The Lost Spring
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.
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.
Understanding The Text
1. What could be some of the reasons for the migration of people from
villages to cities?
Ans: People move to cities in search of work and aid to fill their stomachs.
There are better opportunities for work in the cities, compared to villages.
Better health and civic facilities are also present in the large cities and towns
to meet the demands of the population there. Sometimes natural calamities
and destruction of land also force farmers to shift to the city for labour work.
In the story, Saheb and his family had to shift to Seemapuri because their
farmland in Dhaka got destroyed in the storms. They had no alternative other
than shifting to the city to fill their empty stomachs.
2. 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?
Ans: Yes, I believe that the promises made to the poor children are seldom
kept. Their dreams and aspirations are just considered to be part of their
imaginative brain and hence are not taken seriously. It is painful to see a young
kid’s dream not being encouraged which makes them less motivated to pursue
them.
In the story, the narrator makes a promise to Saheb about opening a school
and encourages him to study. She sows a seed of hope in his heart, and when
after a few days he enquires her about the school, she realizes how hollow her
promise was and she was embarrassed about her action.
3. What forces conspire to keep the workers in the bangle industry of
Firozabad in poverty?
Ans: The people working in the bangle industry are forced to work in that
industry since that’s the only craft they know to fill their stomachs. They aren't
skilled in any other field and have accepted it as their fate to work in the bangle
industry and be exploited by the deceptive middlemen. A proper legal system
and the social system should be provided to them so that they can flourish
with the help of their craft and come out of perpetual poverty.
Thinking about the Text:
1. How, in your opinion, can Mukesh realize his dream?
Ans: Mukesh wanted to become a motor mechanic and drive a car. It was a
dream not typical for someone who was living in the slums and hence by
dream big he had already raised himself on a pedestal. He will have to face
many obstacles but with his willpower and determination, I believe he can
achieve his dream. He was willing to take a long walk to learn the skill shows
the determination and passion he holds. He just needs to take these small
steps and work on them religiously.
2. Mention the hazards of working in the glass bangles industry.
Ans: The glass bangles industry is a hazardous industry. The workers often
end up blind if they are exposed to the work for many years. The furnaces are
set in extremely elevated temperatures and lack proper ventilation. Since
most of the workers are poor, they work without protective eye gear and
leaves them blind. Burns and cuts while working are quite frequent and
inhaling the fumes can lead to lung cancer. The workers put their lives in
danger to fill their stomachs.
3. Why should child labour be eliminated and how?
Ans: Poor families have more kids because they feel that the more the number
of working hands, the easier it will be to sustain the family. What they don't
realize is that young years for kids are to devote themselves to studies and
playing instead of toiling hard to earn.
Industries and local food restaurants prefer kids as workforce since they
charge less and work for a greater number of hours. They could be exploited
easily without expecting them to revolt anytime soon. These hazardous
conditions can not only cripple them physically but cause ailments that could
lead to their death.
