Read the following passage carefully:
Gandhiji As a Fund Raiser
Gandhiji was an incurable and irrestible fund raiser. He found special relish in getting jewellery from women. Ranibala of Burdwan was ten years old. One day she was playing with Gandhiji. He explained to her that her bangles were too heavy for her delicate little wrists. She removed the bangles and gave them away to Gandhiji.
He used to talk jokingly to small girls and created distaste for ornaments and created a desire in them to part with the jewellery for the sake of the poor. He motivated them to donate their jewellery for social usage.
Kasturbai didn’t appreciate this habit of Gandhiji. Once she stated calmly, ‘You don’t wear jewels, it is easy for you to get around the boys. But what about our daughters-in-law ? They would surely want them.
“Well!” Gandhiji put in mildly, "our children are young and when they grow up they will not surely choose wives who are found of wearing jewellery.” Kasturbai was very upset with the answer.
Gandhiji was determined to keep the jewels to raise community fund. He was of the opinion that a public worker should accept no costly gifts. He believed that he should not own anything costly, whether given or earned. Kasturbai was a female with a desire to adorn. But Gandhiji moved towards renunciation and donated every penny earned in South Africa to the trustees for the service of South African Indians.
2.1 Answer the questions given below:
(a) How did Gandhiji create a distaste for jewellery in Ranibala?
(b) What was Kasturbai’s apprehension about their daughters-in-law?
(c) What solution did Gandhiji suggest for the problem posed by Kasturbai?
(d) How did Gandhiji serve the community?
2.2 Find meanings of the words given below from the options that follow:
(e) incurable (para 1)
(i) unreliable
(ii) untreatable
(iii) disagreeable
(iv) unbeatable
(f) motivated (para 2)
(i) encouraged
(ii) emboldened
(iii) incited
(iv) softened
(g) upset (para 4)
(i) puzzled
(ii) furious
(iii) confused
(iv) distressed
(h) renunciation (para 5)
(i) giving up
(ii) disagreement
(iii) opposition
(iv) termination
Answers
(a) Distaste for jewelry was created in Ranibala saying that bangles were too heavy for her soft little wrists.
(b) Kasturibai perception about their daughters-in-law is that they will be fond of wearing jewelry as they are girls.
(c) Gandhiji answered Kasturbai statement saying that ‘Surely when their children’s are grown up they will not choose the girl who is fond of jewelry’. This answer made Kasturibai upset as she liked to wear jewels.
(d) Gandhiji served the community by donating each and every penny that he earned in South Africa to help the South African Indians. He followed the fact that costly things should never be possessed by him though it is earned or gifted.
The meanings of the given word from the options below are
(e) Incurable - untreatable
(f) motivated – encouraged
(g) upset - distressed
(h) renunciation – giving up