Class 12 English Chapter 6 Memoirs of a chota sahib

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Class 12 English Chapter 6 Memoirs of a chota sahib

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Memoirs of a chota sahib

PROSE SECTION

TEXTUAL QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS

Think as you read

1. Briefly describe the scene observed by the author from the veranda of his bungalow on the bank of the Brahmaputra. 

Ans. After a drawn-out, dusty journey across India, the author with his family arrived at Guwahati and settled in a bungalow on the bank of the Brahmaputra. Owing to the advancing cold weather, the climate was quite bearable. The veranda on top of the bungalow offered a captivating sight of the majestic river with the boats that sailed over it. In the distance could be seen the lower Himalayas; while at closer hand was an island called the Peacock Island, on which could be seen a Hindu temple dome. This dome was almost hidden by trees.

2. What is the belief about the dividing channel between the Peacock Island and the mainland of Guwahati that the author mentions? 

Ans. With the advancement of the cold weather, the level of the Brahmaputra fell and the water distance between the Peacock Island and the mainland diminished. By the end of the hot weather, only a narrow dividing channel remained. There was a belief that the British Raj would cease in India if the channel ever entirely dried up. Although this route sometimes did dry up considerably, but the author could not comment whether one could tread on a dry channel at the time of Independence in 1947, as he did not live in Gauhati at that time.

3. What does the author say about the importance of Guwahati? Is the statement true in our time today also?

Ans. The author highlights the importance of Guwahati by describing it as the port of entry into Assam. In earlier times, most travellers passed through Guwahati on their way from Calcutta to Shillong or to districts lying further up the valley. At times, they used it as a resting spot by staying overnight.

Yes, the statement holds true even in the present times. Even today, Guwahati connects the rest of India with all the states of the North-East region and is hence referred to as the gateway to North-East India. Tourists from across the country and abroad visit Guwahati in huge numbers every year, especially as a transit station abode when travelling to other parts of North-East India.

Think as you read

1. What character of the North Bank of the Brahmaputra does the author refer to? 

Ans. The North-Bank, lying between the sandbanks of the Brahmaputra and the Himalayan foothills, was an extensive, solitary expanse of flat and ageless land. The peculiarity of this region was that in the hot weather, the rivers either dried up or. vanished underground. Dwellers of the region had to dig for water which was so muddy that it had to be cleaned by using alum to precipitate the mud.

2. What information does the author give us about Manas Wildlife Sanctuary?

Ans. The Manas Wildlife Sanctuary, which bordered the Himalayan state of Bhutan, was the habitat of a few rhinoceros. The rivers were replete with mahseer and their banks were popular spots for the Governor’s Christmas camps. The Sanctuary was also the abode of Assam cheetal, sloth-bear and deer. Amid the forest, a European and his wife had leased uta piece of land from the forest department to grow simul trees tor the close-by match factory. The area had miles of electric fencing to block out the deer.

3. Describe the author’s experience of crossing a flooded river on horseback on the North Bank of the Brahmaputra.

Ans. The author has given a humorous account of his adventurous ride on horseback that he had once undertaken to cross one of the flooded rivers of the North Bank. He, with much difficulty, convinced the horse to jump into the river and slipped over its rump. He hung onto his tail and used it to steer. The horse too contributed to the exciting ride by moving to the left when the writer tried to push it to the right and vice versa. This memorable expedition finally culminated with a sound landing on the other bank of the river.

S.L. No.	CONTENTS
	PROSE SECTION
1	The Last Lesson
2	Lost Spring
3	Deep Water
4	Indigo
5	Going Places
6	Memoirs Of A Chota Sahib
	POETRY SECTION
1	My Mother At Sixty-Six
2	Keeping Quiet
3	Notes A Thing Of Beauty
4	A Roadside Stand
	VISTAS
1	The Tiger King
2	The Enemy
3	On The Face Of It
4	Memories Of Childhood
5	Magh Bihu Or Maghar Domahi

Think as you read 

1. Relate the author’s experiences of the road accident during the monsoon on the North Bank. 

Ans. The author was once travelling with his family on the North Bank. He had either faultily planned to return after the monsoon or the monsoon broke out ahead of time that year. Consequently, driving became extremely risky, even though the roads were still traversable. To raise majority of the main roads way above the normal flood level, the roads were constructed on top of embankments. These roads were quite narrow and single-track. Struggling to drive through an extremally slippery road, the author’s car went out of control and started sliding along the road to fall into a paddy field around six feet below the road. To keep the flood water from running away, the paddy fields in the North Bank were divided into enclosures by low banks. Driving over these banks was quite jerky but they finally reached the road again.

