English Question Paper of Madhyamik 2023
SECTION – A
READING COMPREHENSION (SEEN)
1. Read the passage carefully and answer the questions that
follow:
Some days after the funeral, a special train took
Gandhiji’s ashes to Allahabad. The compartment was decked with flowers. People
on the train sang “bhajans”. People did not weep anymore for they could feel
Gandhiji’s presence amid the flowers and the songs. At every station sorrowful
crowds filled the platform. Amid song and prayer the train reached Allahabad.
The ashes were immersed in the Ganges where a huge crowd had gathered at the
bank. Afterwards we all went back to Delhi. Back in Delhi, I felt at sea. I had
not directly walked with Gandhiji, gone to prison at his call or made any
sacrifice for my country. My sisters and I, and other young people like me, had
been merely onlookers. But still I felt at sea. I felt I had grown up within a
magic circle. With Bapu’s passing away, I felt the magic circle had vanished,
leaving me unprotected. With an effort I roused myself, I asked myself - had
Bapu lived and died for nothing? How could I so easily lose courage when he was
no longer there? My values were not so weak . Millions of people would have
been ordinary folk but for Bapu. He brought them out of indifference and
awakened them to one another’s suffering. What if now Bapu is gone? We were
still there, young, strong and proud to bear his banner before us.
A. Write the correct alternative to complete the following sentences: 1×5 = 5
(a) After the funeral
Gandhiji’s ashes were taken to …….
(i) Delhi
(ii) Allahabad
(iii) Kolkata
(iv) Patna
(b) People who were on
the train with the ashes did not weep but ……….
(i) offered prayer
(iii) expressed sorrow
(ii) sang songs
(iv) sang bhajans
(C) “Back in Delhi I
felt at sea” – In this sentence ‘felt at sea’ means ……..
(i) felt at a loss
(ii) visited the sea
(iii) felt very sad
(iv) felt very generous
(d) Like many other
young Indians, the narrator and her sister had been ……….
(i) Gandhiji’s companions in prison
(ii) co-workers of Gandhiji
(iii) mere observers of Gandhiji’s work
(iv) making sacrifices for Gandhiji
(e) After Gandhiji’s
death, the narrator wanted to ………
(i) lose motivation
(ii) remain courageous
(iii) turn different
(iv) weaken values
B. Complete the following sentences with information from
the text : 1×3 = 3
(i) At the time of immersion of Gandhiji’s
ashes_______________________________________
(ii) When Gandhiji passed away , the magic
__________________________________________
(iii) Even if Bapu was gone _______________________________________________________
C. Fill in the chart with information from the text: 2×2
= 4
|
Statement |
Reason |
|
(i) People stopped
weeping for Gandhiji. |
|
|
(ii) Gandhi brought
ordinary folk out of indifference. |
2. Read the poem and answer the questions that
follow:
I must go down to the seas again, to the lonely sea and the
sky,
And all I ask is a tall ship and a star to steer her
by;
And the wheel’s kick and the wind’s song and the white
sail’s shaking,
And a grey mist on the sea’s face, and a grey dawn
breaking.
I must go down to the seas again, for the call of the
running tide
Is a wild call and a clear call that may not be
denied;
And all I ask is a windy day with the white clouds
flying,
And the flung spray and the blown spume, and the sea -
gull’s crying.
I must go down to the seas again, to the vagrant gypsy
life,
To the gull’s way and the whale’s way where the wind’s like
a whetted knife;
And all I ask is a merry yarn from a fellow - rover,
And quiet sleep and a sweet dream when the long trick’s
over.
A. Write the correct alternative to complete the following
sentences: 1×4= 4
(a) The colour
associated with the mist and dawn in the poem is
(i) white
(ii) blue
(iii) grey
(iv) black
(b) The call that poet
cannot deny, is the call of the
(i) white clouds
(ii) running tides .
(iii) lonely sea
(iv) grey mist.
(c) “The vagrant gypsy
life” in the third stanza of the poem actually refers to the wandering life of
a
(i) vagabond
(ii) warrior
(iii) gypsy
(iv) sailor
(d) The intensity of
the poet’s desire to go on a voyage is expressed by
(i) repeating the same phrase ” I must go down ….. ”
(ii) describing the sea voyage in details .
(iii) comparing the voyager’s life with gipsies
(iv) referring to the running tide and flying clouds.
B. Answer the following questions: 2×2
= 4
(i) Which word in the poem tells you that this is not going
to be the first voyage of the poet? Why does the poet ask for a star?
(ii) What does the poet ask for at the end of his
journey?
READING COMPREHENSION
(UNSEEN)
3. Read the following passage and answer the questions that
follow:
More than 3,500 hectares of mangrove plantation have been
done in the Sunderbans by the forest department in order to protect the delta
from soil erosion as well as storms and cyclones . Large swathes of mangroves
had got damaged in the Sunderbans when cyclone Amphan struck . Other factors
like cutting down forests to make way for Pisciculture ponds and farming fields
have also played a part in this.
According to a senior officer of the forest department ,
many tens of thousands of migrant labourers had returned to the mangrove delta
during the Covid – induced lockdown . Many of them took to an alternate
livelihood . Some started farming and fishing in local ponds on a small scale
and to make way for these large swathes of mangroves had been cut down leaving
the area exposed to the vagaries of storms as well as soil erosion . The department
had roped in the help of joint forest management committees and local women to
plant mangrove saplings . According to an estimate , by the end of 2022 around
17-5 lakh saplings will be planted .
