E Book IAS Main English Compulsory Papers Year 1997 2012

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UPSC IAS (Mains) Compulsory English Papers : Year - 1997 to 2012
UPSC IAS Main English
Compulsory Paper
Year 1997
Q. 1. Write an essay of about 300 words on any
one of the following : 100
(a) Tolerance is the key to national unity
(b) Your idea of a happy life
(c) Advertisements : need for control
(d) Is vegetarianism a virtue ?
(e) Failures are the pillars of success
Q. 2. Read the following passage carefully and
answer the questions that follow in your own
words as far as possible. 75
It is true that the smokers cause some nuisance
to the non-smokers, but this nuisance is physical
while the nuisance that the non-smokers cause
the smokers is spiritual. There are, of course, a
lot of non-smokers who dont try to interfere with
the smokers. It is sometimes assumed that the
non-smokers are morally superior, not realizing
that they have missed one of the greatest pleasures
of mankind. I am willing to allow that smoking is
a moral weakness, but on the other hand we must
beware of a man without weakness. He is not to
be trusted. He is apt to be always sober and he
cannot make a single mistake. His habits are too
regular, his existence too mechanical and his head
always maintains its supremacy over his heart.
Much as I like reasonable persons, I hate
completely rational beings. For that reason, I am
always scared and ill at ease when I enter a house
in which there are no ash-trays.
The room is apt to be too clean and orderly, and
the people are apt to be correct and unemotional.
Now the moral and spiritual benefits of smoking
have never been appreciated by these correct,
righteous, unemotional and unpoetic souls. In my
opinion the smokers morality is, on the whole,
higher than that of the non-smokers. The man
with a pipe in his mouth is the man after my heart.
He is more genial, more open-hearted, and he is
often brilliant in conversation. As Thackeray
observes, The pipe draws wisdom from the lips,
of the philosopher and shuts up the mouth of the
foolish; it generates a style of conversation that
is contemplative, thoughtful, benevolent and
unaffected.
(a) What kind of hardship do .a smoker and a
non-smoker cause to each other ? 15
(b) Why is it wrong to think that a non-smoker is
morally superior to a smoker ? 15
(c) Why is a man without any moral weakness
untrustworthy ? 15
(d) What pleasure of life is missed by a non-
smoker ? 15
(e) What does Thackeray mean to say ? 15
Q. 3. Make a precis of the following passage
in about 230 words. As far as possible, the
precis should be in your own words. It should
be written on the special sheets provided,
which should be fastened securely inside the
answer book. State the number of words in
your answer. 75
N.B. : Marks will be deducted if your precis is
much longer or shorter than the prescribed length.
In our country begging has become a profession
and the beggars continue to increase in numbers.
So, vast indeed is the fraternity of these beggars
that foreigners visiting India, especially ,cities like
Varanasi, our cities of pilgrimage, have been led
to call our cities the cities of beggars and of dust
! There are no statistics available for estimating
their number, but that is not needed for our present
purpose. Of course, any practical reform in this
matter does not require a close investigation into
the causes and conditions of the existence of
beggars, but we are here concerned with the
question of seeing how these beggars live and
what, in particular, is the effect on society of their
existence.
As already suggested, the vastness of the number
of the Indian beggars is evident to any visitor from
a foreign country. The causes of the increase in
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the number of beggars are many, but of these we
may just consider only a few. For good or evil,
Indians have been very religious in their outlook
on life, and also very generous and hospitable
towards those who go to them for begging. Our
Puranas and Shastras point out that giving charity
to beggars ensures Moksha in the next world. The
social conscience deveolped from such an article
of faith has been the main cause of the increase in
the number of beggars. They are always sure of
finding people anxious to go to heaven by offering
doles and donations to the needy and so they are
thriving. There are many beggars whose
profession has been hereditary a strange
perversion of human nature, which, as we are told,
ought to eat out of the sweat of its brow. The
most amusing spectacle from the point of view
of reason, is to see able-bodied persons, dressed
in abundance of rags and many coloured clothes
wandering about the streets and going from house
to house regularly at certain hours for no more
serious a purpose than that of begging ! This might
be seen at almost any village and town in our
country. For ages uncounted this thing has been
going on. The ignorant masses have a fear of the
curse supposed to emanate from the mouths of
angered beggars, and thus the beggars get more
than they need. In fact, strange as it might seem,
a considerable number of these beggars are richer
. than their poor patrons !
With the percolation of social consciousness
among the modern educated Indians, the problem
of beggars is today being seriously thought about
and ways and means are being seriously mooted
on how to solve this problem. When we read how
in the West, for example, begging has become a
crime coming under the vagrancy acts of
Parliaments and when we know that in some
countries people are warned that Those who do
not work, neither shall they eat, we begin to think
how depressing is the situation in India. Poverty,
no doubt, is one of the major causes of begging,
and unemployment and increase in population
have also been responsible for the same, but the
disease-of begging has deeper roots in the social
consciousness of us all, and it is to this that any
reformer has to turn. We must make it clear to
the masses that there is no special glory of Punya
in giving charity to the able-bodied persons, and
that such misplaced charity is only increasing
idleness and chronic poverty. If the masses are
educated in social science, its elementary
principles at any rate, there will be a gradual
lessening of the number of beggars in our country.
The State, too, has to devise laws for checking
the growth of beggars. Some strict laws against
vagrants must be put into practice in every city
and village in India. It is more important to
introduce them in holy cities where the beggars
are leading the most unholy life. Finally, it is for
the development of saner outlook on life that we
must agitate if we are to root out this evil of
beggary. In one form or another, begging has
become the most widespread thing today. Some
are honourable, modernised beggars in pants and
boots and ties and they have subtler ways of
exploiting their patron victims.
Q. 4. (a) Fill in the blanks using the
appropriate forms of the words given below :
10
abhor, alter, determine, dwell, fellow, handle,
innocent, slay, torrent, radiant.
(i) He is making a effort to
succeed in the examination.
(ii) We should hold corruption in
. .
(iii) He .. in a rented house in
Delhi last year.
(iv) There is no in this, town;
it is the same as it was five years ago.
(v) He deserves praise . for the
situation tactfully.
(vi) We love children for their . .
(vii) The crops have been damaged by these
rains.
(viii) The rich man has been . by
the militants.
(ix) The .. of his face suggests that
he is a saint.
(x) He has been awarded a for
studying in Canada.
