hums, content to watch it standing behind the fence. “I go inside when
no one is around,” he admits. “The gatekeeper lets me use the swing.”
Word Meaning
Content – satisfied
Explanation of the above Passage: One winter morning the writer saw Saheb
standing by the fence of a club. He was watching a tennis game being played by two
young men. Saheb liked the game but could not play it. He told the writer that he
went inside the club when it would be closed. He was allowed to take swings by the
guard there.
Passage: Saheb too is wearing tennis shoes that look strange over his discolored
shirt and shorts. “Someone gave them to me,” he says in the manner of an
explanation. The fact that they are discarded shoes of some rich boy, who perhaps
refused to wear them because of a hole in one of them, does not bother him. For one
who has walked barefoot, even shoes with a hole is a dream come true. But the
game he is watching so intently is out of his reach.
Word Meaning
Discarded – thrown away
Bother – worry
Explanation of the above Passage: The writer saw that Saheb was also wearing
tennis shoes. They did not look appropriate with his dress which was worn out and
had faded. He told the writer in an attempt to justify himself that someone gave him
the shoes. She however figured out that he had got them from a garbage dump.
They must have been thrown away by a boy from a rich family as he did not want to
wear them anymore. Probably they had a hole or two in them due to which he did
not want to wear them. On the contrary, Saheb was not bothered by this fact and
had no problem wearing them as he could not afford anything better than that. He
walked barefoot and to wear a shoe even with a hole was like a dream for him.
Although due to the garbage dump, Saheb’s dream of wearing shoes had been
partially fulfilled but his desire to play tennis would never be fulfilled.
Passage: This morning, Saheb is on his way to the milk booth. In his hand is a steel
canister. “I now work in a tea stall down the road,” he says, pointing in the distance.
“I am paid 800 rupees and all my meals.” Does he like the job? I ask. His face, I see,
has lost the carefree look. The steel canister seems heavier than the plastic bag he
would carry so
light over his shoulder. The bag was his. The canister belongs to the man who owns
the tea shop. Saheb is no longer his own master.
Explanation of the above Passage: One morning the writer met Saheb who was
on his way to the milk booth. He was holding a steel container. He told her that he
had got a job at the nearby tea stall. He would earn eight hundred rupees a month
and get meals too. The writer asked him if he liked the job as she could see that he
had lost the carefree look. As now Saheb was working for someone else and was
carrying his master’s container, he was burdened with responsibility. Earlier, as a rag
picker, Saheb would carry his own bag and was his own master. Now, he was no
longer his own master.

Story 2 – “I want to drive a car”

Passage: Mukesh insists on being his own master. “I will be a motor mechanic,” he
announces.
The writer met a boy named Mukesh who aspired to become a motor mechanic.
“Do you know anything about cars?” I ask.
She asked him if he knew anything about cars.
“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, welding glass, making bangles for all the women in the
land it seems.
Word Meaning
looking straight into my eyes – with confidence and determination
looms like a mirage – seems that it will be true in the future but actually it will not be
so
amidst – in the middle of
glass-blowing industry – industry related to making glass
furnaces – a closed room or container where heat is produced
welding – the process of joining metal or glass pieces by heating them
Explanation of the above Passage: The boy was confident and replied that he
would learn to drive a car. His dream was far away from reality and although the boy
was confident, he would succumb to the societal pressures. He lived in Firozabad
which was famous for glass bangles. The writer felt that the boy’s dreams would not
materialize and gradually get influenced by the dusty streets of Firozabad. She
wanted to say that as every family in the town of Firozabad was involved in the glass
bangle industry, so would Mukesh do with the passage of time. She tells us that
Firozabad was the main town of India for the glass – blowing industry. The families
had been involved in working at furnaces, welding glass, and making bangles for
generations. They made so many bangles that it seemed that they made bangles for
all the women of the world.
Passage: 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.
Word Meaning
Dingy – dark, dim
Slog – work hard
Daylight hours – hours of the day when there is sunlight
Brightness of their eyes – here, refers to the power to see
Explanation of the above Passage: Mukesh’s family was also involved in the
profession of glass bangle – making. They were not aware of the law. They did not
know that it was unlawful to force children to work in such glass furnaces. The work
places were hot, dark closed rooms without ventilation. The writer felt that if the law
would come into force, it would rescue almost twenty thousand children from these
inhuman places where they were forced to work hard during the daytime. They often
ended up losing their eyesight also.
Passage: Mukesh’s eyes beam as he volunteers to take me home, which he proudly
says is being rebuilt. We walk down stinking lanes choked with garbage, past homes
that remain hovels with crumbling walls, wobbly doors, no windows, crowded with
families of humans and animals coexisting in a primeval state. He stops at the door
of one such house, bangs a wobbly iron door with his foot, and pushes it open.
Word Meaning
Beam – shine brightly
Volunteers – freely offers to do something
Stinking – bad smell
Choked – blocked
Hovels – slums
Crumbling – falling down
Wobbly – unsteady
Coexisting – present at the same time and place
Primeval – prehistoric
Bangs – hits
Explanation of the above Passage – Mukesh was happy as he took the writer to
his home. He felt proud as he informed her that it was being renovated. They walked
down streets which were full of garbage and gave foul smell. The streets were lined
with slums which were unsteady. The walls were falling apart, the doors were
unsteady, there were no windows and were full of families where people lived along
with animals. They reminded the writer of the prehistoric man who lived just like
animals. Mukesh stopped in front of one such door, hit it hard with his foot and
pushed it open.
Passage: We enter a half-built shack. In one part of it, thatched with dead grass, is a
firewood stove over which sits a large vessel of sizzling spinach leaves. On the
ground, in large aluminium platters, are more chopped vegetables. A frail young
woman is cooking the evening meal for the whole family. Through eyes filled with
smoke she smiles. She is the wife of Mukesh’s elder brother. Not much older in
years, she has begun to command respect as the bahu, the daughter-in-law of the
house, already in charge of three men — her husband, Mukesh and their father.
Word Meaning
Shack – a roughly built hut
Thatched – covered with dry grass
Vessel – container for cooking food
Sizzling – make a hissing sound when frying or cooking
Platters – large plates
Chopped – cut finely
Frail – thin, weak
eyes filled with smoke – her eyes are filled with the smoke coming out of the
firewood stove
command respect – she is worthy and so, is respected
Explanation of the above Passage: The house where Mukesh lived was partially
constructed hut. In one corner was a firewood stove made with dead grass. A vessel
with spinach leaves was kept on it. on the ground There were more plates with
chopped vegetables in them. There was a thin, young woman cooking the evening
meal for the family. Her eyes were full of the smoke emanating from the stove but
she was still cheerful and smiled to see the writer. She was the wife of Mukesh’s
elder brother. Although she was not much older than Mukesh, she was a responsible
person and was worthy to get respect from the family as the daughter-in-law of the
family. She took care of three men – her husband, Mukesh and their father.
Passage: When the older man enters, she gently withdraws behind the broken wall
and brings her veil closer to her face. As custom demands, daughters-in-law must
veil their faces before male elders. In this case the elder is an impoverished bangle
maker. Despite long years of hard labour, first as a tailor, then a bangle maker, he
has failed to renovate a house, send his two sons to school. All he has managed to
do is teach them what he knows — the art of making bangles.

