ANSWER SHEET
SELF PRACTICE
4. (a) He doesn’t remember his home at all.
Explanation: The line means Saheb has no
recollection of his Dhaka home. Hence, option
(a) is the correct answer. Options (d) says that
he remembers his home which is incorrect.
Options (b) and (c) are incorrect and not
mentioned in the text.
7. (c) Irony
Explanation: Saheb’s name sets up an
expectation of being on top of the world but he
lives in a ragpicker’s community and scrounges
through garbage heaps. This creates a sense
of ‘irony’ where something has a different or
opposite result from what is expected. So, only
option (c) is the correct answer. Options (a), (b)
and (d) are not the literary devices used here.
10. (b) Because Delhi has wealth and Seemapuri
has garbage.
Explanation: Seemapuri and Delhi are
metaphorically miles away because they
are very different in terms of wealth, jobs
and opportunities. Therefore, option (b) is the
correct answer. Options (a) and (c) are facts
but not the correct answer. Option (d) is totally
incorrect.
15. (D) (c) majority of the population in Firozabad
is involved in bangle-making.
Explanation: ‘Every other house’ indicates
that a majority of the population in
Firozabad is involved in bangle making.
Therefore, option (c) is the correct answer.
Options (a), (b) and (d) cannot be accurately
inferred from the extract. Hence, they are
incorrect.
18. (A) (d) Confident
Explanation: Mukesh is confident about his
dream at the moment. Hence, option (d) is
the correct answer. Options (a), (b) and (c)
are incorrect because they do not match
the situation.
19. (D) (c) He is too young.
Explanation: Mukesh’s embarrassment
hasn’t turned to regret because he is too
young to know what regret is. Hence,
option (c) is the correct answer. The text
shows no evidence for options (a), (b) and
(d).
18 English Core Class XII
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25. The adults of Seempuri see garbage as the
means to eke out their living. While the children
like Saheb view it like a place of wonder. The
difference in points of view shows the difference
in their responsibilities in life.
28. According to the Indian law, children below the
age of 14 years cannot work legally and in
general, children should not work in dangerous
conditions in any industry.
30. According to the writer Anees Jung, the societal
problem in which the bangle sellers are bound
is a web of poverty to which is added the
stigma of caste and a network of authority
figures such as sahukars, the middlemen,
politicians, bureaucrats and keepers of the law.
33. From the story, we can infer that the
relationship between the bangle sellers and
the authorities is fraught. This is evident when
they tell the author that if they try to organise
themselves into a cooperative, they're afraid
that they will be harassed by the police.
36. Saheb’s and Mukesh’s stories are similar as
they both find some hope in their situations.
Saheb finds it when he is searching the
garbage for notes and coins. Mukesh finds
hope in dreaming of becoming a motor
mechanic. The difference is that even though
both are underprivileged, Saheb doesn’t know
a skill other than ragpicking whereas Mukesh
knows the skill of bangle making.
39. The title ‘Lost Spring’ is an apt title because it
conveys the point that the author explains in
the chapter. The title is an analogy. Childhood
is the spring of a person’s life. During spring, the
weather is supposed to be cool, comfortable
and beautiful. Spring is not hot like summer or
cold like winter. Similarly, the childhood part of
a person’s life is supposed to be comfortable.
However, Saheb’s and Mukesh’s childhood
is difficult as described in the chapter. They
have in fact, lost their childhood in the race
for survival. Hence, the author uses the phrase
‘lost spring’ to accurately portray the essence
of the chapter.
41. Ragpickers are at a risk of several health
hazards because of the conditions they work in.
Since food waste is not segregated from other
wastes, there is a chance of infection from
rotting food. Ragpickers also don’t have access
 to clean water for washing or for drinking. So,
they can easily catch dysentery and diarrhea
from eating out of the rubbish bins. Since
electronic waste is also not segregated here,
electrical devices with removeable and non-
removable batteries (car batteries, phone
batteries) are tossed in the garbage heap. This
means dangerous heavy metals like lithium, a
component of batteries today, can leach into
the garbage and thus, into the soil. Ragpickers,
who come into contact with battery waste,
can even be poisoned. Added to that is the risk
of respiratory diseases from inhaling smoke of
burning garbage.
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45. Mukesh will first and foremost have to cling
onto his dream as he grows up. Circumstances
may work against him. He needs to be
tenacious and tide over present day reality in
order to pursue his dream. He may even have
to work as a bangle maker for a while in order
to pay the fees for his course in Automobile
Mechanical Training. Alternatively, he can
apprentice himself to a mechanic to learn
on the job. He will also have to convince his
parents and grandparents to support him.
This will be the toughest part. It will take
many years probably before his dream can
be realised but if he is determined, he will
make it.
The Lost Spring 19