2. Relate the author’s reminiscence of the forest bungalow at Kulsi. 

Ans. The bungalow at Kulsi was ideally positioned on a raised and forested area above the river and was the author’s favorited. Teak plantations, which were planted some sixty years back and were nearly fully-grown, enveloped the bungalow. There was also a rubber plantation of Ficus elastic, very close to the bungalow. However, the author recalls that since a very long time, it had not been tapped.

TEXTUAL EXERCISES

Understanding the text 

1. Give an account of the author’s experiences of the floods on the North Bank of the Brahmaputra during the monsoon.

Ans. The author relates various experiences of floods on the Northern bank. He once crossed a flooded river on horseback. He somehow got his horse to jump, into the water, then climbing atop it, he used the horses tail to steer it, and crossed the river successfully.

On another occasion he was caught in the rains while touring the Northern bank. Driving over raised embankments was tricky, and his vehicle slipped down into a paddy field. Riding over the banks built in the fields was jerky, but he did get back on the road. The river during floods was crossed by special boats for which landing places were constructed at different levels depending on the water level.

2. Relate the author’s observation on the use of mar boats as a mode of river transport in Assam.

Ans. The author refers to the use of special boats, called mar boats. This device consisted of two open boats covered with a platform made of wooden planks. It was tedious to move this device forward. It was either pedalled across, or propelled along a cable that connected the boats to another cable stretched across the river. Though it was a successful contraption, landing ghats had to be made at different levels along the bank, as per the rising and falling river-water level. The author adds that traffic was low, crossing over took time but there were minimal delays.

3. Give the author’s description of a sal forest. 

Ans. The author compares the sale forests of Assam to the English woodland. The sale forests were spread in the flat terrain of the South Bank. In this vast expanse of land, the reserve forests comprising particularly of sale trees were mainly in one block and the trees interspersed with villages and cultivation.

4. Describe the author’s experience with bats in the Rajapara forest bungalow. 

Ans. The author opined that had it not been for the bats which lived in the roof, the bungalow at Rajapara would have been fairly appealing. Their excrement and stench constantly reminded the writer of their presence. The colossal fruit-eating bats were less fusty, had a wing span of five feet and lived in a tree outside the bungalow. They flew out into the open after sunset in quest of food and the sight appeared like an uncanny cluster of spooky figures soaring in the sky on hushed wings.

Talking about the text 

1. The author makes a reference to “Peacock Island” located close to the Forest Officer’s bungalow on the bank of the Brahmaputra. Can you make a guess which island the author is referring to? What is the “Hindu temple’ mentioned in the lesson (You may consult any books on the temples/heritage sites/history and archaeology of Guwahati).

Ans: The “Peacock Island” mentioned by the author located close to the Forest Officer s bungalow on the bank of the  Brahmaputra is the popular “Umananda Island” of Gauhati in the middle of the river Brahmaputra. It is the smallest inhabited river island of the world.

The “Hindu temple” mentioned in the lesson is the “Umananda temple’ situated on the “Peacock Island.” A Mela is held every year at this holy place during Shivaratri and a large number of devotees and tourists visit this place during the festival.

2. Today Guwahati (note the change in spelling) is highlighted as the “Gateway to the North-East”. What was the status of Guwahati like in the period around 1947. (You may draw references from the lesson.)

Ans: Guwahati, the capital of Assam, is rightly referred to as the “Gateway to the North-East” because it connects the rest of the country with all the North-Eastern states. It can be said to be the economic capital of the other North-Eastern states, i.e. Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur, Mizoram, Meghalaya, Nagaland and Tripura.

During the colonial period, it enjoyed the states of administrative headquarters and was known as Gauhati, as against today’s ‘Guwahati’. It was considered to be the port of entry into Assam and most travellers passed through it or stayed overnight, on their way from Calcutta to Shillong or to other districts of upper Assam.

3. The author mentions a rubber plantation near Kulsi. Why had no rubber-tapping taken place tor some years then? Find out the present situation of rubber plantation in the state.

