LOST SPRING

Q1. What do you know about Saheb’s background ?

Ans. Saheb was a rag picker and used to live in Dhaka, Bangladesh before
migrating to India. His family had to leave their native place due to storms that
swept away their fields and home .He was currently living in Seemapuri on the
outskirts of Delhi.
Q2. What does the writer mean when she says that they were looking for
gold in the garbage ?
The rag pickers used to scrounge in the garbage for food, plastic bags and other
materials of any value which they could sell for recycling. To them anything of
value is like gold as it helped them fulfill their basic needs for survival .
Q3. Why did the author feel embarrassed?
Ans. The author was embarrassed because she had told Saheb to go to school
instead of rag picking. She promised him in jest to start a school for him. She
knew it wasn’t practical. She felt ashamed of having made a promise that
couldn’t be fulfilled. Moreover,the writer knew very well that Saheb couldn’t
afford school .
Q4. Why was Saheb’s name ironical?
Saheb’s real name was Saheb-e-Alam , which means ‘lord of universe’. It was
ironical because he was a mere ragpicker who could barely manage his survival.
He could never be the lord of the universe.
Q5. What did the boys say when asked why they were barefoot?
On being asked, one of the ragpickers said that he was not wearing chappals
because his mother did not take it down from the shelf. The other said that it
was a tradition to stay barefoot. It was not necessarily true because poverty had
forced them to live within their means.
Q6. Describe the lives of these ragpickers in brief.
Seemapuri is situated on the outskirts of Delhi. It has structures made of mud
with roofs of tin and tarpaulin without proper sewage and drainage system.
There are about ten thousand ragpickers in this locality most of them have
managed to get ration cards and their names in voter list .

Q 7. Why has garbage a different meaning for children?

It implies a different meaning for children who are ragpickers than their parents.
It is a surprise wrapped in a bundle for the young ones but for elders it is a
means of survival. It is so because for children, there is a sense of fun and
excitement in finding new articles whereas for adults it is a mere means of
livelihood.
Q 8. Describe Saheb’s life.
Saheb was a young ragpicker who had come from Dhaka and was living in the
slums of Seemapuri. Later he also started working in a tea stall. He was not
offered opportunities to study or to play like a normal child and also did not
possess proper clothes or shoes. He had lost his childhood early in his life.
Q 9. Did Saheb enjoy working in the tea stall?
It is implied that Saheb was not happy to work in a tea stall because he did not
enjoy that work. He had lost her carefree look. He was no longer his own
master.
Q 10. What makes the city Firozabad famous?
The town of Firozabad is famous for its bangles. It is a centre for India’s glass
blowing industry where families have spent generations around furnaces,
welding glass and making bangles.
Q 11. Describe the life of children working in Firozabad.
The old town of Firozabad is engaged in bangle making. Children have been
turned into labourers ,who work near high temperature furnaces in dingy cells
with no air or light. They are made to work for long hours in these conditions
and as a result many of them lose their sight before they become adults. The
town has stinking lanes with garbage strewn around. The houses are hovels with
crumbling walls, wobbly doors, no windows and crowded with large families
and animals.

Long question
Q1- Write the character sketch of Saheb ?
Sahib was a young boy whose family once lived in the green fields in Dhaka.
There the storms swept away their fields and homes, so they migrated to India.
In India, he lived in Seemapuri, on the outskirts of Delhi and was a ragpicker .
He used to search for valuable things in garbage to support his family income.
His family lived in extreme poverty . He was deprived of education and basic
amenities of life. He desired to wear shoes and play tennis like any other child
but his living conditions did not allow him the joys pf childhood.
Despite being poor, he was full of hope, whether it was the offer to attend
school, opportunity to play tennis or looking for valuables in garbage, Saheb
displays hope and positivity in every circumstance. Later he was employed in a
dhaba where he used to go to fetch milk. He had now became a labourer and
lost his carefree look. He was burdened with responsibility of the job. He lost
his childhood due to his poverty which made him work as a child labour.

Q2) Write a character sketch of Mukesh.

Ans) Mukesh lived in Firozabad & was born in the family of bangle makers. He
aspired to become a motor mechanic. Unlike the others in Firozabad who were
burdened with the stigma of caste in which they are born, Mukesh did not want
to follow the traditional profession. In this way he was a path breaker and had
the determination to change his circumstances. Mukesh was born in a very poor
family. To support the income of the family, he also worked with his father in a
dingy room making bangles.
There was a spark of rebellion in him. He was confident and determined to
become a motor mechanic. His dreams & aspirations were practical. He dreams
only of what he can achieve or what was within his reach. He had a willingness
to work hard and fulfil his desires.

Q3) Justify the title ‘lost spring’.

Ans) Spring here refers to the spring of life,i.e the childhood. Childhood is the
most precious time of a person's life where he is moulded or shaped.
But unfortunately, there are many children in our society who are deprived of it.
They are forced to give up this part of their lives due to poverty &tradition.
Poverty forces many children to become a child labour & work in shops,
offices, houses etc. Old traditions and beliefs like the Caste system also become
a big hindrance to the development of children. It binds people in the shackles
of the caste and does not allow them the freedom to explore their potential.
In the story, the two protagonists have lost their childhood due to these two
factors. They are poverty stricken, are deprived of education and they work day
&night to feed themselves. While both Saheb and Mukesh are victims of
poverty, Mukesh carries the added burden of Caste system which is not allowing
him to achieve his dream. Due to these factors these young boys have lost their
opportunity to enjoy their childhood and are burdened with the responsibilities
of earning money. Hence the title is very appropriate.