Word Meaning
Withdraws – goes back
Veil – a piece of fine material worn by women to protect or hide the face, cover or
hide
Impoverished – very poor
Labour – hard work
Renovate – repair
Explanation of the above Passage: As Mukesh’s father entered the house, the
daughter-in-law hid behind the wall and covered her face behind her veil. It was a
tradition for the daughter-in-laws to hide their face in the presence of the older male
members of the family. The elder here was a poor bangle maker. He had worked
hard all his life – first as a tailor, then as a bangle maker. He was still not able to
either renovate the house or send his sons to school. He had just managed to teach
him the skill of making bangles.
Passage: “It is his karam, his destiny,” says Mukesh’s grandmother, who has
watched her own husband go blind with the dust from polishing the glass of bangles.
“Can a god-given lineage ever be broken?” she implies.
Word Meaning
Destiny – fate
God-given lineage – here, a profession carried on through the generations of a
family – glass bangle making
Explanation of the above Passage: Mukesh’s grandmother justified her son by
saying that he was destined to make bangles as it had been their family profession.
She had seen her husband become blind due to the dust from polishing the glass
bangles. She said that their family had got this art of bangle making from God and so
they had to carry on the tradition.

Passage: Born in the caste of bangle makers, they have seen nothing but bangles
— in the house, in the yard, in every other house, every other yard, every street in
Firozabad. Spirals of bangles — sunny gold, paddy green, royal blue, pink, purple,
every colour born out of the seven colours of the rainbow — lie in mounds in
unkempt yards, are piled on four-wheeled handcarts, pushed by young men along
the narrow lanes of the shanty town.
Word Meaning
Yard – the open area at the back of the house
Mounds – heaps
Unkempt – not taken care of
Piled – kept one on top of the other
Shanty town – a town that is full of small, roughly built huts
Explanation of the above Passage: They were born in a particular caste which
had to follow the profession of bangle making. All their life they had just seen these
glass bangles. They were everywhere – in the backyard, in the next house, in their
yard and even in the streets of the town. There were huge spiral bunches of bangles
in different colours like gold, green, blue, pink, purple. There were bangles of all the
colours of the rainbow. Further, the writer says that there were bangles in the
neglected yards also. They were dumped on handcarts for sale. They were pushed
by men along the streets of Firozabad.
Passage: And in dark hutments, next to lines of flames of flickering oil lamps, sit
boys and girls with their fathers and mothers, welding pieces of coloured glass into
circles of bangles. Their eyes are more adjusted to the dark than to the light outside.
That is why they often end up losing their eyesight before they become adults.
Word Meaning
Welding – joining
Explanation of the above Passage: The writer describes the environment where
these bangle makers work. They were small, dark huts. The children would sit next
to a line of oil lamps whose flames were unsteady. They, along with their parents
joined the pieces of coloured glass into circles called bangles. As they spent a lot of
time in the dark, their eyes would not adapt to the bright sunlight. Many of them lost
their eyesight before gaining adulthood.
Passage: Savita, a young girl in a drab pink dress, sits alongside an elderly woman,
soldering pieces of glass. As her hands move mechanically like the tongs of a
machine, I wonder if she knows the sanctity of the bangles she helps make. It
symbolizes an Indian woman’s suhaag, auspiciousness in marriage.
Word Meaning
Drab – faded, colorless
Soldering – joining
Tongs – an instrument with two moveable arms joined at one end
Sanctity – the state of being sacred or holy
Auspiciousness – good omen
Explanation of the above Passage: There was a young girl by the name of Savita.
She wore a faded pink coloured dress. She was sitting with an elderly woman and
they were joining pieces of glass to make bangles. Her hands moved like a machine
just like the tongs of a machine. The writer wondered if Savita knew that bangles
were sacred. They were a good omen for a woman’s wifehood.
Passage: It will dawn on her suddenly one day when her head is draped with a red
veil, her hands dyed red with henna, and red bangles rolled onto her wrists. She will
then become a bride. Like the old woman beside her who became one many years
ago. She still has bangles on her wrist, but no light in her eyes.
Word Meaning
Dawn on her – she will realize
Draped – covered
Explanation of the above Passage: She thought that Savita would realize this
when she would become a bride. That day she would cover her head with a red
coloured veil, colour her hands with henna and wear red coloured bangles on her
wrist. The elderly woman sitting next to Savita also became a bride many years ago.
She was still wearing the glass bangles but had lost her eyesight now.
Passage: “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.”
Word Meaning
Ser – a unit of measuring quantity
Reaped – received as a benefit
Explanation of the above Passage: The elderly woman complained that she had
not eaten even a ser of food. Ser is a unit of measuring quantity. The woman wants
to say that they are so poor that they cannot eat enough food. That is the benefit that
she has received by adopting the profession of bangle-making. The woman’s
husband has a flowing beard. He says that he does not know anything other than
bangle – making. All that he has been able to accomplish is to make a house for his
family to live in.
Passage: Hearing him, one wonders if he has achieved what many have failed in
their lifetime. He has a roof over his head!
Explanation of the above Passage: The writer wonders that probably the old man
has achieved something which many other people have not been able to achieve. At
least he has been able to secure a shelter for his family.
Passage: 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 their elders. Little has moved with time, it seems, in Firozabad.
Years of mind-numbing toil have killed all initiative and the ability to dream.
Word Meaning
Rings – a sound which is repeated
Echo – repeat
Lament – complaint
Mind – numbing – boring
Toil – physical hard work done to earn a living
Explanation of the above Passage: This problem was prevalent in all the homes
which carried on the profession. They did not know anything else other than bangle-
making and it did not even provide them enough to eat. The young men who had
entered the traditional profession also had the same complaint. With the passing
time there was no improvement in their condition. As they had been doing hard work
for a countless number of years, they did not have any ability to do something else
or to dream of it.
Passage: “Why not organise yourselves into a cooperative?” I ask a group of young
men who have fallen into the vicious circle of middlemen who trapped their fathers
and forefathers. “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,” they say. There is
no leader among them, no one who could help them see things differently. Their
fathers are as tired as they are.
Word Meaning
Vicious – cruel
Hauled up – dragged, taken away
Explanation of the above Passage: The writer suggests them to form a
cooperative. She talked to a group of young men to get out of the clutches of the
cruel middlemen who had trapped their elders. The men said that if they dared to do
something like that, they would be dragged and beaten up by the police and sent to
jail. Their acts would be termed to be unlawful. The writer felt that as they had no
leader, they could not think of doing things differently. They all were so tired – the
men and their fathers.
Passage: They talk endlessly in a spiral that moves poverty to apathy to greed and
to injustice. Listening to them, I see two distinct worlds — one of the family, caught in
a web of poverty, burdened by the stigma of caste in which they are born; the other a
vicious circle of the sahukars, the middlemen, the policemen, the keepers of law, the
bureaucrats and the politicians. Together they have imposed the baggage on the
child that he cannot put down. Before he is aware, he accepts it as naturally as his
father. To do anything else would mean to dare.
Word Meaning
Spiral – here, a never-ending continuous process
Apathy – lack of concern
Greed – intense and selfish desire for something
Distinct – separate
Stigma – dishonor
Bureaucrats – government officials
Imposed – forced upon
Baggage – burden
To dare – do something courageous
Explanation of the above Passage: The men complained that it was a continuous
process. Their poor condition led to lack of concern for their problems. This made
them greedy and led to injustice. The writer envisioned that there were two separate
worlds – one was of such families who were stuck in poverty and the pressure of
doing the traditional profession according to the caste in which they were born. The
other world is a never-ending cycle of moneylenders, middlemen, policemen, law
keepers, government officials and politicians. Both of these worlds had forced the
young boys to follow the family traditions. The young boys get into the profession
and become a part of the vicious cycle even before they realize it. If they did
anything else, it meant that they were challenging these two worlds.
Passage: And daring is not part of his growing up. When I sense a flash of it in
Mukesh I am cheered. “I want to be a motor mechanic,’ he repeats. He will go to a
garage and learn. But the garage is a long way from his home. “I will walk,” he
insists. “Do you also dream of flying a plane?” He is suddenly silent. “No,” he says,
staring at the ground. In his small murmur there is an embarrassment that has not
yet turned into regret. He is content to dream of cars that he sees hurtling down the
streets of his town. Few airplanes fly over Firozabad.
Word Meaning
Hurtling down – moving around
Explanation of the above Passage: The boys had not been reared up to be bold
so that they could dare to go against the system. The writer was happy to sense that
Mukesh had the spark in him. He repeated that he would be a motor mechanic. He
wanted to go to a garage and learn the job. The writer asked that as the garage was
at a distance from his home, Mukesh insisted that he would walk up to it. She asked
him if he dreamt of flying planes. The boy became silent and refused. He did not
know about them as he did not know about planes. Not many planes flew over
Firozabad. As he had only seen cars moving around in Firozabad, his dreams were
restricted up to them.