(b) Use each of the following words in two
separate sentences, first as a noun and then as a
verb :
favour, meet, occasion, sound, support. 10
(c) Do as directed : 5
(i) A stranger said to me, Do you know me ?
(Change into the Indirect form of Narration.)
(ii) He is blind his own faults.
(Use the correct preposition.)
(iii) Are you not making a noise ?
(Write it in the passive voice.)
(iv) Is virtue not its own reward ?
(Transform into an assertive sentence.)
(v) God is present everywhere.
(Substitute a single word for present
everywhere.)
Q. 5. (a) Correct the following sentences : 10
(i) If you will run, you will catch the train.
(ii) I am too glad to help you.
(iii) I am fed up of his evil ways.
(iv) He has only two brother-in-laws.
(v) I am one of those persons who cannot describe
what I feel.
(vi) He has not bought some books.
(vii) Do not prevent the child to read.
(viii) I doubt that she will help you.
(ix) Ganges is a holy river.
(x) He is more intelligent than either of his four
brothers.
(b) Of the words given in brackets, choose the
one that you think is appropriate : 10
(i) He is an mechanic.
(ingenuous / ingenious)
(ii) He died after he had been struck by
.
(lightning / lightening)
(iii) Your story is not at all . .
(credulous / credible)
(iv) Only the virtuous experience true
.. .
(facility / felicity)
(v) Some politicians try to influence the
officers.
(judicious / judicial)
(vi) You cannot question his honesty and
.. .
(veracity / voracity)
(vii) The patient is still in a state of ..
.
(comma / coma)
(viii) After the accident, the field was covered
with .. .
(corpses / corps)
(ix) He is a dealer in .. .
(stationary / stationery)
(x) You should settle this dispute in an
.. way.
(amiable / amicable)
(c) Use the following phrases/idiomatic
expressions in your own sentences so as to bring
out their meanings : 5
give rise to, hang fire, pass away, put up with,
tone down.
Compulsory Paper
Year 1998
Q. 1. Write an essay in about 300 words on-
any one of the following : 100
(a) The Limits of Science
(b) Our Intellectuals
(c) Have We Lost the Direction ?
(d) Computers in Everyday Life
(e) Below the Poverty Line
Q. 2. Read this passage carefully and answer
the questions set at the end 75
We think of the moon as only a stone, a stone
gone cold. An airless, waterless stone and the
prophetic image of our own earth when, some
few million years from now, the senescent sun
shall have lost its present fostering power . .
And so on. This passage could easily be prolonged
a Study in Purple. But I forbear. Let every reader
lay on as much of the royal rhetorical colour as
he finds to his taste. Anyhow, purple or no purple,
there the stone is stony. You cannot think about
it for long without finding yourself invaded by
one or other of several sentiments. These senti-
ments belong to one or other of two contrasted
and complementary groups. The name of the first
family is Sentiments of Human Insignificance, of
the second, Sentiments of Human Greatness.
Meditating on that derelict stone afloat there in
the abyss, you may feel a worm,. abject and futile
in the face of wholly incomprehensible immensi-
ties. 'The silence of those infinite spaces fright-
ens. me.' You may feel as Pascal felt. Or, alterna-
tively, you may feel as M. Paul Valery has said:
`The silence of those infinite spaces does not
frighten me.'
For the spectacle of that moon need not neces-
sarily make you feel like a worm. It may, on the
contrary, cause you to rejoice exultantly in your
manhood. There floats the stone, the nearest and
most familiar symbol of all the astronomical hor-
rors: but the astronomers who discovered those
horrors of space and time were men. The uni-
verse throws down a challenge to the human spirit;
in spite of his insignificance and abjection, man
has taken it up. The stone glares down at us out
of the black boundlessness. But the fact that we
know it justifies us in feeling a certain human
pride. We have a right to our moods of sober
exultation.
(a) How does the writer describe the moon ?
(b) Do you think that the image of the moon re-
vealed here is prophetic ? Why ?
(c) What kind of two contrasted and complemen-
tary sentiments does the moon evoke ?
(d) What does the author try to suggest about
the place of man in the universe ?
(e) Give the central idea of the passage.
Q. 3. Write a precis of the passage given be-
low in your own words, not exceeding 160, on
the special sheets provided. The precis sheets
should be fastened securely inside the answer
book. State the number of words used by you
in the precis.
N.B. : Marks will be deducted if your precis is
75
I speak of peace because of the new face of war.
Total war makes no sense in an age when great
powers can maintain large and relatively invul-
nerable nuclear forces and refuse to surrender
without resort to those forces. It makes no sense
in an age when a single nuclear weapon contains
almost ten times the explosive force delivered by
all of the Allied air forces in the Second World
War. It makes no sense in an age when the deadly
poisons produced by a nuclear exchange would
be carried by the wind and water and soil and
seed to the far corners of the globe and to gen-
erations yet unborn.
Today the expenditure of billions of dollars every
year on weapons acquired for the purpose of
making sure we never need to use them is essen-
tial to keeping the peace. But surely the acquisi-
tion of such idle stockpiles, which can only de-
stroy and never create, is not the only, much less
the most efficient, means of assuring peace.
I speak of peace, therefore, as the necessary ra-
tional end of rational men. I realize that the pur-
suit of peace is not as dramatic as the pursuit of
war, and frequently the words of the pursuer fall
on deaf ears. But we have no more urgent task.
Some say that it is useless to speak of world peace
or world law or world disarmament, and that it
will be useless until the leaders of those nations,
perceived to be hostile by us, adopt a more en-
lightened attitude. I hope they do. I believe we
can help them do it. But I also believe that we
must re-examine our own attitude, as individuals
and as a nation, for our attitude is as essential as
theirs. And every graduate of this school, every
thoughtful citizen who despairs of war and wishes
to bring peace, should begin by looking inward,
by examining his own attitude toward the possi-
bilities of peace.
First, let us examine our attitude toward peace
itself. Too many of us think it is impossible. Too
many think it unreal. But that is a dangerous,
defeatist belief. It leads to the conclusion that war
is inevitable, that mankind is doomed, that we
are gripped by forces we cannot control.
Our problems are man-made: therefore they can
be solved by man. And man can be as big as he
wants. No problem of human destiny is beyond
human beings. Man's reason and spirit have often
solved the seemingly unsolvable and we believe
they can do it again.
