Lost Spring

Short Answer Type Questions (3 Marks, 30-40 words)

Question.1. To which country did Saheb’s parents originally belong? Why did
they come to
India? (Compartment 2014)
or
Why did Saheb’s parents leave Dhaka and migrate to India? (Compartment
2014)
or
Why had the ragpickers come to live in Seemapuri? (Foreign 2014)
Answer. Saheb’s parents belonged to Dhaka in Bangladesh, where they lived
amidst green fields. They and the other ragpickers left their homes many
years ago and migrated to India in search of a livelihood, as their homes and
fields were destroyed in storms. This forced them to come to India, where
they settled in the slums of Seemapuri.

Question.2. What job did Saheb take up? Was he happy? (All India 2014
Modified)
Answer. Saheb took up work at a tea stall, where he had to perform several
odd jobs, including getting milk from the milk booth. He was not happy, as he
had lost his independence. Though he earned ? 800, and got all his meals free,
he was no longer his own master.

Question.3. In what sense is garbage gold to the ragpickers? (Compartment

2014)
or
Garbage to them is gold; why does the author say so about the ragpickers?
(Delhi 2008)
Answer. Garbage is gold to the ragpickers of Seemapuri because it provides
them items which can be sold for cash, which can buy them food and is a
means of survival. Moreover, it is gold also because the ragpickers can find
stray coins and currency notes in it.

Question.4. How is Mukesh different from the other bangle makers of

Firozabad? (Delhi 2014; Modified)
Answer. Mukesh has the courage to dream big in spite of all adversity,
whereas the other bangle makers of Firozabad have resigned to their fate, and
have suppressed all their hopes and desires. Mukesh refuses to follow the
‘God-given lineage’ of bangle making and wants to be a motor mechanic when
he grows up.

Question.5. Whom does Anees Jung blame for the sorry plight of the bangle
makers?
(Compartment 2014)
Answer. Anees Jung blames the middlemen, the policemen, the lawmakers,
the bureaucrats and the politicians for the sorry plight of the bangle makers.
These people conspire against and exploit the poor bangle makers. They pay
them meagre wages, do not let them form co-operatives, and compel their
children to join the same trade at an early age.

Question.6. What is Mukesh’s dream? Do you think he will be able to fulfil his
dream? Why? Why
not? (Compartment 2014)
or
What was Mukesh’s dream? In your opinion, did he achieve his dream?
(Foreign 2009)
or
Is it possible for Mukesh to realise his dream? Justify your answer. (All India
2009)
Answer. Mukesh’s dream is to become a motor-mechanic. It is no doubt
difficult for Mukesh to achieve his dream, as he is torn between his desires
and his family tradition, which he cannot escape. Besides, he has to face a
number of obstacles in the form of sahukars, middlemen, bureaucrats, law
makers, politicians etc. However, his will to work hard, and his strong
determination could make him achieve his dream. ‘

Question.7. In spite of despair and disease pervading the lives of the slum
children, they are not devoid (without) hope. How far do you agree? (Delhi
2013)
Answer. In spite of growing up amidst despair and disease, children who live
in the slum have the desire to achieve something big in life, like Mukesh. This
shows that they are not devoid of hope. Saheb, a ragpicker, is eager to go to a
school and learn. Mukesh, who works in dark, dingy cells making bangles,
dreams of becoming a motor mechanic, which is very much against his family
tradition.

Question.8. Who is Mukesh? What is his dream? (Delhi 2012)

Answer. Mukesh is a child labourer who Works in a glass bangle making
factory that is situated in Firozabad. Though Mukesh belongs to a poor family
which is engaged in bangle making, he dreams of becoming a motor
mechanic when he grows up.

Question.9. Why could the bangle makers not organise themselves into a
cooperative? (All India 2012)
Answer. The bangle makers could not organise themselves into a cooperative
because they were trapped in the vicious circle of sahukars, middlemen,
policemen, up bureaucrats and politicians. If they tried to organise themselves,
they would be beaten by up the police and put in jail.
Question.10. Mention any two hazards of working in the bangle industry.
(Foreign 2011)
Answer. The glass bangle industry offers a very unhealthy and hazardous
environment to the people working in it. They have to work in the glass
furnaces with high temperature in dingy cells
without air and light. Workers, including child labourers, lose their eyesight at
an early age.
Slogging for long, relentless hours also has adverse effects on their bodies.

Question.11. Why does the author say that the bangle makers are caught in a
vicious web?
(All India 2010)
Answer. The bangle makers in Firozabad are exploited at the hands of the
Sahukars, middlemen, policemen, law makers, bureaucrats and politicians.
They toil day and night, but are not
paid appropriate wages and are steeped in poverty. They cannot form
cooperatives for their betterment. Moreover, their children are also compelled
to join the same trade at an early age and cannot dare to take up any other
profession.

Question.12. Is Saheb happy working at the tea stall? How do you know?
(Foreign 2010, All India 2009)
Answer. Saheb is not happy working at the tea stall. He is paid a fixed wage of
Rs 800, and also receives all his meals free. But the author notices that his
face has lost its carefree look, which makes it evident that he is not happy. He
has lost his independence, and is no longer his own master.

Long Answer Type Questions (6 Marks, 120-150 words)

Question.1. Give a brief account of life and activities of the people like Saheb
-e-Alam settled in
Seemapuri. (Delhi 2011)
Answer. The author’s acquaintance with Saheb and other barefoot ragpickers
introduced her to Seemapuri. It is a slum area located on the periphery of Delhi.
The residents of Seemapuri consist of people who left Bangladesh in the 1971
War and are basically refugees. Saheb’s family is among them. The area does
not have facilities of sewage, drainage or running water. About 10000
ragpickers live here. Their only means of livelihood is ragpicking, and they
treat rags as valuable as gold. These ragpickers have lived here for more than
thirty years without any identity. They do not have permits but have ration
cards, with which they can get their names on the voter’s list and also buy
grains at subsidised rates.

Question.2.’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’ is a good narration of grinding poverty and traditions to
which thousands of people have succumbed. The story revolves around the
pitiable condition of poor children who have been forced to live in slums and
work hard in dirty conditions. The story is divided into two parts. The first part
tells the writer’s impression about the life of poor ragpickers who have
migrated froin Bangladesh, but now have settled in the Seemapuri area of
Delhi.
The second part narrates the miserable life of the bangle makers in the town
of Firozabad. The stark reality of these families is that in spite of back-
breaking hard work that they put in, they cannot have two square meals a day.
Besides, they are victims of exploitation by those above them and also suffer
the consequences of blind belief in traditions.

Question.3. The bangle makers of Firozabad make beautiful bangles and

make everyone happy
but they live and die in squalor. Elaborate. (Delhi 2010)
Answer. Firozabad is the hub of India’s glass-blowing industry where families
have spent generations making bangles to adorn married women. The stark
reality of these families is that in spite of the back breaking hard work that
they put in, they cannot have two square meals a day.
They work in deplorable conditions and many lose their eyesight early. To top
it all, they live in unhygienic conditions where there is a lack of basic amenities
too.
The sad reality is that the workers cannot organise themselves into a
cooperative. They are devoid of all enthusiasm and do not dare to dream of
anything better. The fear of the police and lack of leadership among
themselves have confined them to a vicious circle of poverty, indifference and
greed. Thus, while they bring happiness to everyone’s life, their own life is
steeped in poverty and squalor.

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