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Yes, Abdul Kalam had earned some money before also. When the Second World War broke out, there was a sudden demand for tamarind seeds in the market. He used to collect the seeds and sell them at a provision shop. This earned him one anna per day.

Nari Contractor was the Captain and an opening batsman for India in the 1960s. The Indian cricket team went on a tour to the West Indies in 1962. In a match against Barbados in Bridgetown, Nari Contractor got seriously injured and collapsed. In those days helmets were not worn. Contractor was hit on the head by a bouncer from Charlie Griffith. Contractor’s skull had fractured. The entire team was deeply concerned. The West Indies players were worried. Contractor was rushed to the hospital. He was accompanied by Frank Worrell, the Captain of the West Indies Team. Blood was donated by the West Indies players. Thanks to the timely help, Contractor was saved. Nowadays helmets are routinely used against bowlers.

When emergency was declared the train halt in Rameswaram station was suspended. The newspapers were bundled and thrown out of the moving train. His cousin, Samsuddin who distributed newspapers wanted a helping hand to catch these bundles. Abdul Kalam took over the job. This is how he earned his first wages.

A few things that can erupt are anger, volcano, tooth, rash, riots, unrest, etc. Erupt has several meanings. Their explanation, with examples, is given as follows:  

(i) Start unexpectedly  Example: Riots erupted in the city.  

(ii) Start to burn or burst into flames  Example: The spark soon erupted into flames.  

(iii) Become active and spew forth lava and rocks  Example: The molten lava erupted out of the active volcano.  

(iv) Forceful and violent release of something pent up  Example: The difference in their views soon erupted in a fight.  

(v) Sudden appearance on the skin  Example: On the day of the party, a pimple erupted on her face.  

(vi) Break out  

Example: Eruption of the wisdom tooth gives a lot of pain.  

Things that can surge are pride, anxiety, waves, boats, army, etc. The several meanings it has  can be explained with the following examples:  

(i) Sudden forceful flow  Example: The boy drowned in the surging waves.  

(ii) Rise and move forward  The army surged towards their enemy.  

(iii) Heave upward under the influence of a natural force  Example: The boat surged in the high tide.  

(iv) See one's performance improve  Example: Hard work helped to surge Sandra's scores.  

(v) A sudden or abrupt strong increase  Example: The surge in the stock market left people in a shock.  

(vi) Rise rapidly  Example: As time passed, her tension surged.

George and Harris readily accepted Jerome’s suggestion. George smoked a pipe and “spread himself over the easy-chair”, while Harris put his legs on the table and lit a cigar. No, Jerome got irritated by their reaction.

(iii) Look Before you leap.(positive)

(iii) Don't make a mountain out of a mole hill.(negative)

(iv) Live and let Live.(positive)

(iv)Don't put all your eggs in one basket.(negative)

(v) Mind your own business.(positive)

(v) Never put off till tomorrow what you can do today.(negative)

(vi) Be first at the feast and last at the fight.(positive)

(vi) Don't count the days, make the days count!(negative)

Yes, this story is definitely funny as it shows three adults making fool out of themselves.. Not only is the way in which the three friends pack for their trip quite mirthful, but the way the author narrates all the incidents is also entertaining.The narrator, who prides himself on his packing ability, unpacks and repacks the things thrice, much to the amusement of his other friends. 

The first humorous element is when the narrator offers them to pack the things and they are worse than the narrator. Emulating his friends, the narrator sits back and watches them make mess of everything. Consequently, he has to do packing though his real intention was to boss the job. 

The second humorous element is that George placed the butter on the chair and Harris sat on it and it stuck at his back. When they searched it for packing, it was missing. They search for it everywhere in the room. At last, George finds it at Harris's back. The third humorous element is that Montmorency squirms in where he is not wanted. 

The disturbance created by the brings its own amount of fun in the story.

(i) 'He’ refers to the bear, Bruno.

(ii) Bruno was shifted to a zoo. After three months when the narrator's wife went to visit him, he recognised her and was very delighted. When she petted him through the bars, he stood on his head in delight.

Shehnai has a better tonal quality than pungi. It is a natural hollow stem pipe with  holes on its body and is longer and broader than the pungi. Shehnai is, in a way, an  improvement upon the pungi.

The shehnai was traditionally played in royal courts, temples and weddings. Ustaad Bismillah khan, an undisputed monarch of shehnai brought this instrument onto the classical stage.