Let us focus on a more practical, more attainable
peace, based not on a sudden revolution in hu-
man nature but on a gradual evolution in human
institutions, on a series of concrete actions and
effective agreements which are in the interest of
all concerned. There is no single, simple key to
this peace, no grand or magic formula to be
adopted by one or two powers. Genuine peace
must be the product of many nations, the sum of
many acts. It must be dynamic, not static, chang-
ing to meet the challenge of each new genera-
tion. For peace is a process, a way of solving prob-
lems.
With such a peace there will still be quarrels and
conflicting interests, as there are within families
and nations. World peace, like community peace,
does not require that each man love his neighbour;
it requires only that they live together in mutual
tolerance, submitting their disputes to a just and
peaceful settlement. And history teaches us that
enmities between nations, as between individu-
als, do not last forever. However fixed our likes
and dislikes may seem, the tide of time and events
will often bring surprising changes in the rela-
tions between nations and neighbours.
So let us persevere. Peace need not be impracti-
cable, and war need not be inevitable. By defin-
ing our goal more clearly, by making it seem more
manageable and less remote, we can help all
peoples to see it, to draw hope from it, and to
move irresistibly toward it.
Q. 4. (a) Fill in the blanks with the appropri-
ate forms of words given below : 10
deter, increase, ardour, resolve, courage, divide,
prestige, commend, pious, invoke
(i) Paradise Lost opens with an .
of the divine.
(ii) When is your next due ?
(iii) One must have a firm . to
achieve one's goal.
(iv) Unless we are we can never
face obstacles.
(v) Will our nuclear explosions have quite a
effect ?
(vi) United we stand, we fall.
(vii) The programme of rehabilitation is
. .
(viii) Without religious pursuit has
hardly any meaning.
(x) In Gandhian era the people of our country
had spirit of patriotism.
(x) This school is a very .. institu-
tion.
(b) Use the following words in your own sen-
tences, each both as a noun and a verb : 10
practice; question; complement; substitute; crop.
(c) Rewrite the following sentences as directed :
5
(i) "Help me Cassius, or l die," cried Caesar.
(Turn it into the indirect form.)
(ii) John in brighter than all other students in his
class.
(Change into the positive degree.)
(iii) You cannot see him, for it is not easy to reach
him.
(Give one word for the words in bold italics.)
(iv) She would not go home during the holidays
(Use a question tag.)
(v) If you do not work hard, you cannot succeed.
(Use 'unless'.)
(i) It is an unique privilege to welcome our guests.
(ii) A herd of cattles were grazing in the farm.
(iii) If you would have studied hard, you should
have passed.
(iv) One of my friend is a good poet.
(v) Either his parents or Pheroze is going to come
today.
(vi) When you are going to London to meet with
your friends there ?
(vii) For heaven's sake, please don't ask me that
why am I not coming ?
(viii) I cannot be able to play cricket this evening.
(ix) You are the teacher here, isn't it ?
(x) Shakespeare, the playwright and the poet born
in Stratford-upon-Avon.
(b) Fill in the blanks choosing the appropri-
ate words put within the brackets : 10
(i) He his past statement in the
course of his speech.
(avert, advert)
(ii) In their response to the call they are
.
(invert, inert)
(iii) There is no . to the gift he re-
ceived.
(illusion, allusion)
(iv) . distillation is an offence.
(Elicit, Illicit)
(v) He had no .. to any help.
(recourse, resource)
(vi) He is certainly not honest; he is always
.. .
(hypercritical, hypocritical)
(vii) Smoking is . here.
(proscribed, prescribed)
(viii) Kishore sends his .. to
you.
(compliments, complements)
(ix) We must not cast any .. at him,
for he is innocent.
(aspiration, aspersion)
(x) The students' attitude to their teacher is not
. .
(deferential, differential)
(c) Use the following phrases in your own sen-
tences bringing out the meaning : 5
(i) Out of tune
(ii) To put one's foot down
(iii) At sixes and sevens
(iv) Through thick and thin
(v) To put something up
Compulsory Paper
Year 1999
Q. 1. Write an essay in about 300 words on
(a) Power of the press
(b) An ideal college
(c) The technological miracles of the twentieth
century
(d) An encounter with an astrologer
(e) Cowards die many times before their death.
Q. 2. Read the following passage and answer
in your own language the questions that follow
: 75
Forecasting the weather, or trying to find out what
it will be like in several days time, has always
been a difficult business. Many different things
affect the weather and each one has to be carefully
studied before we can make even a fairly accurate
forecast. The ancient Egyptians, of course, had
no need of this- the weather in the Nile valley
hardly ever changes -but people living farther
north had to protect themselves and their crops.
During a period of drought, when no rain fell for
weeks on end, streams and rivers dried up, cattle
died from thirst and crops were ruined. A storm
could wreck ships and houses, and heavy falls of
rain caused rivers to flood a whole countryside.
Action in the sky stirred man into action, and in
this respect farmers became just as much men of
action as were sailors on the high seas. Both had
to reckon with the weather it often upset their
plans, sometimes with disastrous results.
In early times, when there were no instruments
such as thermometer or barometer, man looked
for tell-tale signs in the sky. He made his forecasts
by watching the flights of birds or the way smoke
rose from a fire. He thought that the moon
controlled the weather that it held a lot of water,
especially when as a crescent or sickle-shaped
moon it lay on its back. Even today there are
people who think that the sight of the moon lying
on its back means that the rain is on its way. Many
of the weather-sayings are still heard today. I
expect you know the one : A red sky at night is
the shepherds delight. A red sky in the morning
is the shepherds warning. Do you believe this ?
Its sometimes right but more often wrong. If this
and hundreds of other sayings like it were true,
there would be no need for weather science or
meteorology.
(a) What is drought and what are its
consequences?
(b) Does the writer endorse the popular sayings
about the red sky ?
(c) Is weather forecasting a science; if so, what is
it called ?
(d) Why is it not easy to forecast the weather ?
(e) How would the moon help the people in
forecasting weather ?
Q. 3. Make a precis of the following passage
in your own language, in about 230 words, on
the special precis-sheets provided. The precis
sheets should be fastened securely inside the
answer book. State the number of words used
by you in your precis. 75
N.B. Marks will be deducted if your precis is much
longer or shorter than the prescribed length.