Lost Spring Question Answers

Think as you read
1. What is Saheb looking for in the garbage dumps? Where is he and where
has he come from?
A. 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?
A. 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.
A. 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?
A. Firozabad is famous for glass blowing industry.
5. Mention the hazards of working in the glass bangles industry.
A. 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?
A. 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.
Understanding the text
Q1. What could be some of the reasons for the migration of people from
villages to cities?
A. 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?
A. Yes, I agree that the promises made to poor children are rarely fulfilled. In the
story the writer jokingly offers the rag picker 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?
A. 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?
A. 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.
A. 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?
A. 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.
This Page includes Notes of the Chapter The Lost Spring
Top
Lost Spring Extract based questions
1. “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. What is the boy doing?
a. Cleaning utensils
b. Sifting through the garbage
c. making tea
d. Playing with friends
A. b
2. ‘Gold’ is which figure of speech?
a. Rhyme
b. Imagery
c. metaphor
d. Pun
A. c
3. Find a synonym of ‘in the middle of’
A. amidst
4. Which ‘big city’ do they live in?
a. Dhaka
b. Delhi
c. Mumbai
d. Kolkata
A. b
2. “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 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.
1. What does glibly mean?
a. Spoken confidently but without careful thought
b. Done with confidence and careful thought
c. spoken in a serious manner
d. Careless attitude
A. a
2. A few days later I see him running up to me. “Is your school ready?”
This shows
a. The boy wants to go to school
b. The boy is showing her down
c. the boy does not want to work and wants to escape to a school
d. The boy likes her
A. a
3. Why is the narrator embarrassed?
A. She is embarrassed because she made a false promise. She did not intend to
open a school but the boy took her seriously.
4. Why does she say that promises like mine abound in every corner of his bleak
world?
A. The poor boy’s life is full of sadness. He sees many things around him which are
like the writer’s promise but he never gets anything. So his life is not encouraging
and it is full of false promises.
3. My acquaintance with the barefoot ragpickers leads me to Seemapuri, a place on
the periphery of Delhi yet miles away from it, metaphorically. Those who live here
are squatters who came from Bangladesh back in 1971. Saheb’s family is among
them. Seemapuri was then a wilderness. It still is, but it is no longer empty. In
structures of mud, with roofs of tin and tarpaulin, devoid of sewage, drainage or
running water, live 10,000 ragpickers. They have lived here for more than thirty years
without an identity, without permits but with ration cards that get their names on
voters’ lists and enable them to buy grain.
1. “ a place on the periphery of Delhi yet miles away from it” means –
i. Semapuri is not in Delhi
ii. Seemapuri is in Delhi
iii. Seemapuri is different from the rest of Delhi
iv. Seemapuri is near Delhi
a. i, ii, iii, iv
b. ii, iii
c. i, ii
d. iii, iv
A. b
2. Find a synonym of outskirts
A. Periphery
3. Which of the following best describes a squatter?
a. One who lives on a land not belonging to him
b. One who sits cross legged
c. One who spends all the money he has
d. None of these
A. a
4. Why do they have ration cards only?
A. The ragpickers aim at mere survival and so the authorities provide them ration
cards through which they get cheap ration. Other than that, these people never ask
for any permit or identity card.
5. Find a synonym of without
A. Devoid
4. 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.
1. What ‘more’ does the garbage mean for the children?
A. It proves to be a means to fulfil their desires by providing torn shoes, a coin, old
clothes and other such wonders.
2. Why is ragpicking an art?
A. Ragpicking is an art because the ragpicker should have an eye to search the
valuable things in a heap of garbage
3. “It is their daily bread, a roof over their heads, even if it is a leaking roof.” This
statement means –
1. The roof is made of garbage
2. The bread is made of recycled garbage
3. They earn money for bread by selling things found in the garbage
a. 1, 2, 3
b. 1 only
c. 3 only
d. None of these
A. c
5. 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, welding glass, making bangles for all
the women in the land it seems.
1. Mirage here means _____
a. An aeroplane
b. A hope that cannot be achieved
c. An image seen in hot weather in the deserts
d. none of these
A. b
2. Why every other family in Firozabad is engaged in making bangles?
a. They don’t know any other work
b. Firozabad is the centre of India’s glass-blowing industry
c. They don’t dare do anything else
d. All of these
A. D
3. Why does the author say that “making bangles for all the women in the land it
seems”?
A. She says this because in Firozabad numerous glass bangles are made. It
appears that all the women buy and wear bangles made here.
4. Find a synonym of fireplace.
A. Furnace
6. He stops at the door of one such house, bangs a wobbly iron door with his foot,
and pushes it open. We enter a half-built shack. In one part of it, thatched with dead
grass, is a firewood stove over which sits a large vessel of sizzling spinach leaves.
On the ground, in large aluminium platters, are more chopped vegetables. A frail
young woman is cooking the evening meal for the whole family. Through eyes filled
with smoke she smiles. She is the wife of Mukesh’s elder brother.
1. Wobbly means ______
a. Strong
b. wooden
c. trembling
d. All of these
A. c
2. Shack means ______
a. Shop
b. Hut
c. room
d. None of these
A. b
3. Find a synonym of ‘weak’
A. Frail
4. Why are her eyes filled with smoke?
A. Her eyes are filled with smoke because she is cooking on the firewood stove
which is emitting smoke.
7. “Why not organise yourselves into a cooperative?” I ask a group of young men
who have fallen into the vicious circle of middlemen who trapped their fathers and
forefathers. “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,” they say. There is no
leader among them, no one who could help them see things differently. Their fathers
are as tired as they are.
1. Why will they be beaten by the police?
A. The police will beat them to stop them from organizing themselves into a
cooperative.
2. Hauled up means ________
a. To call to account for something
b. to stop
c. to criticize
d. To teach
A. a
3. They are tired of __________
1. Making bangles
2. The vicious circle of middlemen
3. Each other
a. 1, 2, 3
b. Only 1
c. Only 2
d. Only 3
A. c
4. Find a synonym of harsh
A. Vicious