On 15th August 1947, Bismillah Khan played the Raag Kaafi on his shehnai from the Red  Fort. The event was historical because it was played on the occasion of India's Independence  from British Rule.

The first instance is when he turned down his student’s offer to start a shehnai school in U.S.A. The second instance is when Khansaab was asked by Shekhar Gupta about moving to Pakistan during the partition, he said that he would never leave Benaras.

Bismillah Khan refused one of his student's request to start a shehnai school in the U.S.A. because he would not live away from Hindustan, specifically, from Benaras, the River Ganga and Dumraon.

1. (i) The reality is that the doctor is not a man of money or possessions. He hardly has any money. He had just set up medical practice and had limited earnings, He stayed in a small rented room which was not electrified. He possessed a black coat and some shirts and dhotis. 

(ii) Actually, the doctor dreamt to be a rich person by marrying a woman doctor who had plenty of money with good medical practice. He wanted to make his presence felt among others and look more handsome. 

2. (i) The doctor had a dream to marry a woman doctor with good medical practice and a lot of money. She had to be fat so that she can not run after him and catch him. 

(ii) But in real life, he marries a thin reedy woman who has the gift of a sprinter. 

3. (i) When he looks into the mirror he thinks being an unmarried doctor he has to make his presence felt. He decides to shave daily and grow a thin moustache. Further he decides to always keep his attractive smile on his face to look more handsome. 

(ii) He seems to have turned into a stone when the snake coiled around his arm. He felt the presence of the great creator. He thinks that suppose the snake strikes him he doesn't have any medicines in his room. Thus he considers himself a poor, foolish and stupid doctor. All these incidents show a contrast in his life which makes this story a humorous one.

Yes, Margie had regular days and hours for school, because her mother believed that learning at regular hours helped little girls learn better. That was why mechanical teacher was also on at the same time everyday except Saturday and Sunday.

Yes, I agree that schools today are more fun than the school in the story. In the story, there is no interaction among students regarding studies. Studying and answering questions seems to be a boring idea. Doing homework without anybody's help and writing them in a  punch code would also be a tedious job. Moreover, children develop a better understanding about each other and of their surroundings when they go to a school and interact with each  other. It is a healthier way of learning.  

Having teachers explaining lessons is always more interesting than reading the entire lesson  on a mechanical computer. Moreover, if any student faces any problem with the subject or in  homework, he can discuss it with the teacher and other kids. It is impossible to discuss  problems and situations with a mechanical teacher that is only programmed to teach in a  particular manner.  

The excitement of waiting to know the marks scored in exams is greater when one is sitting  in a classroom with other students. It does not have the same effect when the marks are  calculated immediately after each test ,that too in a lonely room.  

Finally, the friends that you make at school are most probably the best friends that you will  ever make in your entire life. The various qualities that you learn in school like obedience,  respect, kindness for others, sharing, taking part in school games, sports, and other activities  are all a part of school education today. Therefore, schools today are more fun than the  school in the story as these are more interactive. Today's schools promote a healthy  environment for the students to study and learn.

Margie hated school because it was not fun. A mechanical teacher used to teach her everyday at a fixed time. The part that she hated the most was inserting the homework and in the slot on the mechanical teacher. She did not like the fact that she had to write her answers in a punch code.She also disliked that the mechanical teacher calculated the marks immediately.She found her school detached and uninteresting. She thought that the old kind of school must have been fun as she imagined all the kids from the entire neighbourhood coming together, laughing and shouting in the schoolyard. She imagined that they would sit together in the classroom and go home together at the end of the day. They would learn the same things and could help one another with the homework and talk about it. Also, the teachers were human. All these aspects made her believe that the old kind of schools must have been fun.

No, Margie had never seen a book before but she had heard about it from her grandfather.

Margie and Tommy had mechanical teachers flashing on large black screens on which all the lessons were shown and questions were asked. They had a slot in which students had to put their homework . They had to write their answers in a punch code and the mechanical teacher calculated the marks immediately. Their schools were in their homes itself. They did not have any classmates. They learned geography, history and arithmetic. They had regular days and hours for school. Margie's school was right next to her bedroom. The mechanical teacher always turned on at the same time every day except Saturdays and Sundays because her mother said that little girls learned better when they learned at regular hours.