Karl Marx was no gentle dreamer about a better
life. such as the Utopian socialists have been. He
was a fighter. As he examined the relations
between the capitalists and labourers of the world,
his belief became clearer and sharper, until at last
he was sure that he was dealing with a new science
the science of the means of production. He was
sure that his ideas were not dreams but solid
scientific facts, and he therefore referred to himself
as a scientific socialist, so that people would not
confuse him with the Utopians.
Marx and a friend named Friedrich Engels were
in France during the revolution of 1848, and it
was at this time they published a pamphlet called
The Communist Manifesto. This was a call to
battle for the labouring classes of the world:
Workers of the world, arise: you have nothing
to lose but your chains. The last years of Marx
were spent in England writing his book Das
Kapital (Capital). Engels supported Marx and
completed the work when the latter died, leaving
the book unfinished.
Das Kapital is one of the most important books
ever written. In it Marx expressed some
astonishing and radical ideas. According to his
economic theory, all the wealth in the world is
produced by human labour. This is true of not
only the goods turned out by factories and of the
money received for such goods, but is true as well
of the factories themselves, which were also built
by human toil, and therefore represent a type of
frozen and stored up labour. It is the workers,
said Marx, rather than the capitalists, who have
supplied this labour, and therefore the wealth
should belong to them. They do not receive it,
but are paid instead only a small fee for their
efforts. The great difference between what the
workers produce and what they are paid is surplus
wealth, which goes to the owners of the factory,
when it should go to the workers. Hence the
workers are being exploited, or robbed, and the
capitalists are growing wealthy. So said Marx.
Das Kapital also included Marxs philosophy of
history. According to this theory, in every age the
social class that controls the source of wealth also
controls the government and has power over the
people. There is, however, a considerable
overlapping. As the sources of wealth change, the,
old group in power tends to hang on to its control
of the government. For example, the nobles of
the Middle Ages owned the land which was the
key source of wealth at that time, and they also
controlled the government.
With the coming of factories as the chief
producers of wealth, the nobles retained their
control of the various governments of Europe for
many years. Finally, the businessmen, or
capitalists, who controlled the new source of
wealth gained control of the government. They
still control it, said Marx, but it is an unfair
situation, and will not continue. In time, the
workers, who really produce the wealth, will get
the power. As wealth piles up, the factories and
other means of production will fall into fewer and
fewer hands as the rich grow steadily richer. The
poor, at the same time, will grow steadily poorer
and more numerous until at last a point will be
reached is which almost everybody will be living
in misery to support a few fabulously wealthy
individuals.
This situation will be so intolerable and so
ridiculous that the great masses of the workers
will rise up, take industry away from its owners,
and run it for the benefit of the workers.
We now know that many of Karl Marxs ideas
were wrong, and that many of his predictions have
not come true. Wealth has become more widely
distributed rather than less, and the standard of
living of the workers has gone up rather than
down. Capitalists have proved not to be the evil
ogres that Mary pictured them. Nevertheless, the
ideas of Karl Marx have had a strong appeal for
many people and a profound effect upon the
history of the world. Communism. one of the
greatest forces in the twentieth century, had its
origins in the writings of Karl Marx.
Q. 4. (a) Fill in the blanks using the
appropriate forms of the words given below :
10
stay; reality; health; pertinent; proof; post;
stretched; accident; rouse; provision
(i) I am not his . brother.
(ii) He got up with a and a yawn.
(iii) Keep him .. with the latest news
about his mother.
(iv) He fell into the gorge .
(v) I have sold off my farm-house and the land
.. to it.
(vi) Demagogues try . the masses.
(vii) The new typist .. to be
useless.
(viii) I will go . that my
expenses are paid.
(ix) you have forgotten one thing.
(x) Had you taken the medicine, the wound
by now.
separate sentences, first as a noun and then
as a verb : 10
(i) dog
(ii) freeze
(iii) spoon
(iv) book
(v) refuse
(c) Rewrite the following sentences as directed
parenthetically : 5
(i) Einstein was the greatest scientist of our
century.
(Use the comparative degree)
(ii) Let us have a cup of coffee now.
(Use the right tag question)
(iii) She said. Darling, why are you looking so
pale ? Cheer up, please.
(Change the mode of narration)
(iv) The fact is so evident that it requires no proof.
(Replace so by too)
(v) He has to do his job well. (Change the voice)
(i) You are a mechanic; isnt it ?
(ii) I have already availed of all the casual leave
due to me.
(iii) The health of my brother is better than me.
(iv) He insisted to leave immediately.
(v) She congratulated him for his success.
(vi) The choice lies between honour or dishonour.
(vii) If it will rain, we shall stay back.
(viii) The ship was drowned in the sea.
(ix) By studying hard, his grades improved.
(x) I have to give my examination in April.
one that, you think, is appropriate to fill in
the blanks : 10
(i) The book has been . for the
Indian readership.
(adapted; adopted)
(ii) The case has been hanging fire because the
judge is .. .
(disinterested; uninterested)
(iii) Trespassers will be .. .
(persecuted; prosecuted)
(iv) He is a man of .
(principal; principle)
(v) Justice should be . with mercy.
(tampered; tempered)
(vi) The condition of homeless people becomes
.. in winter.
(pitiful; pitiable)
(vii) He led a . life.
(sensuous; sensual)
(viii) I vowed to myself for the death
of my cousin.
(avenge; revenge)
(ix) I have . him a job in our company.
(assured; ensured)
(x) Arent you tired of this rain ?
(continual; continuous)
(c) Use the following phrases in your own
sentences so as to bring out their meanings : 5
(i) to lead by the nose
(ii) pell- mell
(iii) gift of the gab
(iv) to make a dash
(v) to fish in troubled waters
Compulsory Paper
Year 2000
Q. 1. Write an essay in about 300 words on
(a) Man is saved not by faith but by work
(b) Indian Culture
(c) Contribution of Science to human progress
(d) Political reform you want in India
(e) Laughter is the best medicine
Q. 2. Read the following passage and answer,
in your own words, the questions that follow :
5 x 15 = 75
Two important stages came not so long before
the dawn of written history. The first was the
domestication of animals; the second was agri-
culture. Agriculture, which began in the river val-
leys of Egypt and Mesopotamia, was a step in
human progress to which subsequently there was
nothing comparable until our own machine age.