Short Answer Type Questions (3-4 marks)

Question 1.
What does the writer mean when she says, ‘Saheb is no longer his own master’?
(Delhi 2000)
Answer:
Since Saheb now works in a tea-stall, he is now bound to his master and feels
burdened. The steel canister he carries is very heavy as compared to his light plastic
bag. The bag was his own and the canister belongs to his master whose orders he
now has to follow. So he is no longer his own master.

Question 2.
Is it possible for Mukesh to realize his dream? Justify your answer? (All India 2000)
Answer:
Mukesh’s determination is going to prove instrumental in helping him to realize his
dream. His dream can become a reality only if he is able to find a garage where he
can be taken in as an apprentice and then he will have to learn how to drive a car.
He will then be able to graduate himself to be a good mechanic.

Question 3.
Do you think Saheb was happy to work at the tea stall? Answer giving reasons. (All
India 2000)
Answer:
Since Saheb now works in a tea-stall, he is now bound to his master and feels
burdened. The steel canister he carries is very heavy as compared to his light plastic
bag. The bag was his own and the canister belongs to his master whose orders he
now has to follow. So he is no longer his own master.

Question 4.
What does the title, ‘Lost Spring’ convey? (All India 2000)
Answer:
The title ‘Lost Spring’ conveys how millions of children in India lose out on living the
‘spring’ of their lives, that is their childhood. The best phase of life is lost in the
hardships involved to earn their livelihood. Poverty forces these young children to
work in the most inhuman conditions as a result of which they miss out on the fun of
childhood which hampers their growth.

Question 5.
Why does the author say that the bangle makers are caught in a vicious web?(All
India 2010)
Answer:
The author says that the bangle makers are caught in a vicious web which starts
from poverty, to indifferences, then to greed and finally to injustice. Mind-numbing toil
kills their hopes and dreams. They cannot organise themselves into cooperatives
and have fallen into a vicious circle of ‘sahukars’, middlemen and the police so they
get condemned to poverty and perpetual exploitation.

Question 6.
What does the writer mean when she says, ‘Saheb is no longer his own master’?
(Comptt. All India 2011)
Answer:
Since Saheb now works in a tea-stall, he is now bound to his master and feels
burdened. The steel canister he carries is very heavy as compared to his light plastic
bag. The bag was his own and the canister belongs to his master whose orders he
now has to follow. So he is no longer his own master.

Question 7.
Who is Mukesh? What is his dream? (Delhi 2012)
Answer:
Mukesh is a child labourer in a glass factory in Firozabad. Belonging to a family of
bangle makers, he shows no fascination towards bangle-making and insists on being
his own master. He dreams of becoming a motor mechanic. He desires to go to a
garage and get the required training for this job.
Question 8.
Is Saheb happy working at the tea stall? Why/ Why not? (Delhi 2012)
Answer:
No, Saheb is not happy working at the tea stall. Even though, he now gets a fixed
income of ?800 alongwith all his meals, he has lost his freedom and his carefree
days. He is no longer his own master and is bound and burdened by the steel
canister he now has to carry.

Question 9.
Why could the bangle-makers not organise themselves into a co-operative? (All India
2012)
Answer:
The bangle-makers are caught in a vicious web which starts from poverty to
indifferences then to greed and finally to injustice. Mind-numbing toil kills their hopes
and dreams.
The bangle makers of Firozabad were not able to organise themselves into a
cooperative because they had got trapped in a vicious circle j of the sahukars, the
middlemen, the policemen, j the bureaucrats and the politicians. Together they had
imposed a baggage on these people 1 which they could not put down.