Milan Mondal , the divisional forest officer of South 24 –
Parganas , said their efforts were paying off as the villagers themselves have
realised the importance of the mangrove cover after the Sunderbans was lashed
with back to back cyclones , including Amphan and Yaas . In areas like Lothian
Island , G Plot and Frasergunj , mangrove saplings have been planted on as many
as 230 acres . The forest department has also managed to generate employment
for more than 12,500 villagers .
[Adapted from an article published in The Telegraph dated
25th July 2022]
A. Tick the right answer:
1×6 = 6
(i) An initiative for
mangrove plantation has take place in the Sunderbans by the
(a) irrigation department
(b) forest department
(c) agriculture
(d) pisciculture department
(ii) Mangrove
plantation initiative aimed at protecting Sunderbans from storms and
(a) human greed
(b) Amphan
(c) pisciculture ponds
(d) soil erosion
(iii) The number of
cyclones named in this passage is
(a) 4000 hectares
(b) 3000 hectare
(c) 2000 hectares
(d) 2500 hectares
(iv) The collaborators
helping forest department in this initiative are
(a) three
(b) one
(c) two
(d) many
(v) An appropriate
title for the passage would
(a) local farmers and local women
(b) forest management committees and local women
(c) local farmers and local fishermen
(d) all the villagers and forest management
committees
(vi) At important
points on Lava - Algarah road personnel providing relief were deployed by
(a) An endeavour to protect mangroves
(b) A bid to protect mangroves in Sunderbans
(c) Planting mangroves to protect the Sunderbans
(d) Plantation of mangroves for protection of life
B. Each of the following statements is either ‘True’ or
‘False’. Write The ‘True’ and ‘F’ for ‘False’ in the boxes on the right-hand
side. Also pick out suitable line(s) or phrase(s) from the passage in support
of your answers:
(1+1)×3=6
(i) Cyclone Amphan
damaged large areas of mangroves in the Sunderbans. [ ]
Supporting Statement:
___________________________________________________________
(ii) Cyclones are the only cause of the damage of the
mangroves in the Sunderbans. [ ]
Supporting Statement:
___________________________________________________________
(iii) Planting mangrove saplings has generated employment
for many villagers. [
]
Supporting Statement:
___________________________________________________________
C. Answer the following questions: 2×4=8
(i) How many migrant labourers returned to the Sunderbans
during Covid- induced lockdown and what alternative livelihood did they take
in?
Ans:...................................................................................................................................................
(ii) What were the impacts of migrant labourers’
alternative livelihood on Sunderban’s nature?
Ans:...................................................................................................................................................
(iii) Name two areas of Sunderbans where mangrove saplings
have been planted.
Ans:...................................................................................................................................................
(iv) Who is Milan Mondal? What did he say about the effect
of their effort on the villagers of the area?
Ans:...................................................................................................................................................
SECTION-B
GRAMMAR AND VOCABULARY
4. Write the correct alternatives to fill in the blanks : 1×3=3
The Tortoise set out to collect all the wisdom in the world,
and as he _____(had been gathering/ gathered/had gathered) each piece he put it
into a large gourd. This took a long time, and when Tortoise thought he
______(had collected/collected/collect) all there was, he _______(decides/had
decided/decided) to hide the gourd on top of a tree.
5. Do as directed:
A. Fill in the blanks with appropriate articles and
prepositions: 1×3=3
Life had not been smooth sailing ……………. Sudha. In 1981, the
car she was travelling met with an accident and her right leg had to be
amputated below the knee. She walked around with /on crutches.
B. Rewrite the following sentences according to the
instructions given in brackets: 1×3=3
(i) People on the
train sang “Bhajans”. (Change the voice)
(ii) Samuel said, “Swaminathan, where is your homework ?”
(Change into indirect speech)
(iii) He put it in an envelope and sealed it. (Turn into a
simple sentence)
C. Choose the correct phrasal verbs from the list given
below to replace the words underlined. Write the correct phrasal verbs in the
boxes on the right-hand side changing the form where necessary. There is one
extra phrasal verb in the list : 1×3=3
[call up, make up,
call on, give up]
(i) Sahana visited you last night to invite you to her
birthday party.
(ii) Solving the puzzle was so difficult that I stopped
trying.
(iii) The man created a story to avoid punishment.
6. Given below are the meanings of four words which you
will find in the passage in Question No. 3. Find out the words and write them
in the appropriate boxes on the right-hand side: 2×4=8
(i) loss : ___________________
(ii) unprotected : _____________
(iii) a person who moves from one place to another–migrant
: _________________
(iv) work : __________________
SECTION - C
WRITING
7. Write a short biography (in about 100 words) of Sukumar
Ray, the great Bengali writer and poet, on the basis of the points given below:
10
Birth: 30 October, 1887
Parents: Upendrakishore Ray Chowdhury and Bidhumukhi Devi
Education: Attended City College School ….. Graduated with
double honours in Physics and Chemistry from Presidency College...…trained in
photography and printing technology from England.
Profession: Writer, illustrator, photographer, publisher of
“Sandesh’, the famous children’s magazine.
Notable works: Notable for writing “nonsense” rhymes in
Bengali e.g. ‘Abol Tabol’, ‘Pagla Dashu’, ‘HaJaBaRaLa’ etc.
Death: September 10, 1923
8. Write a letter (within 100 words) to the editor of an
English daily expressing concern about the frequent accidents due to rash
driving in your area. 10
9. Write a paragraph (within 100 words) about how you
celebrate Independence Day in your school. You may use the following points: 10
Time of attendance— participants — programmes —significance
of celebrating the day