In her diary on the page headed 17 May, 2157 Margie wrote, “Today Tommy found a real book!”.

They turned the pages, which were yellow and crinkly, and it was awfully funny to read words that stood still instead of moving the way they were supposed to − on a screen, you know.

The mechanical teacher had been giving her test after test in geography and she had been doing worse and worse until her mother had shaken her head sorrowfully and sent for the  County Inspector.  

They had once taken Tommy’s teacher away for nearly a month because the history sector had blanked out completely.  

He added loftily, pronouncing the word carefully, “Centuries ago.”  

“But my mother says a teacher has to be adjusted to fit the mind of each boy and girl it  teaches and that each kid has to be taught differently.”  

“I didn’t say I didn’t like it,” Margie said quickly.

 “May be,” he said nonchalantly.

(i) I completely forgot about it.

(ii) When I complimented Revathi on her success, she just smiled nonchalantly and turned away.

(iii) The President of the Company is awfully busy and will not be able to meet you.

(iv) I finished my work quickly so that I could go out to play.

The teacher shook her head sorrowfully when Ravi lied to her.

1. If I don’t go to Anu’s party tonight, she will get angry.  

2. If you don’t telephone the hotel to order food, you will miss your evening meal.  

3. Unless you promise to write back, I will not write to you.

4. If she doesn’t play any games, she feels dull and lazy.  

5. Unless that little bird flies away quickly, the cat will pounce on it.

(i) angrily

(ii) happily

(iii) merrily

(iv) sleepily

(v) easily

(vi) noisily

(vii) tidily

(viii) gloomily

At the interview, Sameer answered our questions loftily, shrugging his shoulders.

Evelyn heard music by sensing the notes in different parts of her body. When Ron  Forbes tuned two drums to different notes and asked her to sense the sound without using her ears, she realized that she could feel the higher drum from the waist up and the lower drum from the waist down.  

She learnt how to open her mind and body to sounds and vibrations. It was sheer determination and hard work. When she played the xylophone, she could sense the sound passing up the stick into her fingertips. By leaning against the drums, she could feel the resonances flowing into her body.  

On a wooden platform, she removed her shoes so that the vibrations could pass through her  bare feet and up her legs. She herself said that music poured in through every part of her body. It tingled in the skin, her cheekbones and even in her hair.

1. Percussionist Ron Forbes helped Evelyn to continue with music. He began by tuning two large drums to different notes. He asked her not to listen to them through her ears but to try and sense the sound in some other manner. 

2. Evelyn, with a hectic international schedule, gives solo performances at regular concerts. Apart from these, she gives free concerts in prisons and hospitals. She also accords high priority to classes for young musicians.

(i) Tommy says these words to Margie. 

(ii) 'It' refers to the television screen, on which over a million books were available. 

(iii) The television screen is being compared to real printed books of earlier times by Tommy.He finds printed books a waste to be thrown away after reading whereas his telebooks are really useful and needn't to be thrown away.

The County Inspector was a round little man with a red face,he smiled at Margie and gave an apple to her and started working on the mechanical teacher. He took it apart and then checked it. Margie wished that the Inspector would not know how to put the mechanical teacher together again, but he managed to reassemble it. He slowed down the geography sector of the teacher because it was geared a little too quick for an average ten year old.

Margie had been given many tests in geography by the mechanical teacher, but there was no improvement in her performance. It only kept on worsening therefore Margie’s mother sent for the County Inspector to find out the reason behind that.

Margie’s school was just a room called schoolroom in her home itself, right next to her bedroom. No, she did not have any classmates and even in the name of teacher,a mechanical teacher flashed on the screen.

Jerome started putting the things out of the bag to find out his toothbrush .Finally he found it inside a boot .

When Jerome had offered to pack, his real intention was that he would boss the job while Harris and George would work under his directions.Then he would push them every now and then and teach them how to do it properly and show off his packing skills.

The very idea of printed book with still words instead of moving the way they did on a screen was strange for her.She just found it odd that for centuries the words on a page always remained the same without any change. Besides, the idea that someone would write a book about schools was itself strange for Margie.

A book that can be displayed on a television screen is called telebook.

Kezia’s grandmother encouraged her to get to know her father better by sending her to the drawing room to talk to her parents on Sundays. She also suggested Kezia to make a pin cushion out of a beautiful piece of yellow silk as a gift for her father’s birthday.