Question 10.
Mention any two problems faced by the bangle sellers.(Comptt. All India 2012)
Answer:
The bangle makers had to work in the glass furnaces with high temperatures, in
dingy cells without air and light. They are exposed to various health hazards like
losing their eyesight as they work in abysmal conditions in dark and dingy cells. They
were also caught in a web of poverty, burdened by the stigma of caste in which they
were born and also caught in a vicious circle of sahukars, middlemen and policeman.

Question 11.
Garbage has two different meanings—one for the children and another for the
adults. Comment. (Comptt. All India 2012)
Answer:
For the children garbage has a different meaning from what it means for the adults.
For the children it is wrapped in wonder, their eyes light-up when they find a rupee or
a ten-rupee note in it. They search the garbage excitedly with the hope of finding
something more. But for the elders it is a means of survival.

Question 12.
Why didn’t the bangle makers of Firozabad organise themselves into a cooperative?
(Comptt. All India 2012)
Answer:
The bangle-makers are caught in a vicious web which starts from poverty to
indifferences then to greed and finally to injustice. Mind-numbing toil kills their hopes
and dreams.
The bangle makers of Firozabad were not able to organise themselves into a
cooperative because they had got trapped in a vicious circle j of the sahukars, the
middlemen, the policemen, j the bureaucrats and the politicians. Together they had
imposed a baggage on these people 1 which they could not put down.

Question 13.
How is Mukesh’s attitude towards life different from that of his family? (Comptt. Delhi
2013)
Answer:
Unlike his family Mukesh insists on being his own master. He dreams to be a motor
mechanic which in itself is a daring thought because he wants to break away from
the family’s work of making bangles wherein his forefathers have spent generations
working around furnaces.

Question 14.
Why can’t the bangle makers of Firozabad organize themselves into a cooperative?
(Comptt. Delhi 2013)
Answer:
The bangle-makers are caught in a vicious web which starts from poverty to
indifferences then to greed and finally to injustice. Mind-numbing toil kills their hopes
and dreams.
The bangle makers of Firozabad were not able to organise themselves into a
cooperative because they had got trapped in a vicious circle j of the sahukars, the
middlemen, the policemen, j the bureaucrats and the politicians. Together they had
imposed a baggage on these people 1 which they could not put down.

Question 15.
Why is Saheb unhappy working at the tea i stall? (Comptt. Delhi 2013)
Answer:
Saheb was unhappy while working at the tea- stall because he was no longer the
master of his own life. He lost his freedom and carefree look. He had to live and work
under the instructions of the owner of the tea-stall. He was not at liberty to go out
and spend time with his friends.

Question 16.
Survival in Seemapuri means rag-picking. , Comment. (Comptt. All India 2013)
Answer:
Survival in Seemapuri means rag-picking. Over the years it has acquired the
proportions of a fine art. For the slum dwellers of Seemapuri, rag-picking is their daily
bread, it gives them the roof over their heads and is the very means for their survival.

Question 17.
It is ‘a tradition to stay barefoot ‘ What is the attitude of the rag-pickers of Seemapuri
towards wearing shoes? (Comptt. All India 2013)
Answer:
The rag-pickers of Seemapuri have different attitudes towards wearing shoes. One
boy does not feel like wearing shoes. Another boy who has never owned a pair of
shoes all his life wants them. But the author feels it its not lack of money but a
tradition to stay barefoot for these poor people.
Question 18.
A young man in Firozabad is burdened under the baggage of two worlds. What are
they? (Comptt. All India)
Answer:
The two worlds that burden a young man in Firozabad include one of the family,
caught in the web of poverty, burdened by the stigma of ” caste in which they are
born; the other a vicious circle of the sahukars, the middlemen, the policemen, the
keepers of law, the bureaucrats and the politicians.

Question 19.
How is Mukesh different from the other bangle makers of Firozabad? (Delhi 2014)
Answer:
Mukesh was different from other bangle makers because he wanted to be his own
master. He had a dream of becoming a motor mechanic whereas other bangle
makers did not even dare to dream but had accepted their fate.

Question 20.
What job did Saheb take up? Was he happy? (Delhi 2014)
Answer:
Saheb took up a job in a tea stall. Though he gets 800 rupees and all his meals, he
is not happy and his face has lost the carefree look. He is bound and burdened as he
now has to follow the orders of his master and is no longer his own master.

Question 21.
Why did Saheb’s parents leave Dhaka and migrate to India? (Comptt. Delhi 2014)
Answer:
Saheb’s home was set amidst the green fields of Dhaka. His mother told him that
many storms had swept away their fields and homes. For this reason his parents
were forced to leave Dhaka and migrate to India, looking for gold in the big city
where they now live.

Question 22.
What is Mukesh’s dream? Do you think he will be able to fulfil his dream? Why? Why
not? (Comptt. Delhi 2014)
Answer:
Mukesh’s dream is to learn to drive a car and become a motor mechanic. His dream
is likely to be fulfilled because one can sense a kind of determination in him to
ensure the fulfillment of his dream. Though the garage is a long way from his home
he is willing to walk to learn despite the odds against him.

Question 23.
In what sense is garbage gold to the ragpickers? (Comptt. All India 2014)
Answer:
The rag-pickers of Seemapuri consider garbage as nothing less than gold. For the
elders it is their only means of survival as it provides them with their daily bread. For
the innocent chil¬dren it is wrapped in wonder as they marvel at the chance of
finding a coin, a currency note or a curio that really thrills them and gives them a
hope of finding more elusive notes.
Question 24.
Whom does Anees Jung blame for the sorry plight of the bangle makers’?(Comptt.
All India 2014)
Answer:
Anees Jung blames the family of the bangle makers, who are caught in a web of
poverty, burdened by the stigma of the caste in which they are born and the vicious
circle of the sahukars, the middlemen, the policemen, the keepers of law, the
bureaucrats and the politicians for the sorry plight of the bangle makers.

Question 25.
To which country did Saheb’s parents originally belong? Why did they come to
India? (Comptt. All India 2014)
Answer:
Saheb’s parents originally belonged to Dhaka in Bangladesh. His home, which was
set amidst the green fields of Dhaka, had been swept away due to the storms and
that was when his parents had left their native place and come to the big city in
search of livelihood.

