Explore topic-wise InterviewSolutions in .

‘Earthquake’ is the story of a little boy called Brij whose attempts at finding his little sister buried under the debris after a devastating earthquake for a hundred and sixteen hours turns out to be a miraculous success. The story begins with references to Brij offering tea to strangers in his roadside tea shop in Garhwal.

The boy speaks cheerfully to people waiting for the bus and introduces himself as a seventeen-year-old who had earlier worked in a roadside, dhaba outside Panipat. In the course of his conversation, he also lets the strangers know that Molthi, the village he had belonged to, was ruined in an earthquake four years ago.

It was by sheer chance that Brij was away from Molthi when the earth quaked. He had been to Pauri to buy his school books and had stayed back at his uncle’s place for the night. The earthquake did not last for long. It was for less than five minutes. But its effect was devastating.

Its epicentre was in a valley near Garhwal. Out of the six hundred and seventy villages, six hundred and two villages were destroyed. It brought the centuries old mountains crashing, reduced the villages to rubble and snuffed out hundreds of lives. The landslides, which were in dozens, led to road blocks with huge boulders thrown across the motorable tracks and roads.

After the earthquake, Brij returned to Molthi. He had the dismay of performing the last rites of all his family members, except for his two year old sister Bhuli who was not found by the rescue operators. Everybody concluded that she was eaten up by wild animals.

But when Brij insisted on looking for her among the debris of his house, an army officer with two of his men resumed the rescue work though there was little chance of the child being alive after hundred and sixteen hours. But miraculously Bhuli was alive.

However, Brij never got the chance to thank the army officer. This weighed on his conscience. When he returned to Panipat, he worked in a roadside dhaba outside Panipat. He saved money to open a teashop at Garhwal and to serve tea to tired travellers. In every tired traveller, he saw the face of the army officer. This was Brij’s way of thanking the army officer who had helped him.

Brij could never forget the Army Officer who had helped to save his sister, Bhuli. The next day, when he went to thank him, he was not there. Brij did not even know his name. After this, Brij and his sister had gone to live with their uncle. It weighed on Brij that he had not thanked the Army Officer. He hoped that someday he would meet him.

With this hope he would search for the officer’s face in every crowd. Whenever he saw an Army Officer, he hoped that it was him. When he started working in the dhaba, he saw somebody who bore a close resemblance to the Army Officer. Brij offered him a hot cup of tea, after seeing that he was very tired. As he served the man, Brij felt very light and a sense of joy.

Brij did not charge him and this happened almost every day. There was someone or the other who resembled the Army Officer. Brij would serve them hot tea and he would feel a sense of great satisfaction. He never charged them.

When Brij came to his village with his uncle, everything was destroyed. Along with his home, he had lost his whole family. That evening, he was called to perform the last rites of his family. Brij was totally dazed. When they went near the site where the funeral was to take place, Brij could not find the body of his sister, Bhuli.

Though he was told that she had died either in the quake or the wild animals might have devoured her, he would not accept it. Without waiting for anyone, he went to the place where his house once stood and started searching among the debris. An Army Officer tried to tell him that it was no use as the soldiers had done a thorough search.

However, Brij would not give up. Seeing him, the Army Officer was moved. He brought a few soldiers to search the debris. The three soldiers, who came with spades and crowbars, laboured doggedly for two hours even after dark. At last they found a small hollow where the wall had caved in and Bhuli was lying in the hollow. She was alive. Brij’s efforts had been successful in saving his younger sister, Bhuli.

1. Badrinath 

2. ten 

3. seventeen

4. Molthi 

5. October 

6. Delhi, Lucknow 

7. Four 

8. Nilu, Bhuli 

9. makeshift 

10. Bhuli

1. Brij 

2. six hundred and seventy 

3. school books 

4. makeshift hospital 

5. hundred and sixteen

I had helped a blind person cross the road few months ago. I have helped my friends who had been absent in class due to illness to complete the notes. I had given money to people who asked they needed it to buy bus tickets.

1. Brij, 

2. Brij, 

3. Brij and uncle, 

4. Soldier, 

5. Uncle, 

6. Ma, grandma, Nilu and Bhuli, 

7. Soldiers, 

8. Brij, 

9. Uncle, 

10. Army officer, 

11. Brij, 

12. Brij, 

13. Army officer, 

14. Brij, 

15. The soldiers, 

16. The soldiers, 

17. The soldier, 

18. The soldiers, 

19. Brij and Bhuli, 

20. Brij, the army officer.

1. Brij 

2. Uncle 

3. Army officer 

4. Army officer 

5. Brij

1. (b) serve the people

2. (a) a high intensity earthquake.

3. (a) he couldn’t locate his sister

4. (c) saved his sister from death

5. (b) cup of tea

The officer came with three soldiers armed with spades and crowbars. Without a word, the men began to remove the debris. They laboured doggedly. When it was completely dark, some one brought a few lit petromax lamps. Two hours r later, a soldier called out, “ Sir”. He stood in the middle of a small hollow. The wall had caved in at that spot. Brij recognised a part of the door. Beneath it, was a little foot. Feverishly, the soldiers began to clear the hollow. Then they lifted the door. It was a miracle. They rescued the baby alive after a hundred and sixteen hours. A ragged cheer went up and she was carried to a make-shift hospital.

Earthquake Glossary :

textual :

Additional :

Brij is a young boy having his own tea shop by the roadside. He meets a traveler and invites him to his shop and starts telling the incidences that took place in his life. He used to stay in Molthi village with his grandmother, mother, brother and a baby sister. Their village was not far from the epicenter and hence used to experience frequent tremors. One day he happened to go to the village Pauri, to buy his school books.

As it had become late he stayed in his uncle’s house. That night they were experiencing frequent tremors because of which they could not sleep that night. This resulted in numerous landslides and it took four days for the army officers to arrive at . Molthi. Brij and his uncle were the first to arrive after the army officers. They weren’t prepared for what they had seen that day, every single house had been brought down to the ground.

The soldiers began to clear the debris and not until that evening did they find the bodies. His uncle asked him to perform the last rite, that’s when he saw that his baby sister was missing. Hoping to find her, he ran to the place where his house stood once and started clearing the debris and searching for his sister.

One officer, seeing this said that there is no point in searching anymore since they have done their maximum and that there is no hope to find anyone alive. Brij did not pay heed to him and continued his search, but the officer left. He came after ten minutes along with three more officers and started to clear the debris. On clearing the debris, after two hours they realized to be standing in the middle of a hollow and Brij could instantly see the foot of his sister.

The soldier exclaimed, saying the little girl-was alive. He immediately wrapped her and carried her to the nearby makeshift hospital. The next day, when he had gone to thank the army officer, he had already left. He was very disappointed at this and whenever he used to see an army officer or a tired traveler, he remembered the officer who saved his sister’s life and would serve him tea for free as this made him very happy. In the same way, he offers this traveler also with a cup of tea and when his bus arrives wishes him a safe journey.

Molthi village was located near a valley that consisted of the epicentre.

Brij worked in a roadside shop outside Panipat.

Brij was living in the house his great grandfather had built in Molthi.