Question

Dreams to Reality
(1) It was evening in the picturesque seaside town of Rameshwaram, on the southern edge of Tamil Nadu. A cool breeze was gently blowing in from the sea. Along with the sound of waves lapping against the shore could be heard the sweet sound of birds circling overhead.
(2) Among the children playing on the beach was a boy with wavy hair and dreamy eyes. This youngster was Avul Pakir Jainulabdeen Abdul Kalam who later became the eleventh President of India.
(3) While spending time with his friends, Abdul was attracted by the sound of the birds flying above. He carefully observed that a fledgling perched on a boat was trying to take off. It spread its wings, fluttered briefly and sprang up. The air seemed to give the needed thrust for its take off! The bird soared up into the sky. It steered its pace and course with great ease. How Abdul wished he could fly like those beauties in the air!
(4) This passion for flying, aroused by the beautiful birds, later inspired Abdul Kalam to design India’s first rocket which successfully sent a satellite Rohini, into orbit on 18th July 1980. It was called the SLV-3 (Satellite Launch Vehicle). At the time when Abdul was growing up, no one had even dreamt of such a happening.
(5) Rameshwaram, where Abdul was bom on 15th October 1931, was a small town with narrow streets lined with old houses made of limestone and brick. The town was famous for its Shiva Temple. Abdul stayed in the house with his father, mother, brothers and sister and led a secure and happy childhood.
(6) Abdul’s father, Jainulabdeen was a pious man. He led an austere life without depriving his family of the basic comforts.
(7) In this closely knit family, dinner was always a special meal. During dinner they exchanged views on a variety of topics ranging from family matters to spiritual subjects.
(8) The main income for Abdul’s family came from ferrying pilgrims across the sea between Rameshwaram and Dhanushkodi. Pilgrims visiting Rameshwaram made it a point to visit Dhanushkodi, twenty kilometres away in the sea. Dhanushkodi has religious significance.
(9) Ferrying pilgrims fetched good money and the family lived comfortably. However, a devastating cyclone lashed the shores of Rameshwaram and their boat was destroyed. The family lost their only source of livelihood in one swift, tragic stroke.
(10) The enterprising young Abdul wanted to help the family through the crisis. He realized that there was demand for tamarind seeds. He decided he would collect them and sell them to a shop near his house. His family wanted him to concentrate on his studies. He said he would study as well as help his family. Reluctantly, everyone agreed. Even while studying or enjoying the evenings with his friends on the beach, he set aside some time to collect tamarind seeds and sell them to a nearby shop. For this he was paid a princely sum of one anna!
(11) Besides selling tamarind seeds, he helped his cousin Samsuddin to sell the popular Tamil newspaper Dinamani to earn a little more money. At dawn, several bundles of the newspaper, printed in Madras (now Chennai), were thrown on to the platform of Rameshwaram railway station from passing trains. Trains did not stop at Rameshwaram statiqn during those days of the Second World War as almost all of them were commandeered to transport troops.
(12) Abdul, after picking up the bundles marked for his area, rushed and handed them over to Samsuddin, who gave Abdul a small amount for the service he had rendered. There was a great demand for Dinamani because people wanted to know about India’s freedom struggle and the latest developments in the war.
(13) This is how Abdul earned his first wages. However, it was the joy of being able to care for his family that Abdul cherished most. Even decades later, he recalls earning his own money for the first time, with immense pleasure and a sense of pride.
(A) On the basis of your reading, answer the following questions: 6
(i) Who does this passage tell us about ?
(ii) What inspired Abdul to design a rocket ?
(iii) What was SLV-3 ?
(iv) Where did Abdul spend his childhood ?
(v) Why was dinner a special meal in the Kalam’s family ?
(vi) What did Abdul cherish most about the memory of his first earning ?
(B) Find similar in meaning to the words given below: (1 x 2 = 2 marks)
(i) disciplined/hard (para 8)
(ii) hard working and bold (para 10)​

Answer 1

Answer:

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