Agriculture made possible an immense increase
in the numbers of the human species in the re-
gions where it could be successfully practised but
at first these regions were few. These were in fact,
only those in which nature fertilised the soil after
each harvest. Agriculture met with violent resis-
tance, analogous to that which our Ruskins and
Samuel Butlers offered to machines. Pastoral
nomads considered themselves vastly superior to
the tame folk who stayed in one place and were
enslaved to the soil. But although the nomads
repeatedly won military victories, the physical
comforts which the upper classes derived from
agricultural serfs always prevailed in the end, and
the area of agriculture gradually increased. Even
now this process is not at an end, but what re-
mains for it to achieve is no longer very impor-
tant.
The only fundamental technical advance that pre-
ceded the emergence of man into recorded his-
tory was the invention of writing. Writing, like
spoken language, developed gradually. It devel-
oped out of pictures, but as soon as it had reached
a certain stage. it made possible the keeping of
records and the transmission of information to
people who were not present when the informa-
tion was given.
(a) What was he second important stage in our
pre-history and where did it begin?
(b) What happened in the regions where agricul-
ture was successful ?
(c) What happened in the conflict between the
nomads and agriculturists?
(d) What technical advance took place before the
period of recorded history and what did it ac-
complish?
(e) Who considered themselves superior to whom
and why ?
Q. 3. Make a precis of the following passage,
in your own language, in about 230 words, on
the special precis-sheets provided Marks will
be deducted for precis not written on the pre-
cis-sheets. Marks will also be deducted if your
precis is much longer or shorter that the pre-
scribed length. The precis-sheets should be
securely fastened inside the answer book. State
the number of words used by you in your pre-
cis. 75
It has been estimated than the human population
of 600 B.C. was about five million people, taking
perhaps one million years to get there from two
and a half million. The population did not reach
500 million until almost 8,000 years later-about
1650 A.D. This means it doubled roughly once
every thousand years or so. It reached a billion
people around 1850, doubling in some 200 years.
It took on1y 80 years or so for the next doubling,
as the population reached two billion around
1930. We have not completed the next doubling
to four billion yet, but we now have well over
three billion people. The doubling time at present
seems to be about 37 years. Quite a reduction in
doubling times: 1,000,000 years, 1,000 years, 200
years, 80 years, 37 years.
One of the most ominous facts of the current situ-
ation is that roughly 40% of the population of
the undeveloped world is made up of people un-
der 15 years old. As that mass of young people
moves into its reproductive years during the next
decade, we're going to see the greatest baby boom
of all time. Those youngsters are the reason for
all the ominous predictions for the year 2000.
They are the gun-powder for the population ex-
plosion.
How did we get into this bind ? It all happened
along time ago, and the story involves the pro-
cess of natural selection, the development of cul-
ture, and mans swollen head. The essence of suc-
cess in evolution is reproduction . for repro-
duction is the key to winning the evolutionary
game. Any structure. physiological process or
pattern of behaviour that leads to greater repro-
ductive success will tend to be perpetuated. The
entire process by which man developed involves
thousands of millenia of our ancestors being more
successful breeders than their relatives. Facet
number one of our bind-the urge to reproduce
has been fixed in us by billions of years of evolu-
tion.
Of course through all those years of evolution.
our ancestors were fighting a continual battle to
keep the birth rate ahead of the death rate. That
they were successful is attested to by our very
existence, for, if the death rate had overtaken the
birth rate for any substantial period of time, the
evolutionary line leading to man would have gone
extinct. Among our apelike ancestors, a few mil-
lion years ago, it was still very difficult for a
mother to rear her children successfully. Most of
the offspring died before they reached reproduc-
tive age. The death rate was near the birth rate.
Then another factor entered the picture cul-
tural evolution was added to biological evolution.
Of course, in the early days the whole system did
not prevent a very high mortality among the
young, as well as among the older members of
the group. Hunting and food-gathering is a risky
business. Cavemen had to throve very impres-
sive cave bears out of their caves before the men
could move in. Witch doctors and shamans had a
less than perfect record at treating wounds and
curing disease. Life was short, if not sweet. Man's
total population size doubtless increased slowly
but steadily as human populations expanded out
of the African cradle of our species.
Then about 8,000 years ago a major change oc-
curred the agricultural revolution. People be-
gan to give up hunting food and settled down to
grow it. Suddenly some of the risk was removed
from life. The chances of dying of starvation di-
minished greatly in some human groups. Other
threats associated with the nomadic life were also
reduced, perhaps balanced by new threats of dis-
ease and large scale warfare associated with the
development of cities. But the overall result was
a more secure existence than before and the hu-
man population grew more rapidly. Around 1800,
when the standard of living in what are today the
developed countries was dramatically increasing
due to industrialization, population growth re-
ally began to accelerate. The development of
medical science was the straw that broke the
camel's back.
Q. 4. (a) Fill in the blanks using appropriate
forms of the words given below : 10
characterize; coagulant; fright; globe; civilized;
disastrous; move; enthusiasm; pessimistic; phi-
losophizing
(i) The - of clouds leads to changes in
the weather.
(ii) Man's continuance on earth is shrouded in
.
(iii) A cosmic may end life on earth.
(iv) Vitamin K is essential for the of
blood.
(v) Is our - going on the right path
(vi) The economic. - of our country is
changing.
(vii) Once in the jungle, the boys were
.
(viii) What does Indian - teach?
(ix) - is affecting India's economy.
(x) He spoke about the existence of
God.
as a verb. 10
(i) hunt
(ii) wound
(iii) discredit
(iv) team
(v) experience
parenthetically : 5
(i) "Shut the door after you," she told him curtly.
(Change into indirect form)
(ii) Did she commit all the mistakes ?
(Change into passive voice)
(iii) Many difficulties are impossible to overcome.
(Use a single word for the underlined phrase)
(iv) Hard as he tried, the old man failed to find a
buyer for his bicycle.
(Use "though'')
(v) She is so good that others cannot beat her.
(Replace "so" by "too")
(i) She vividly described about the situation.
(ii) He chose only such men for his company
whom he could trust.
(iii) He does not boast his-merits.
(iv) The rich lead a luxuriant life.
(v) The work was hard and exhaustive.
(vi) Sages had prophecied the coming of the
prophet.
(vii) Earth may again be hit by a huge meteor.
(viii) He came to the city with a view to get a job.
(ix) He was angry upon me.
(x) Why she is doing this ?
one you think appropriate to till in the blanks
: 10
(i) She has the - to this property.