Question 26.
Most of us do not raise our voice against injustice in our society and tend to remain
mute spectators. Anees Jung in her article, l “Lost Childhood” vividly highlights the I
miserable life of street children and bangle makers of Firozabad. She wants us to
act. Which qualities does she want the children to develop? (Comptt. Delhi 2014)
Answer:
Anees Jung feels that there is dire need to provide these poverty-stricken children a
life of dignity and respect. This can mainly be done j through the medium of
education, which will further provide them with opportunities wherein they will be able
to pursue their dreams. There is utter lack of compassion and concern for
unfortunate children like Saheb and Mukesh. They are caught in a vicious circle of
poverty and exploitation. The author wants all i children to become aware of their
basic rights which will empower them and enable them to j organise themselves into
cooperatives whereby j they will not be ruthlessly exploited.

Question 27.
What does Saheb look for in the garbage 1 dumps? (All India 2015)
Answer:
According to the author Saheb scrounges for ‘gold’ in the garbage dumps. ‘Gold’
here infers . to items that are valuable to him like used clothes, shoes, plastic scrap,
stray coins or 1 currency notes. For children like Saheb, i garbage is ‘wrapped in
wonder’.

Question 28.
What did garbage mean to the children of Seemapuri and to their parents? (All India
2015)
Answer:
The rag-pickers of Seemapuri consider garbage as nothing less than gold. For the
elders it is their only means of survival as it provides them with their daily bread. For
the innocent chil¬dren it is wrapped in wonder as they marvel at the chance of
finding a coin, a currency note or a curio that really thrills them and gives them a
hope of finding more elusive notes.

Question 29.
“It is his karam, his destiny.” What is Mukesh’s family’s attitude towards their
situation? (All India 2015)
Answer:
Mukesh’s family have accepted their misery and impoverished condition as factors
that have been ordained by destiny. Years of depravation and suffering has made
them accept their condition passively in the name of fate or destiny. They feel that a
God-given lineage can never be broken and have accepted bangle making as his
destiny.

Question 30.
Describe the irony in Saheb’s name. (Delhi 2016)
Answer:
Saheb’s full name is Saheb-e-Alam which means ‘Lord of the Universe’. But
ironically Saheb is a poverty-stricken ragpicker who scrounges the garbage dumps
to earn his livelihood. His name is in complete contrast to his miserable existence.

Question 31.
What does the reference to chappals in ‘Lost Spring7 tell us about the economic
condition of the rag pickers? (All India 2016)
Answer:
The reference to chappals in ‘Lost Spring’ tells us that the ragpickers were poverty-
stricken. The fact that they are not able to buy chappals reflects their extreme state
of poverty because of which they are unable to buy basic things.

Question 32.
How was Mukesh different from other bangle makers? (Comptt. Delhi 2016)
Answer:
Mukesh was different from other bangle makers because he wanted to be his own
master. He had a dream of becoming a motor mechanic whereas other bangle
makers did not even dare to dream but had accepted their fate.

Question 33.
Why was Saheb unhappy while working at the tea-stall? (Comptt. Delhi 2016)
Answer:
Saheb was unhappy while working at the tea- stall because he was no longer the
master of his own life. He lost his freedom and carefree look. He had to live and work
under the instructions of the owner of the tea-stall. He was not at liberty to go out
and spend time with his friends.

Question 34.
Which industry was a boon and also bane for the people of Firozabad? How?
(Comptt. Delhi 2017)
Answer:
The glass-bangles making industry was a boon and also bane for the people of
Firozabad. The industry has given them a means of livelihood but the hazardous
working conditions in the hot furnaces take a toll on their physical health.

Question 35.
How are Saheb and Mukesh different from each other? (Comptt. All India 2017)
Answer:
Mukesh’s attitude towards life was different from that of Saheb. Unlike Saheb he was
optimistic about his future and so he dared to dream. He wanted to become a motor
mechanic and also wanted to learn to drive a car. Saheb lacked determination so he
harboured no dreams or ambitions about his future.

Lost Spring Important Questions Long Answer Type Questions (5-6 marks)

Question 36.
The bangle-makers of Firozabad make bea-utiful bangles and make everyone happy
but they live and die in squalor. Elaborate. (Delhi 2010)
Answer:
Through the story of the bangle-makers of Firozabad, the author expresses her
concern over their exploitation in the hazardous job of bangle-making. Extreme
poverty, hard work and dismal working conditions result in the loss of the childhood
of children who are in this profession. The working conditions of all bangle-makers
are pathetic and miserable. They work in high temperature, badly lit and poorly
ventilated glass furnaces due to which child workers especially are at risk of losing
their eyesight at an early age and get prone to other health hazards. The stinking
lanes of Firozabad are choked with garbage and humans and animals live together
in these hovels. There is no development or progress in their lives with the passage
of time. They have no choice but to work in these inhuman conditions. Mind-numbing
toil kills their dreams and hopes. They are condemned to live and die in squalor,
subjected to a life of poverty and perpetual exploitation.

Question 37.
Why did Saheb become a ragpicker? What did j he look for in the garbage dumps?
(Comptt. Delhi 2010)
Answer:
Saheb belongs to a Bangladeshi refugee family that migrated to Delhi from Dhaka in
the wake of the 1971 Indo-Pak war. Here he finds himself in a vicious circle of social
stigma, poverty and exploitation. He represents a growing number of refugee migrant
poor population who are forced to lead a life of penury. This migratory population
settle on the periphery of big cities and start doing menial jobs to earn a living. Due
to extreme poverty Saheb’s parents are unable to provide for him and so he ends up
picking rags for his own survival as well as to support his parents. The author says
that Saheb scrounges for ‘gold’ in the garbage. Anything valuable like used clothes,
shoes, bits of metal, plastic scrap, stray coins and currency notes can be termed as
gold for them.

Question 38.
What change did Anees Jung see in Saheb when she saw him standing by the gate
of the neighbourhood club? (Comptt. Delhi 2010)
Answer:
Saheb was a poor ragpicker who later takes up a job at a tea-stall in an attempt to be
a master of his own destiny. But unfortunately this move further enslaves him. His
new job replaces his light polythene bag with a heavy steel canister.
It even deprives him of roaming around with his friends without a care in the world.
Earlier, though he did not have the security of a regular income, he had his freedom,
and later he did have an assured income at the end of the month but he had lost his
freedom. He was no more a free bird and his own master. He appeared burdened
and forlorn. He was now a bonded labour who had surrendered his freedom. From
being a spirited free bird who was not answerable to anyone he has become bound.
He lives in a society where there is utter lack of compassion and commitment for the
upliftment of these unfortunate children.