Ans. In earlier times, there was a rubber plantation of Ficus elastica near Kulsi in Assam.  However, the rubber from these trees which belong to the fig genus, could not compete commercially with the rubber obtained from the para rubber tree of the genus Hevea. Hence, rubber-tapping from the rubber plantation around Kulsi had not been done for many years.

Present situation of rubber plantation in Assam: Assam is not ideally suitable for rubber cultivation. In India, it comes in the non- traditional zone for growing rubber. However, the agroclimatic conditions available in Assam are to a certain extent unique for rubber cultivation such as low-elevated regions, exposure to monsoons and other moderating features. Visualising the potential of rubber plantation in the region, a number of schemes have been implemented from time to time in the Five Years Plan.

During the Sixth Five Year Plan Period (1984-90), the Rubber Board of India implemernted a project for Accelerated Development of Rubber Plantation. In the Tenth Plan Period (2002-07), various schemes were initiated by the government for new planting, replanting and revitalisation of sick rubber plantations. As rubber is a comparatively new crop in the region, a few scientific agro-management practices in the plantation method have been introduced to the farmers. 

Among these, demonstration plots in farmer’s fields have been set up for:

(a) Soil and Moisture Conservation (SMC)

(b) Controlled Upward Tapping (CUT) 

To conclude, rubber plantation in the state is still in the developing stage. Appropriate measures and support can be extended by the state as well as central government to make rubber plantation industry a profitable venture economically.

Thinking about language 

1. One of the interesting features of the vocabulary of English is that it is enriched by borrowings from a large number of languages. Likewise, English has enriched the vocabulary of other languages too. There are a large number of borrowings from English in Assamese and vice-versa. In this lesson you will find a few words that are borrowings from Assamese. 

Read these sentences.

(a) More usually crossings were made in a mar boat.

(b) Close to the bungalow was a large bheel.

(c) This was the home of the Assam cheetal.

Find out a few more examples of

(i) Assamese words that are used in English.

(ii) English words used in Assamese.

Ans: (i) Assamese words that are used in English bheels, mahseer, cheetal, mar, ghat, simul, sal, mekhala chadar, muga, paat, etc.

(ii) English words used in Assamese.

table, bottle, cup-plate, constable, conductor, inspector, film, missionary, orchid, ete.

2. Notice the underlined words in these sentences and tick the option that best explains their meanings 

(a) The pug marks of the large cat were clearly traceable.

stripes on the body

(i) stripes on the body

(ii) dots or spots 

(iii) footprints

(iv) scratch marks left on the body

Ans. (ii) footprints

(b) The rivers were full of mahseer.

(i) sand banks

(ii) large reptiles like crocodiles

(iii) tortoise

(iv) fresh water fish.

Ans. (iv) fresh water fish

(c) I once forded one of these rivers on horseback.

(i) jumped across

(ii) crossed the river without using a bridge

(iii) swam across

(iv) crossed the river by using a bamboo bridge

Ans. (ii) crossed the river without using a bridge.

(d) It was an eerie spot where trees skeletons still rose out of the water

(i) very charming

(ii) causing a strange fear

(iii) noisy

(iv) very quiet

Ans. (ii) causing a strange fear

Writing 

1. Deforestation in Assam and elsewhere has resulted in loss of habitats for wildlife besides destroying the ecological balance. Design a poster on the evils of deforestation.

(Hints: The sal forests around Kulsi today have nearly disappeared.) 

Ans:

2. Write a letter to the editor of a local English daily drawing the attention of the State Government and the Inland Water Transport Corporation for exploring the feasibility of introducing regular water-transport facilities along the Brahmaputra to touch important river side towns.

Ans: 

To,

The Editor                                                            Dated: 10.6.13

The Assam Tribune Guwahati.

Sub: Scope of water-transport in Assam

Sir,

I, would like to draw the attention of the Inland Water Transport Corporation and the State Government towards the immense possibility of water transport in the state, that is virtually untapped.

Most important towns of Assam- Dibrugarh, Guwahati, Sibsagar, Tezpur, Dhubri, etc.- all lie along the river Brahmaputra. During the pre- independence era, this river was a vital transportation channel of the British, but today it remains unexploited.

I request the concerned authorities to explore the feasibility of using the river, at least during supporting seasons, as a means of water-transport, and develop the required facilities. Besides a useful supplement of means to transport goods, its tourism potential too can be explored.

