Short Questions

Question 1 : Describe the difficulties faced by Velu while crossing the road.

Answer : Velu found that vehicles kept coming on the road and never stopped; making it impossible to cross. Smoke and dust also proved problematic. There was hardly any gap to go to the other side of the road, till Jaya dragged him.

Question 2 : What was similar between Velu and Jaya?

Answer : Both Jaya and Velu had nobody to depend on. They were all alone and had to fend for themselves. Both Jaya and Velu were to work hard to survive in this world. Jaya is also able to understand that Velu had run away from home; perhaps she had done the same.

Question 3 : What warning does Jaya give Velu?

Answer : Jaya warns Velu against getting caught by the police and being out into the jail. Jaya specially points out to the building of the Central Jail to advice Velu to be cautious as one need not have done anything wrong for being put behind the bars.

Question 4 : Why does Velu decide to stick to Jaya?

Answer : Velu realises that he was not just too new to the place, but also had difficulty in reading the sign boards, as they were written in English. It was difficult for him to find his way. So, he decided to be in the company of Jaya who seemed to know a lot about the place.

Long Questions

Question 1 : Discuss what all could Velu have experienced, had Jaya not helped him?

Answer : Velu might have got lost in the big city. He hardly knew where to go. Further, he didn’t know how to read the signboards in English. He might have been trapped by the police and landed up in jail for no fault of his.

Jaya’s warning clearly indicates this. Also, Velu might have died of starvation, not knowing where to get food from, not having access to any money. Jaya helps him escape out of all these potential problems.

Question 2 : Describe the events of Velu’s day when he left his home.

Answer : On the first day, Velu had to walk for most of the day from his village to Kanur before he got unto a train for Chennai.

Since, Velu had not money, he could not buy a ticket and had to travel without one. Fortunately for him, the ticket collector didn’t come to his compartment. He had to sleep on the floor near the door, amidst the noise produced by a group of men who played cards.

Value Based Questions

Question 1 : What does the flood overflowing from the garbage bin indicate? Should one be more conscious of food wastage?

Answer : In rich  people’s weddings and social gatherings, a lot of food gets wasted. The untouched excess food and the leftover food are , indiscriminately, thrown into the garbage bin. At least the untouched excess food could be distributed among poor people.

Also, people could become conscious and take only the amount of food that they actually consume and avoid wastage. Yes, we should be very conscious of the wastage of food because it is a pity to see that poor children like Velu, Jaya and many others like them have nothing to it.

Question 2 : Why do you think Velu chooses to do the work of ragpicking? Is it in any way linked to food?

Answer : Yes, Velu chooses to work as a ragpicker in order to support and sustain himself. The main need of the poor people is to somehow ensure food for themselves in order to survive. Velu understood that getting food without doing any work was difficult. He, therefore, decides to temporarily work as a ragpicker till he found a new job.