CBSE Class 12th English Exam Paper, 2003 (Compartment Outside Delhi : Set-1)

SECTION - A : (READING SKILLS)

Q. A1. Read the following passage carefully and answer the questions that follow:
1. Money came into existence to answer a need of mankind, but this need did not arise until civilization had grown beyond its earliest stages. Primitive man lived by hunting, each hunting only for himself and his family or tribe. At a stage when strangers were avoided or driven away, money and even trade were unnecessary. Later, when he had learnt to domesticate wild animals, man lived a nomadic and pastoral life, constantly wandering as he drove his flocks and herds to new pastures. As the road to wealth was then the possession of beasts, money in its modern form was still not necessary, although the beasts themselves were a form of money. It would suit, what few craftsmen there were to be paid for their wares in cattle and farmers and herdsmen to pay in that way.

2. When human communities began to settle down and cultivate the land, instead of wandering over it with their flocks and herds, the division of labour increased and people specialized in crafts and trades. Most men specialized in growing or producing something of which only a very small portion was necessary for their own wants. So they had to get rid of their surplus. In exchange for it, they wanted something which would give them the power to choose what they wanted from the surpluses of other people. A few transactions might take place in straightforward exchange or barter, but only certain things could be treated in this way. It was unlikely for Instance, that a shoe-maker needing supplies of corn for his family from time-to-time would always find that the farmer would take shoes in exchange. It would be more convenient, if there were some other object that would always be useful to both the shoe-maker and the farmer.

3. Once the people have agreed what this other object is to be and once they are prepared always to accept it or offer it in payment, then we have money in its primitive form. It is the go-between in. all business transactions or as the economists say, ‘a medium of exchange’. We have seen that in the pastoral stage of human history, cattle themselves were this generally acceptable commodity; it is therefore not strange that the Latin word for money, ‘pecunia’ comes from a similar Latin word, ‘pecuniary’ meaning cattle. In modern English we still use the adjectives, ‘pecuniary’ meaning, concerned with money, and ‘impecunious’ meaning having no money.

4. The trouble about the cattle is that they may become diseased, are easily driven away while their owners are asleep, require a Jot of land on which to graze and cannot easily be subdivided without being killed and so )o their value. The precious metals such as gold and silver do not suffer from any of these disadvantages, it can be buried and hidden away easily, it does not rust or lose weight through storage; it can be weighed out into quite small quantities without loss of value. Even some modern communities have used the precious metals by weight as their standard money, although they have used coins for pocket money and small change. For many years the standard money of China was the ‘tael’ which was not a coin, but a weight of silver, the dollar and the cash were used for small change and minor transactions.

5. There are, however, disadvantages in using weighed quanitites of these metals. Dishonest persons may mix them with less valuable metals of the same appearance and weight. In time, so many mixtures might then be passing from hand to hand that every businessman would need to be accompanied by an assayer to test and weigh every piece presented to him. The obvious way out of this difficulty is for the state to make coins of a standard shape, weight and fineness which are then called currency.

(a) On the basis of your reading of the passage, answer the following questions as briefly as possible:
(i) Why did the primitive man not feel the necessity of money as a means of exchange? 2
(ii) This passage mentions three stages in the development of human society. Mention any-two stages. 2
(iii) How did the world ‘pecuniary’ originate? 2
(iv) What necessitated the people to think of having a common medium of exchange? 1
(v) What was ‘tad’? 1
(vi) Why is it necessary for the government to mint coins? 1
(b) Find the words in the passage which mean the same as the following:
(i) early (para 1)
(ii) business dealings (para 3 an para 4)
(iii) clear (para5)

Q. A2. Read the following passage carefully and answer the questions that follow:
The seasonal problem of water taps running dry is plaguing most of our major cities With the bigger rivers flowing in trickles and ponds and wells reduced to clay- pits, village women in remote areas have to fetch every drop of water for drinking, cooking, washing and soon, across large distances. This has only worsened a perennial problem, that of widespread pollution of water, rendering it unfit for human consumption. The monsoons — and the attendant floods — will not solve this problem.

The Delhi Administration is seriously worried about the threat to civic health posed by the polluted waters of the Jamuna. Two new tanks are to be set up to treat sewage. At present only 60 per cent of the 200 million gallons of the city’s sewage receives any kind of treatment before it is dumped into the river which supplies water not only to this city but to innumerable towns and villages downstream. The Ganga, the Jamuna, the Cauvery, in fact all our important rivers, serving many urban conglomerations are fast becoming a major source of disease.