Kezia’s family consisted of her mother, father, grandmother and herself.

(i) Before going to his office, Kezia’s father usually went into her room to give her a casual kiss. 

(ii) After coming back from his office, he ordered for tea to be brought into the drawing room. He also asked her mother to bring him the newspaper and his slippers, and Kezia to pull off his boots. 

(iii) On Sunday, Kezia's father would stretch out on the sofa. He would cover his face with his handkerchief, put his feet on one of the cushions and sleep soundly.

With her mother and grandmother at the hospital, Kezia is left at home in the care of  Alice, the cook. At night, after she is put to bed by the cook, she has a nightmare  

She calls for her grandmother but, to her surprise, she finds her father standing near her bed. He takes her in his arms and makes her sleep next to him. Half asleep, she creeps close to him, snuggles her head under his arm, and holds tightly to his shirt. Her father asks her to rub her feet against his legs for warmth.  

Her father goes off to sleep before her. This makes her understand that he has to work hard every day and this leaves him too tired to be like Mr Macdonald. She expresses her altered feelings for her father by telling him that he has a 'big heart'.

An arrogant lion was wandering through the jungle. One day, he asked the tiger, “Who is stronger than you?”. “You, O lion!” replied the tiger. “Who is more fierce than a leopard?” asked the lion. “You Sir,” replied the leopard. He marched up to an elephant and asked the same question. The elephant picked him up in his trunk, swung him in the air, and threw him down. “Look” said the lion, “there is no need to get mad just because you don’t know the answer.”

The author says that Kathmandu’s narrowest and busiest streets had small shrines and flower-adorned deities. There were fruit sellers, flute sellers, hawkers of postcards, shops selling Western cosmetics, film rolls, chocolate, those selling copper utensils and Nepalese antiques. Film songs blared out from the radios, vendors were shouting out their wares and the sound of the car horns and bicycle bells were heard. He roamed around the streets mindlessly and brought some refreshments and books. He found a flute seller who played it slowly and meditatively. The sound of the flute music rised clearly above the noise of the traffic and the hawkers' cries.

According to the author flute music is the most universal and most particular of all sounds. This musical instrument is common to all cultures. We have the reed neh, the  recorder, the Japanese shakuhachi, the deep bansuri of Hindustani classical music, the clear  or breathy flutes of South America, the high-pitched Chinese flutes, etc. Each flute has its  specific fingering and compass but when you hear it, you are drawn into the commonality of  all mankind. This is because every flute produces music with the help of the human breath.  Similarly, despite the differences in caste, culture, religion all human beings are the same,  with the same living breath running through all of them.

1. The author notes that when the other hawkers shout out their wares the flute seller doesn't. The flute seller selects a flute and plays slowly, meditatively, without excessive display. Occasionally he made a sale and took a break to talk to the fruit seller.  

2. At Pashupatinath, there is a small shrine that half protrudes from the stone platform on the river bank of Bagmati. The people believed that when the shrine will emerge fully, the goddess inside will escape and the evil period of Kaliyug will come to an end.  

3. (i) Outside the temple of Pashupatinath the author found an atmosphere of ‘febrile confusion’. There were many worshippers. Some people were trying to get the priest ’s attention and were elbowed aside by others. A party of saffron-clad Westerners were struggling for permission to enter. A fight broke out between two monkeys.  

(ii) The things he sees include the temple at Pashupatinath, the Baudhnath stupa, shops  owned by Tibetan immigrants, small shrines, flute sellers, hawkers, shops selling Western  cosmetics, Nepalases antiques,  

(iii) The sounds he heard were of film songs blaring out from the radios, car horns, bicycle  bells, vendors shouting out their wares. He also heard flute music which appealed to him as the most universal and most particular of sounds.

The route that the author had thought of but did not take, is given below:

Kathmandu — Bihar (Patna) — Uttar Pradesh (Benares-Allahabad-Agra) — Delhi

Santosh, from the very beginning, lived life on her own terms. She was not content with the traditional way of life and was not ready to accept anything unreasonable. Where other girls wore traditional Indian dresses, Santosh preferred wearing shorts.

When Santosh Yadav first scaled Mt Everest, she became the youngest woman in the world to achieve the feat. When she scaled the Everest the second time, she became the only woman to have scaled it twice.