(wright ; right)
(ii) He has - his own method for
doing the work.
(devised ; deviced)
(iii) Fetch me a - of water.
(pale ; pail)
(iv) All the of the airline were
grounded.
(aircraft ; aircrafts)
(v) The government has selected the
for the hospital.
(site ; cite)
(vi) The - of Kargil have fallen si-
lent.
(canons ; cannons)
(vii) The tropic of is an imagi-
nary line.
(Cancer ; cancer)
(viii) The budget could not be
offset.
(deficit ; deficiency)
(ix) When they came down the hill the
- was steep.
(descent ; decent)
(x) The government collapsed when there was a
in the party.
(fraction ; faction)
(c) Use the following phrases in sentences so as
to bring out their meaning : 5
(i) bring about
(ii) break in
(iii) heart and soul
(iv) lie low
(v) hold one's breath
Compulsory Paper
Year 2001
1. Write an essay in about 300 words on any
one of the following: (100)
(a) Knowledge is power
(b) Consequences of globalization
(c) Value of yoga
(d) Science and human happiness
(e) Tourism in India
2. Read the following passage and answer in
your own words the questions that follow: (5
x 15 = 75)
The world we live in presents an endless variety
of fascinating problems which excite our wonder
and curiosity. The scientific worker attempts to
formulate these problems in accurate terms and
to solve them in the light of all the relevant facts
that can be collected by observation and experi-
ment. Such questions as What, How, Where
and When challenge him to find the clues that
may suggest possible replies. Confronted by the
many problems presented by, let us say, an active
volcano, we may ask What are the lavas made
of? How does the volcano work and how Is the
heat generated? Where do the lavas and gases
come from? When did the volcano first begin to
erupt and when is it likely to erupt again?
In terms of chemical compounds and elements,
the question How refers to processes the way
things are made or happen or change. The an-
cients regarded natural processes as manifesta-
tions of energy acting on or through matter. Vol-
canic eruptions and earthquakes no longer reflect
the erratic behaviour of the gods of the under-
world; they arise from the action of the earths
internal heat on and through the surrounding
crust. The source of the energy lies in the mate-
rial of inner earth. In many directions, of course,
our knowledge is still incomplete, only the first
of the questions we have asked about volcanoes,
for example, can as yet be satisfactorily answered.
The point is not that we now pretend to under-
stand everything but that we have faith in the or-
derliness of natural processes. As a result of two
or three centuries of scientific investigation, we
have come to believe that Nature is understand-
able in the sense that when we ask questions by
way of appropriate observations and experiments,
she will answer truly and reward us with discov-
eries that endure.
(a) How does the author describe the task of the
scientific worker?
(b) Why does the author speak about volcanoes?
(c) What does the equation How refer to?
(d) How did the ancients look upon volcanoes
and earthquakes?
(e) What does the author say about our knowl-
edge of the world?
3. Make a prcis of the following passage, in
your own words, in about 230 words, on the
special prcis-sheets provided. Marks will be
deducted for prcis not written on the prcis
sheets. Marks will also be deducted if your
prcis is much longer or shorter than the pre-
scribed length. The prcissheets should be se-
curely fastened inside the answer book. State
the number of words used by you in your
prcis. (75)
No amount of improvement and reconstruction
in education will bear much fruit if our schools
and colleges are undermined by indiscipline. An
impartial examination makes it clear that students
and teachers alike need more of the spirit of dis-
cipline. If proper education is to be given, acts of
indiscipline prevalent in our educational institu-
tions have to be checked. Indiscipline may take
the shape of group indiscipline or individual in-
discipline. Group indiscipline is the worse of the
two. While as individuals many of our students
are as good as students elsewhere, the tendency
to group indiscipline has increased in recent years.
Many causes have led to this group indiscipline.
For various reasons under a foreign regime, acts
of indiscipline became frequent, often necessitated
by the political activities, which were launched
against a foreign government. While there may
have been justification for such indiscipline un-
der different political circumstances, we feel that
there is no justification on for such acts of indis-
cipline after the attainment of independence. The
democratic constitution which the country has
adopted permits the redressing of grievances
through democratic machinery. It would be
against all principles of democracy if such acts of
indiscipline were to continue.
The real purpose of education is to train youth to
discharge the duties of citizenship properly. All
other objectives are incidental. Discipline, there-
fore, should be the responsibility of parents, teach-
ers, the general public and the authorities con-
cerned. There are some positive factors promot-
ing discipline. The Indian students natural ten-
dency is to be disciplined. It is only when forces
act strongly on him that he may sometimes be led
astray. He appreciates rules and is normally in-
clined to abide by them. Much can be done to
encourage this trend in school and college life.
Personal contact between teacher and pupil is
essential. Emphasis is also to be laid on the role
of the class teacher or tutorial guide in promot-
ing general discipline and the welfare of the pu-
pils. Further a greater responsibility should de-
volve upon the students themselves in the main-
tenance of discipline. Nothing is more calculated
to develop a proper sense of self-discipline and
proper behaviour than their enforcement, not by
any outside authority with any symbol of punish-
ment but by the students themselves. They should
choose their own representatives to see that
proper codes of conduct are observed.
Another important method of bringing home to
pupils the value of discipline is through group
games. It is on the playing fields that the virtue of
playing the game for its own sake and the team
spirit can be cultivated. Such extracurricular ac-
tivities as Boy Scouts, Girl Guides, the National
Cadet Corps, Junior Red Cross and Social Ser-
vice activities will promote a proper spirit of dis-
cipline. The building up of a truly harmonious
and united form of community life should be the
endeavour of all progressive educational institu-
tions.
Besides these positive factors, certain negative
factors also promote discipline. The discipline of
the youth of any country depends upon the disci-
pline that is exercised by the elders. It is a well
known fact that in all democracies election time
is a time offeverish activity not always conducted
in the most healthy spirit, and the utilization by
politicians of immature minds like students for
purposes of electioneering campaigns, with or
without slogans attached thereto, is not calcu-
lated to promote sound discipline among students.
