Maximum Time Allowed:3 hours
Marks:100
Marks are indicated against each question
Q.1. Write a précis of the following passage in about 80 words and add a suitable title to it:
To be traveling through the middle of the city as great, historic and forlorn as Istanbul, and yet to feel the freedom of the open sea-that is the thrill of a trip along the Bosphorous. Pushed along by its strong currents, invigorated by the sea air that bears no trace of the dirt, smoke and noise of the crowded city that surroundings it, the traveler begins to feel, inspite of everything, this is still a place in which he can enjoy solitude and find freedom. The waterway that passes through the centre of the city is not to be confused with the canals of Amsterdam or Venice or the river that divides Paris and Rome in two: strong currents run through the Bosphorous. Its surface is always ruffled by wind and waves and its waters are deep and dark. If you have the current behind you, if you are following the itinerary of a city ferry, you will see apartment buildings, old ladies watching you from balconies as they sip their tea, coffeehouses perched on landing stations, children in their underwear entering the sea just where the sewers empty into it and sunning themselves on the concrete, peoples fishing from the shore, others lazying on their yachts, travelers gazing out of the sea through bus windows while struck in traffic, tall apartment buildings looming in the background, and slowly, in the distance, Istanbul in all its confusion—mosques, poor quarters, bridges, minarets and towers.
2. (a) Write a letter to your father describing how you expect to fare in the competitive examination of the Bihar Public Service commission.
Or, (b) Write a letter to the editor of a news-paper expressing you concern over the 'brain drain' causing exodus of the your Indian talents.
(Do not write your name; sign XYZ)
3. Read the passage given below and answer any four of the questions that follow:
Traditional family gave the individual a sense of security and the individual identified himself as a part of an unbroken chain which went back to his ancestors. The individual could associate himself with a house or a piece of land, and something of this notion survives in what we call our 'native' place or 'permanent' address. Quite often the individual followed a profession or ran a business which successive generations in his family had handed down. Growing up within a close-knit group of kin or relatives performs a socializing function and creates a feeling of mutual trust. The family fulfils other universal needs besides that of physical and cultural identification for the individual. These are needs like sexual satisfaction, reproduction, child-rearing, education and economic survival. In modern times there have been many changes in social conditions which have affected the institution of the family. The family is no longer the unit for production. Production is now undertaken by industrial and commercial institutions. At one time children used to be regarded as an economic asset, they worked with the adults and started to earn very early. Today even children from poor families spend more time in schools provided by the State and are regarded as a liability raher than an asset.
In most countries women today play a different role; they are no longer confined to the home. Men and women together share the responsibilities of child-care, education and earning a livelihood. The close circle of kin related to the family by blood or by marriage is not as close as it used to be. This is largely because all the members of a family no longer follow a trade or profession together, nor do they always live in close physical proximity. Marriage are no arranged exclusively by families; often the individuals have a greater freedom of choice. Divorce is not uncommon. All this has added an element of instability to the future of the family as a social institution.
(a) Why are children regarded as liability today?
(b) What individual needs does the family serve?
(c) Why is the family unstable today?
(d) What social function does the family serve?
(e) In what way has the women's role changed in most countries?
Q.4.Translate one of the following passages into English:
Q5. Choose one of the two words given within brackets following each sentence and fill in the blank within the sentence meaningfully (any five)
(a) The car collided with a ....................tractor on the road
(stationary/stationery)
(b) Try to explain the…………….. in the passage.
(allusion/illusion)
(c) Do not …………….me, or I shall lose my temper
(aggravate/provoke)
(d) He bore false………….
(Witness/evidence)
(e) I told him to write but he…………
(denied/refused)
(f) The driver applied the …………… and the car jumped
(breaks/brakes)
Q.6. Frame sentences with the following (any five):
(a) A wild-goose chase
(b) Look down upon
(c) Beat about the bush
(d) Come to light
(e) Face the music
Q.7. Rewrite the following passage with correct punctuation marks using capital letters where necessary:
An important football match was to take place near a large town one Saturday in September and an excursion train was taking people to see it the train went very slowly and had numerous stoppages after a time it reached a station called march and was brought to a stand then a porter went up and down the platform calling out march march.
Q.8. Rewrite the following as directed (any five):
(a) The air of the plains is not as cool s that of hills.
(Use the comparative form of 'coo')
(b) "Do you need a car?" He asked
"No." was my answer, at which he frowned
(Change into indirect speech)
(c) Kunwar Singh was seriously ill. Corbett heard this. He was much alarmed. He did not lose all hops.
(Join into a complex sentence)
(d) The followers of Siraj who often praised him to his face now deserted him they hated his cruelty.
(Split up into four simple sentences)
(e) Did you tell him the story? (Change the voice)
(f) The doctor was consulted.
(Use 'advice' as a noun to rewrite the sentence without changing the meaning)
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