Question 39.
Describe the life of squatters at Seemapuri. (Comptt. All India 2010)
Answer:
Most of the squatters at Seemapuri were refugees from Bangladesh.
Also:
Most of the people like Saheb-e-Alam settled in Seemapuri were refugees from
Bangladesh
who had fled their country and migrated to Delhi from Dhaka in the wake of the 1971
Indo- Pak war. Their dwellings were structures of mud, tin and tarpaulin with no
sewage, drainage or running water. Picking garbage and rags helped them to earn
their daily bread, gave them a roof over their heads and was their only means of
livelihood and survival. Though these squatters of Seemapuri have no identity but
they do have valid ration cards that enable them to buy grain. Living in Seemapuri,
which is on the periphery of Delhi, is like living in hell. Children here grow up to
become partners in survival to their parents. An army of barefoot children appears
every morning, carrying their plastic bags on their shoulders and disappear by noon.
They are forced to live a life of abject poverty that results in the loss of childhood
innocence.
Saheb, a ragpicker, roamed in the streets, scrounging for garbage, barefoot and
deprived of education. Later he starts working in a tea stall but he loses his freedom
and carefree life as he is no longer his own master.

Question 40.
What does Anees Jung tell us about life at Mukesh’s home in Firozabad? (Comptt.
AT 2010)
Answer:
Mukesh’s father represents the underpaid, over exploited bangle makers of
Firozabad who is a victim of his own caste and is caught in a vicious circle of
Sahnkars, middlemen, politi¬cians and policemen. He leads a hand-to-mouth
existence in a shack with his family which includes two elderly parents, two sons and
a daughter-in-law. Lack of education and awareness, the stigma of caste and a
vicious nexus of people who exploit them have killed all initiative and drive in the
young and the old. Time seems to stand still in Mukesh’s home in Firozabad. There
is no progress and no development despite years of mind- numbing toil. All the
labourers of Firozabad are victims of middlemen and touts. Their desire to dream
and dare is snubbed in their childhood. They have no choice but to accept their
subservience silently as their spirit is broken and their initiative dormant.

Question 41.
Give a brief account of the life and activities of the people like Saheb-e-Alam settled
in Seemapuri. (Delhi 2011 )
Answer: Refer to Question 49, Page 166

Question 42.
‘Lost Spring’ explains the grinding poverty and traditions that condemn thousands of
people to a life of abject poverty. Do you agree? Why/Why not? (All India 2011)
Answer:
‘Lost Spring’ does indeed highlight the miserable plight of thousands of poor people
whose life is completely marred by abject poverty and thoughtless traditions. They
work extremely hard in the most pathetic conditions and accept poverty and
exploitation as their destiny. Through the lives of Saheb-e-Alam, a ragpicker, and
Mukesh, a bangle maker, the author highlights the vicious circle of social stigma and
poverty which these people are subjected to. Saheb and Mukesh also represent a
growing number of refugee migrants and people who are forced to live a life of
penury. No one shows any kind of compassion or sensitivity to their pathetic plight
and there is also no initiative or commitment for the upliftment of these downtrodden
people. Acute poverty, no education and no infrastructural development has drained
their energy and willpower and they have no choice but to accept their destiny of
inevitable poverty.

Question 43.
What circumstances forced Mukesh not to pursue his family business of bangle
making? Instead, what did he decide to do?
(Comptt. Delhi 2012)
Answer:
Mukesh dares to dream of a different life and decides not to pursue his family
business of bangle-making. He does not want to accept his life of misery in the name
of destiny. Though he is born in a poverty-ridden family in the caste of bangle
makers he dreams of a better future. He wants to break free from the vicious circle of
sahukars and middlemen and carve a new beginning for himself by becoming a
motor- mechanic. He knows what it is like to work in glass furnaces that are neither
well-lit nor well- ventilated. They are dingy hovels with high temperatures. He has
seen that the youngsters are weighed down by the baggage of generations of
subservience and have forgotten to dream of an alternative world. So Mukesh’s
dream of going to a garage and learning to be a motor-mechanic is an attempt to
break free off the mind-numbing toil.

Question 44.
In 1971 Bangladeshi migrants came to Delhi ‘looking for gold in the big city’. What
kind of life are they living in Seemapuri now?
(Comptt. Delhi 2012)
Answer:
Most of the people like Saheb-e-Alam settled in Seemapuri were refugees from
Bangladesh
who had fled their country and migrated to Delhi from Dhaka in the wake of the 1971
Indo- Pak war. Their dwellings were structures of mud, tin and tarpaulin with no
sewage, drainage or running water. Picking garbage and rags helped them to earn
their daily bread, gave them a roof over their heads and was their only means of
livelihood and survival. Though these squatters of Seemapuri have no identity but
they do have valid ration cards that enable them to buy grain. Living in Seemapuri,
which is on the periphery of Delhi, is like living in hell. Children here grow up to
become partners in survival to their parents. An army of barefoot children appears
every morning, carrying their plastic bags on their shoulders and disappear by noon.
They are forced to live a life of abject poverty that results in the loss of childhood
innocence.
Saheb, a ragpicker, roamed in the streets, scrounging for garbage, barefoot and
deprived of education. Later he starts working in a tea stall but he loses his freedom
and carefree life as he is no longer his own master.

Question 45.
Describe the difficulties the bangle makers of Firozabad have to face in their lives.
(Delhi 2015 2012)
Answer:
Through the story of the bangle-makers of Firozabad, the author expresses her
concern over their exploitation in the hazardous job of bangle-making. Extreme
poverty, hard work and dismal working conditions result in the loss of the childhood
of children who are in this profession. The working conditions of all bangle-makers
are pathetic and miserable. They work in high temperature, badly lit and poorly
ventilated glass furnaces due to which child workers especially are at risk of losing
their eyesight at an early age and get prone to other health hazards. The stinking
lanes of Firozabad are choked with garbage and humans and animals live together
in these hovels. There is no development or progress in their lives with the passage
of time. They have no choice but to work in these inhuman conditions. Mind-numbing
toil kills their dreams and hopes. They are condemned to live and die in squalor,
subjected to a life of poverty and perpetual exploitation.