A comprehensive bill, introduced in Parliament recently, envisages the setting up of Central and State boards for the prevention and control of water pollution. But it will obviously take some time before legislation is passed and effectively implemented. Meanwhile the problem continues to swell
According to a survey of eight developing countries conducted a couple of years ago, 90 per cent of all child deaths were due to water borne diseases. It is the same unchanged story today. In a country like India, a burgeoning population continuing to use the open countryside as a lavatory means that, with every dust storm and rain, human excreta laden with germs and parasite spores find their way to ponds, shallow wells and even the streams and rivers. Only IS per cent of the rural folk have access to potable water.

A new threat that has already assumed alarming proportions is from industrial waste which is generally dumped, untreated, into the nearest river. For instance, for every kilogram of processed hide, 30 —40 litres of foul smelling waste water has to be disposed of There are at least 900 licensed tanneries in the organized sector Putrefied paper and jute waste, metallic waste from straw board and textile mills, sulphur, ammonia, urea, metallic salts and corrosive acids — all find their way to the rivers of India.

It is important not only to make new laws to ensure the purity of water, but also to realise the urgency of implementing them ruthlessly, if we are to avoid a national health disaster cutting across the barrier between towns and the countryside. (438 words)
(a) On the basis of your reading of the above passage make notes on it, in points only, using abbreviations/short forms (minimum 4), wherever possible. Supply a suitable title to it. 5

(b) Write a summary of the above passage in about 80 words. 3

SECTION - B : (ADVANCED WRITING SKILLS)

Q. B1. You are Vineet/Vineeta, the Editor of Gandhi Memorial Senior Secondary School Magazine Draft a notice for your school notice board inviting contributions for the magazine. (Word limit: 50 words) 5

Or

You want to dispose of your land at Okhla near Delhi. Draft an advertisement suitable to be published in The Hindustan Times, Delhi. You are Kripal Singh/ Maneesha of Chandni Chowk, Delhi (Word limit: 50 words)

Q. B2. You have witnessed a major clash between two political parties near your house in Aligarh. Prepare a report in 125 words to be published in the National Herald, Lucknow. Sign as Rohit/Ramola. 10

Or

Your school celebrated the Teachers’ Day on 5 September. Prepare a report in 125 words to be sent to CBSE. Sign as Mohit/Molly of Zindal Public School, Indore.

Q. B3. Write a letter to the Editor of Deccan Herald, Bangalore, regarding many unlawful activities going on in your area. You are of Kalyanpur, Shimoga. Also 
give your suggestions to curb such activities. (Word limit: 150 words). 10

Or

You purchased an L.G. Air-conditioner 3 months ago. It ’was working well initially and suddenly the cooling effect has reduced and also there is a rattling sound. Write a letter to the Regional Manager, L.G; Electronics, New Delhi, asking for the repair/replacement of the A.C. unit. You are Suneet Arora/Suneeta of 182, Greater Kailash, New Delhi. (Word limit: 150 words).

Q. B4. Write an article in 200 words to be published in a local daily, on how the younger generation is crazy after the fast foods, little realizing the- health hazards involved. You are Jyoti/John of Gandhinagar, Chennai. 10

Or

Being the Top Scorer of the UT Entrance Examination, you have been invited to witness the Republic Day Parade from the President of India’s Enclosure. Narrate your experiences in 200 words for publication in your college magazine. You are Pratap/ Preeti.

SECTION - C : (TEXT BOOKS)

Q. C1. Read the passage given below and answer the questions that follow:
Freedom from fear is the freedom I claim for you,
My motherland!
Freedom from the burden of ages, bending your head,
Breaking your back, blinding your eyes to the beckon
Call of future,

Questions:
(i) Name the poet and the poem from which this stanza has been taken. 1
(ii) Who stands for ‘I’? What is ‘my motherland’? 2
(iii) What type of freedom does the poet think for? 2
(iv) Point out two difficulties that we have to face while getting freedom. 2
(v) What is the beckoning call of the future? 2

Q. C2. Answer the following in 30—40 words each:
(i) What aroused Mr. Gupta’s interest in the girl? 2
(ii) Why did Gandhiji address his appeal directly to women? 3
(iii) What kind of miseries did the prisoners face during their journey to the Andaman Islands? 3
(iv) What points of commonality do you find in a man and a tree in the poem ‘The Noble Nature’? 3
(v) Write the theme of the poem ‘Written in Early Spring.” 2
(vi) Write the central theme of the poem, “Once Upon a Time”. 3

Q.C3. Give the character-sketch of Warren Hastings in the light of lesson ‘The impeachment of Warren Hastings.’ (Word limit: 150 words). 10

Q. C4. The strength of this poem lies not in description but in the creation of an attitude towards war.” What is Hardy’s attitude towards war? (Word limit: 150 words).

Or

Why does the poet use the word ‘Stirred’ and why does he associated life with mimicry? (Word limit: 150 words)