It should be considered an election offence for
any member or party to utilize the services of
pupils under the age of 17 in political or civic
campaigns. Besides, while the educative value of
leading politicians addressing our students from
time to time may be readily admitted, the ten-
dency often is for the leaders not to speak to the
audience before hem but to a wider audience
whose attention they wish to attract through the
press. It is not necessary that every speech made
by a politician should be a political speech. Lastly,
discipline among students can only be promoted
if there is discipline among the staff. The teacher
and the educational administrator should realize
that their activities are all being watched by their
pupils. To what extent, therefore, both in their
personal conduct and in their general attitude to
all problems concerning their country, they have
to realize that there are limitations within which
they must act for the best interests of education.
Ultimately, it is the school or college atmosphere
and the quality of the teachers there that ensure
proper codes of conduct and discipline among
our students.
4. (a) Fill in the blanks using appropriate forms
of the words given below: 10
Value, offend, strike, jealous, put, grant, disturb,
learn, fly, economic
(i) The man . into a rage and
tore away his garments.
(ii) A sensible man never takes everything for
(iii) No one seems to have taken

.at her manners.
(iv) When are you out to sea
again?
(v) I have no mind to trespass upon you
..time.
(vi) Try to rise above petty personal
(vii) The officer .through one

paragraph and accepted the rest.
(viii) The report I have received is very
indeed.
(ix) She has sent her paper to a
..journal.
(x) These new measures will give a boost to our
(b) Use each of the following words in two sepa-

rate sentences, first as a noun and then as a verb:
10
(i) tum
(ii) spell
(iii) part
(iv) contact
(v) meet
(c) Rewrite the following sentences as directed:
(i) You are too early for the show. (Use enough)
(ii) The Mahanadi is not as long as the Gange.
(Use the comparative degree)
(iii) Varsha readily complied ..my
request. (Fill in the gap with a preposition)
(iv) We are sure of his honesty. (Change into a
complex sentence)
(v) Santa said, Dont open the window. (Change
into the indirect form)
5. (a) Correct the following sentences: 10
(i) May 1 now take your leave?
(ii) The soup will taste better if it had more salt in
it.
(iii) Is he used to come late everyday?
(iv) Your daughter is twelve years old, isnt it?
(v) We must be true to our words.
(vi) Datta is living here since 1998.
(vii) A twenty miles walk is really very hard.
(viii) We watched the man to disappear in the
woods.
(ix) Kalidas has written Meghadutam.
(x) Lets have coffee.
one you think appropriate to fill in the blanks (10)
(i) He seems to be.. to hard work.
(adverse; averse)
(ii) The building does not ..to
safety regulations (conform; confirm)
(iii) Asharam was accused of the work-
ers against the management. (exciting; inciting)
(iv) Rescue workers rushed to the site of the
plane (crass; crash)
(v) Gagan uses expensive .for his let-
ters. (stationery; stationary)
(vi) The factory was making toys.
(seized; ceased)
(vii) Shakil is .. at solving difficult
crossword puzzles (ingenuous; ingenious)
(viii) I wish you a .. recovery (fast;
speedy)
(ix) Everybody said that her decision was
. (judicious; judicial)
(x) You will have to . your after-
noon tea as we have no more sugar.
(forego; forgo)
(c) Use the following phrases in sentences so as
to bring out their meaning: 5
(i) deal in
(ii) prime of life
(iii) above board
(iv) dwell upon
(v) in full swing
Compulsory Paper
Year 2002
1. Write an essay in about 300 words in any
(a) The ways to enrich our regional languages.
(b) Whither Indian democracy today?
(c) Terrorism in India.
(d) Science and Religion.
(e) If I were the Prime Minister of India.
x 15 = 75)
The scientific and technological revolution has
brought about fundamental changes in the socio
economic sphere. The use of diesel engine and
electricity and the beginning of the application of
atomic energy have changed the modes of pro-
duction. These things have led to the concentra-
tion of capital in a few hands. Great enterprises
are replacing cottage industries and small firms.
The working classes have certainly benefited eco-
nomically. The miracle of production has neces-
sitated the miracle of consumption. Better ameni-
ties are available at a lower cost. A man can buy
anything he wants today, if he can only afford.
But what kinds of men are needed today for our
society? Men who can cooperate in large groups,
men whose tasks are standardized, men who feel
free and independent and at the same time are
willing to fit in the social machine without any
friction. Modem man is faced with a sort of moral
and spiritual dilemma. The crisis of values yawns
before him. Today the old values are in the melt-
ing pot, and the new values have not found their
foothold. Man has become the automaton he has
contrived; he has lost ownership of himself. The
discord between the development of positive sci-
ence on the one hand and the dehumanization of
man on the other is the worst crisis of the modem
age.
Apart from the economic sphere, the socio-po-
litical sphere has not escaped this stratification
and the congruent crisis of values. Since the Re-
naissance, man has been striving for individual
rights and self-dignity. But under the present set-
up, only two types of men are found the con-
ditioner and the conditioned. The propaganda
offices and the planning bureaus have almost
crushed the individual self, and it has resulted
in the rise of the social self. Due to this pressure,
the personality fulfillment or its all- round devel-
opment is denied to many.
(a) What has changed the modes of production
today?
(b) What things are being replaced by great en-
terprise?
(c) What kind of men is needed today for our
society?
(d) Why has man become the automation of his
own creation?
(e) Is modem man able to attain personality ful-
fillment?
3. Make a prcis of the following passage in
your own language in about 230 words, on the
special precis-sheets provided. The precis-
sheets should be securely fastened inside the
answer book. Indicate the number of words
used by you in your prcis.
N.B.: Marks will be deducted if your prcis is
(75)
What is the use of a house if you havent got a
tolerable planet to put it on? asked Henry David
Thoreau. More than century later the Earth seems
to be literally falling to pieces recent environ-
mental set-backs include billions of tonnes of ice
shelves breaking off in the Antarctic and unusu-
ally warm temperatures in different parts of the
world. Panic reactions range from predictions of
sinking islands to the lamenting the ill-effects of
global warming induced by release of greenhouse
gases into the atmosphere. The trouble is that we
are too much obsessed with the problem of cli-
matic Change to even acknowledge the fact that
the state of the planet hinges on much more. Cli-
matic change is at best a symptom of a far more
complex malaise, just as a fever is most often only
an Indicator of something thats gone awry in
our body. It is time for a complete and compre-
hensive planetary health check that will examine
the impacts of change in land use, loss of
biodiversity, use of fertilizers and pesticides and
consistent pollution of water bodies. This would
overcome the limitations of evaluating how eco-
systems work by reacting to just one major envi-
ronmental concern as is happening in the case of
global warming. These considerations have been
responsible for the setting up of an international
panel, the Milleniurn Ecosystem Assessment. Fi-
nanced by four major international bodies, includ-
ing the UNO and the World Bank, the eco-panel
was set up without much fuss last June (2001),
and is expected to determine, over a period of
four years and at a cost of $ 21 million, the state
of the Earths ecosystems.