Question 46.
Describe the circumstances which keep the workers in the bangle industry in
poverty. (Delhi 2015)
Answer:
Through the story of the bangle makers of Firozabad, the author expresses concern
over their exploitation in the hazardous job of bangle making and addresses the
circumstances which keep the workers in poverty. They live in stinking lanes, choked
with garbage in homes. Their houses are hovels with families of humans and
animals coexisting in a primeval state. They cannot organise themselves into
cooperatives. Their families are caught in a web of poverty and in a vicious circle of
the sahukars, the middlemen, the keepers of law, the policemen, the bureaucrats
and the politicians who impose on them a baggage which they cannot put down.
They move in a spiral from poverty, to apathy, to greed and to injustice.

Question 47.
How is Mukesh’s attitude towards his situation different from that of Saheb? Why?
(Delhi 2015)
Answer:
Mukesh’s attitude towards his situation is different from that of Saheb. Mukesh is
more of a rebel who dares to be different and wishes to become a motor mechanic.
Though, Mukesh too, like his community, is working in back breaking, mind-numbing
glass industry but unlike his peers, the spark in him has not extinguished. He wants
to break free from the vicious circle which his community has been caught in. Saheb,
on the other hand, has enslaved himself. By taking up work in the tea stall he is no
longer his own master. The difference in their attitude towards their situation can be
attributed to the fact that Saheb is a rootless migrant from Bangladesh and Mukesh
is a citizen of India. Moreover, Mukesh dares to dream. The author too senses a
flash of daring in Mukesh and this is what makes his attitude a little more aggressive
than Saheb.

Question 48.
“It is his karam, his destiny” that made Mukesh’s grandfather go blind. How did
Mukesh disprove this belief by choosing a new vocation and making his own
destiny?
(Comptt. Delhi 2015)
Answer:
Mukesh disproved the belief of “his karam, his destiny” by choosing a new vocation
in an attempt to make his own destiny. He decided to become a motor mechanic. He
mustered the courage to break free from the family lineage of bangle making. He
had seen his parents and others suffering because of the vicious circle of poverty
and exploitation that they were caught in. Mukesh was ready to walk a long distance
to reach the garage to learn the vocation of car mechanic. His determination is going
to prove instrumental in helping him to realize his dream. Mukesh dares to dream of
a different life and decides not to pursue his family business of bangle-making. He
does not want to accept his life of misery in the name of destiny. Though he is born
in a poverty-ridden family in the caste of bangle makers he dreams of a better future.
He wants to break free from the vicious circle of sahukars and middlemen and carve
a new beginning for himself by becoming a motor-mechanic. He knows what it is like
to work in glass furnaces that are neither well-lit nor well-ventilated. They are dingy
hovels with high temperatures. He has seen that the youngsters are weighed down
by the baggage of generations of subservience and have forgotten to dream of an
alternative world. So Mukesh’s dream of going to a garage and learning to be a
motor-mechanic is an attempt to break-free off the mind-numbing toil.

Question 49.
What kind of life did Saheb lead at Seemapuri? (Comptt. All India 2016 )
Answer:
Most of the people like Saheb-e-Alam settled in Seemapuri were refugees from
Bangladesh
who had fled their country and migrated to Delhi from Dhaka in the wake of the 1971
Indo- Pak war. Their dwellings were structures of mud, tin and tarpaulin with no
sewage, drainage or running water. Picking garbage and rags helped them to earn
their daily bread, gave them a roof over their heads and was their only means of
livelihood and survival. Though these squatters of Seemapuri have no identity but
they do have valid ration cards that enable them to buy grain. Living in Seemapuri,
which is on the periphery of Delhi, is like living in hell. Children here grow up to
become partners in survival to their parents. An army of barefoot children appears
every morning, carrying their plastic bags on their shoulders and disappear by noon.
They are forced to live a life of abject poverty that results in the loss of childhood
innocence.
Saheb, a ragpicker, roamed in the streets, scrounging for garbage, barefoot and
deprived of education. Later he starts working in a tea stall but he loses his freedom
and carefree life as he is no longer his own master.

Question 50.
Describe the living conditions prevailing in Firozabad. Mention why the bangle
making business does not give bangle makers a comfortable life. (Comptt. All India
2016)
Answer:
Through the story of the bangle-makers of Firozabad, the author expresses her
concern over their exploitation in the hazardous job of bangle-making. Extreme
poverty, hard work and dismal working conditions result in the loss of the childhood
of children who are in this profession. The working conditions of all bangle-makers
are pathetic and miserable. They work in high temperature, badly lit and poorly
ventilated glass furnaces due to which child workers especially are at risk of losing
their eyesight at an early age and get prone to other health hazards. The stinking
lanes of Firozabad are choked with garbage and humans and animals live together
in these hovels. There is no development or progress in their lives with the passage
of time. They have no choice but to work in these inhuman conditions. Mind-numbing
toil kills their dreams and hopes. They are condemned to live and die in squalor,
subjected to a life of poverty and perpetual exploitation.

Question 51.
‘Garbage to them is gold’. How do ragpickers of Seemapuri survive? (Delhi 2017)
Answer:
Garbage, for the ragpickers of Seemapuri, is considered to be nothing less than
gold. Picking garbage helps them to earn their daily bread, gives them a roof over
their head and is their only means of livelihood and survival. For the innocent
children garbage is wrapped in wonder as they marvel at the prospect of finding a
coin, a currency note or a curio that sustains their hope. These children grow up to
become partners in survival with their parents. Seemapuri houses around 10,000
ragpickers mostly Bangladeshi refugees, who have lived there for more than thirty
years without an identity and without permits. These people live in mud structures
with roofs made of tin and tarpaulin. The ration cards that enable them to get their
names on voters’ lists and enable them to buy grain and garbage are their means of
survival. Food is more important to them for survival than an identity.

Question 52.
“For the children it is wrapped in wonder, for the elders it is a means of survival.”
What kind of life do the rag-pickers of Seemapuri lead? (Comptt. All India 2017)
Answer:
Garbage, for the ragpickers of Seemapuri, is considered to be nothing less than
gold. Picking garbage helps them to earn their daily bread, gives them a roof over
their head and is their only means of livelihood and survival. For the innocent
children garbage is wrapped in wonder as they marvel at the prospect of finding a
coin, a currency note or a curio that sustains their hope. These children grow up to
become partners in survival with their parents. Seemapuri houses around 10,000
ragpickers mostly Bangladeshi refugees, who have lived there for more than thirty
years without an identity and without permits. These people live in mud structures
with roofs made of tin and tarpaulin. The ration cards that enable them to get their
names on voters’ lists and enable them to buy grain and garbage are their means of
survival. Food is more important to them for survival than an identity.