English (Core) · Class 12 Languages
Ch 2Lost Spring — Class 12 English (Core), concept-first.
Anees Jung is an Indian writer, journalist and columnist known for her sensitive attention to the lives of ordinary people, especially the poor and the powerless.
28
Q&A
1
Concept
40m
Section weightage
Section C · Literature Textbooks (Flamingo & Vistas) · across all 19 lessons
Key concepts
Hover a concept to preview it and jump to its most relevant Q&A.
Caste And Class Oppression
Let’s start with something you already know. Think about the last time you were in a group — maybe a class project, a sports team, or even your own family.
Most relevant Q&A
- What is Saheb looking for in the garbage dumps? Where is he and where has he come from?Free
- What explanations does the author offer for the children not wearing footwear?Free
- Is Saheb happy working at the tea-stall? Explain.Preview
- What makes the city of Firozabad famous?Preview
- Mention the hazards of working in the glass bangles industry.Preview
Chapter contents
The NCERT structure, section by section. Open a section to see its questions, then read the concept-first solution.
About the Author and the Text
Anees Jung is an Indian writer, journalist and columnist known for her sensitive attention to the lives of ordinary people, especially the poor and the powerless.
Summary of the Lesson
The chapter tells two connected stories of poor children whose childhoods have been stolen by poverty and forced labour.
Themes
"Lost Spring" is driven by a set of closely linked social concerns. Anees Jung does not argue them in the abstract; she lets them emerge through the lives of Saheb and Mukesh.
Character Sketches
The power of “Lost Spring” comes from two children who stand for the many like them — Saheb, the barefoot ragpicker of Seemapuri in Part I, and Mukesh, the young bangle-maker of Firozabad in Part II.
Saheb
Saheb, whose full name grandly means "lord of the universe," is a young boy of the ragpicker community in Seemapuri, and the irony of that dignified name against his barefoot, ragged reality is one of…
Mukesh
Mukesh is a boy of Firozabad, born into a family of glass-bangle makers, and he is the moral centre of the second part.
Title and Message
The title of a story often holds its deepest meaning. We look first at why Anees Jung calls these accounts of stolen childhoods a “lost spring,” and then at the larger message the lesson leaves with i…
The Significance of the Title
The title "Lost Spring" is compact but deeply meaningful, and it holds the whole spirit of the chapter.
The Message of the Story
The message of "Lost Spring" is a call to conscience. By showing us real children whose childhoods have been destroyed, Anees Jung urges society to recognise the injustice of child labour and to end i…
Summary
- Two stories, one truth: The chapter contrasts the lives of Saheb-e-Alam, a ragpicker in Seemapuri, and Mukesh, a bangle-maker in Firozabad.
Think as you Read
+−Think as you Readi6 questions
- Q1What is Saheb looking for in the garbage dumps? Where is he and where has he come from?Free
- Q2What explanations does the author offer for the children not wearing footwear?Free
- Q3Is Saheb happy working at the tea-stall? Explain.Preview
- Q4What makes the city of Firozabad famous?Preview
- Q5Mention the hazards of working in the glass bangles industry.Preview
- Q6How is Mukesh’s attitude to his situation different from that of his family?Preview
Understanding the Text
+−Understanding the Texti3 questions
- Q1What could be some of the reasons for the migration of people from villages to cities?Free
- Q2Would you agree that promises made to poor children are rarely kept? Why do you think this happens in the incidents narrated in the text?Preview
- Q3What forces conspire to keep the workers in the bangle industry of Firozabad in poverty?Preview
Talking about the Text
Thinking about Language
Things to Do
About the Unit
The NCERT unit note frames “Lost Spring” within the wider social concerns of the CBSE Class 12 English syllabus.
Additional Practice
Extra exam-style practice questions written by us on this lesson — beyond the NCERT textbook's own exercises — for more CBSE board-exam preparation.
+−Additional Practicei14 questions
- Q1Who is Saheb, and what does he search for in the garbage dumps of Seemapuri each morning? What does his name ironically mean? (Answer in 30–…Free
- Q2Why did the ragpickers leave Dhaka and settle in Seemapuri, and what does garbage mean to the adults as against the children there? (Answer…Free
- Q3"For the children it is wrapped in wonder; for the elders it is a means of survival." Explain how garbage carries these two different meanin…Free
- Q4Why does the author feel a pang on seeing Saheb working at the tea stall, even though he now earns a regular wage? (Answer in 30–40 words.)Preview
- Q5Describe the living and working conditions of the bangle-makers of Firozabad. Why is theirs called a hazardous occupation? (Answer in 30–40…Preview
- Q6How is Mukesh different from the other bangle-makers of Firozabad, and what is his dream? (Answer in 30–40 words.)Preview
- Q7What two distinct worlds—of the caste-bound family tradition and of the exploiting middlemen—keep the bangle-makers of Firozabad trapped in…Preview
- Q8Why do the bangle-makers, despite years of back-breaking labour, fail to organise themselves into a cooperative and better their lives? (Ans…Preview
- Q9Examine how the vicious circle of moneylenders, middlemen, politicians and the caste of the bangle-makers perpetuates the exploitation of ch…Preview
- Q10Attempt a character sketch of Saheb, showing how his circumstances rob him of his childhood and his freedom. (Answer in 120–150 words.)Preview
- Q11Draw a character sketch of Mukesh, bringing out how his determination and dream set him apart from the fatalism around him. (Answer in 120–1…Preview
- Q12"Lost Spring" is an indictment of the poverty and exploitation that condemn children to a life of drudgery. Discuss how the theme of a lost…Preview
- Q13The title "Lost Spring" is deeply symbolic. Explain what the author means by a "lost spring," and how the two stories of Saheb and Mukesh ju…Preview
- Q14What message does Anees Jung convey about child labour, dreams and the possibility of hope? What values should a sensitive society draw from…Preview