Thanking you,

Sincerely yours,

XYZ

3. Write a factual description of a flood situation. 

Ans: Factual Description of a Flood Situation: Recently a flood broke out in Dhubri district of Assam. The havoc caused by flood is beyond description. Hundreds of villages along the rivers and their tributaries got submerged and got cut off. Many people lost their houses. Thousands were rendered homeless. Properties and goods worth crores of rupees got destroyed. Standing crops were damaged. Cattle and valuable goods were washed away. Embankments were forced to give in. Roads and communication links were interrupted. Vast areas of the region were turned into sea and many parts remained cut off for long. Flood caused wide erosion and caused the spread of communicable diseases such as cholera, typhoid, dysentery, etc. The human misery and economic hardship that accompanied flood was unfathomable. It ruined state’s already impoverished economy and finance.

Things to do

In the lesson Rowntree makes references to the “cheerful, sunny and open spaces” of Rajapara. Other places in and around Guwahati and the other towns of Assam were no different in those days. Study the demography of your town/city (or your nearest town/city) and write an account of the demographic and environmental changes affecting the one time “cheerful, sunny and open spaces.”

Ans: Students Do Yourself.

ADDITIONAL QUESTIONS WITH ANSWERS

Short answer type questions 

1. Who was the unusual visitor in the author’s compound? How could the author identify it? 

Ans. The unusual visitor to the author’s compound was a tiger that had been washed up by the flood. The author could identify it with the help of the clearly traceable footprints of the carnivore seen all over the compound.

2. Apart from submerged bridges and flooded rivers, what other difficulty about travel anywhere in Assam during the rains does the author point out?

Ans. Apart from submerged bridges and flooded rivers, in the rainy season, the muddy roads soon became good for nothing and driving on them with the help of normal cars almost became impossible. This turned out to be one of the major hindrances in travelling anywhere in Assam during the rains. Also, the Jeep, which can traverse all types of terrain, was yet to be invented.

3. Briefly describe the bheel near the Rajapara bungalow.

Ans. The Rajapara Forest bungalow was located near a large beheld where long ago, a quake had pushed down the surface and the land was flooded with water. Tree skeletons still emerged from the water making it a creepy place and reminding of the fact that it had been a dry land at one time.

4. What information does the author give us about the paddy field at Rajapara? 

Ans. The paddy fields of Rajapara were delightful, sunlit and wide spaces and a congenial place to work in. Here the jungle-fowl gathered to feed on the grains after harvest and once in a while found their way into the pot where the grains were kept.

5. “I am afraid their enterprise was in no sense a very profitable one.” Which enterprise is the author talking about? (“I am afraid their enterprise was in no sense a very profitable one.” enterprise?

Ans. Amid the forest in the North Bank, a European and his spouse had taken a chunk of land from the forest department on lease to grow simul trees for the close-by match factory. In an attempt to block out the deer, they had put up miles of electric fencing but with hardly any success as the deer just jumped over it. Furthermore, the author, apparently received the electric current by touching the wire and so opined that their undertaking was not a gainful one.

Long answer type questions 

1. Relate the author’s experiences of the road accident when the car in which he was touring with his family, hit a ramp lying concealed under a cloud of dust. 

Ans. At the commencement of the author’s journey, much before the monsoon showers, the roads had been so dusty that they were almost concealed under a cloud of dust. Driving in such conditions was a Herculean task. At one particular location where road work had been underway, a ramp stood hidden from sight under a cloud of dust. Either the waning signs were not in use or they were invisible. Thanks to the dusty environment, the car carrying the author, his wife, the baby and her ayah, their servants and some camp equipment, hit the six inches high ramp lying hidden under a cloud of dust. Though the force with which they hit it was tremendous, they did not get hurt as they were fully packed in the car. The car too was not much affected in the road accident, thanks to the ingenious motor engineers of those days.

2. What information does the author give us about Focus elastica? 

Ans. Very close to the Kulsi forest bungalow, there was a rubber plantation of Focus elastica. This Indian rubber was incapable of competing with para rubber commercially. Focus elastica is a member of the fig family of which numerous varieties are found in Assam. A few start their lives as climbing aerophytes on other trees and grow to an extremely large size. In the course of time, the host tree becomes wholly covered by the focus, which forms a smooth bark around it, and the host tree gradually dies. Some send down roots from their branches, like the banyan tree, which help in supporting the bulky tree.

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