The eco-panel will have source inputs from more
than 2,000 natural and social scientists the world
over. Put simply, the Earth will go through the
equivalent of a thorough physical analysis, so that
biological, economic and social information can
be collated to help scientists arrive at a final diag-
nosis. What is crucial, says one of the scientists,
and is that no one has previously tried to work
out how all of these conflicting pressures inter-
act. The other important factor is how well we
can orchestrate trade-offs and interactions in or-
der to maintain ecological balance. Scientific bod-
ies like the international Panel on Climate Change
(IPCC) have access to vast amounts of baseline
data relating to the subject although critics
points out that the information available is mostly
from the North, leaving the concerns of he south
largely unrepresented. The newly-constituted eco-
panel will have to take all these aspects into ac-
count. For instance, it will have to ensure that
data collection is more representative of the re-
gions of the world. Today, we have the advan-
tage of sourcing data from remote sensing satel-
lites as well. The information thus gathered would
have to be sorted out and analyzed by specialists
and also by generalists before the panel comes
out with specific periodic predictions, prescrip-
tions and warnings. The healing process can be-
gin only if all the scientific evidence and direc-
tion is made available to a wide audience and not
just restricted to policy makers. Rather than de-
pending solely upon governments to listen to and
take corrective action, the focus should now be
on convincing individuals and communities whose
collective or individual action will eventually make
the difference between regression and recovery.
4. (a) Fill in the blanks using appropriate forms
of the words given below: (10)
ride, diminish, devotion, shout, watch, contest,
disastrous, pleasure, philosophizing, finance.
(i) Mohan is to his father.
(ii) None seems to have been with
his speech.
(iii) She at the peon when he sat
down.
(iv) His .condition is at a low ebb
now.
(v) Several candidates are ..the
Panchayat elections.
(vi) The boy was frightened to
the movie.
(vii) What does Samkaras .teach
us
(viii) Hariharans suspicious moves herald
a.
(ix) In the circus show, I saw a bear a
bicycle.
(x) The chances of starvation deaths have
.today
as a verb: (10)
(i) race
(ii) hit
(iii) play
(iv) touch
(v) experiment
parenthetically: 5
(i) Do not make a noise. said the teacher to his
students. (Change into indirect form)
(ii) Han is so short that he cannot touch the ceil-
ing. (Replace so by too)
(iii) I gave him a ten-rupee not yesterday. (Change
into passive voice)
(iv) She bought a house last year. The house is
white. (Change into a simple sentence)
(v) Hard as he worked, he failed in the examina-
tion. (Use though)
5. (a) Correct the following sentences: (10)
(i) He boasts his achievements now and then.
(ii) She is living in this flat since 1995.
(iii) The Principal was angry upon the boys.
(iv) Character is more preferable than intelligence.
(v) Krishna hanged all the pictures on the wall.
(vi) The sceneries of Kashmir more me most.
(vii) Cattle is grazing in the field.
(viii) Han is going foreign next month.
(ix) She knew that I am leaving the place.
(x) His elder brother gave him many good advices.
(b) Of the words given in the brackets, choose
the one you think appropriate to fill in the
blanks: 10
(i) The road accident proved to be
(fateful, fatal)
(ii) He got a ..opportunity to
qualify in the test. (gold, golden)
(iii) Fariciabad is an .. city. (indus-
trial, industrious)
(iv) An ashram is a ..place. (quite,
quiet)
(v) Sohans handwriting is.(eligible.
illegible)
(vi) We should not disturb the . of
his mind. (piece. peace)
(vii) You should an example
to strengthen your viewpoint (site, cite)
(viii) Akbar was an ..to
Humayun. (hair, heir)
(ix) Rajasthan is a well-known ..
(desert, dessert)
(ix) The ..turned me out of the
class. (principle, principal)
(c) Use the following phrases in sentences so
as to bring out their meaning; (5)
(i) bring about
(ii) call names
(iii) run out
(iv) by leaps and bounds
(v) lame excuse
Compulsory Paper
Year 2003
(a) The Need for Alternative Sources of Energy
(b) The Role of Judiciary in India
(c) Freedom of Expression
(d) My Idea of an Administrator
(e) Pleasures of Reading
15 = 75)
This rule of trying always to do things as well as
one can do them has an important bearing upon
the problem of ambition. No man or woman
should be without ambition, which is the inspira-
tion of activity. But if one allows ambition to drive
one to attempt things which are beyond ones own
personal capacity, then unhappiness will result:
If one imagines that one can do everything better
than other people, then envy and jealousy, those
twin monsters, will come to sadden ones days.
But if one concentrates ones attention upon de-
veloping ones own special capacities, the things
one is best at, then one does not worry over much
if other people Ere more successful.
There are those again who are discontented with
their own job and complain of drudgery. But there
is no job in the world which does not contain a
large element of drudgery. Do you imagine that a
Prime Minister has no drudgery to do, or an art-
ist, or an author? I loathe drudgery as much as
any man; but I have learnt that the only way to
conquer drudgery is to get through it as neatly,
as efficiently as one can. You know I am right
when I say that. A dull job slackly done becomes
twice as dull; a dull job which you try to do just
as well as you can becomes half as dull. Here again
effort appears to me the main part of the art of
living.
Have I any other, and less disagreeable, hints to
suggest? I believe that every man and woman has
somewhere tucked away inside them a sense of
beauty. Without this sense life on this earth is
veiled in dim grey clouds. It may be that you do
not care, or think you do not care, for poetry or
art or music. If you make the least effort, you
may find that some or all of these things will cause
you sudden delight; and once you catch that de-
light it will never leave you. Because if life, as I
believe, is a constantly renewed effort, then the
human frame aid nerves require some relaxation.
(a) When does ambition lead to unhappiness?
(b) How can a person avoid envy and jealousy?
(c) How can we avoid the feeling of drudgery?
(d) Should we avoid ambition?
(e) What does the phrase to get through it
mean?
3. Make a precis of the following passage in
your own words in about 230 words. Marks
will be deducted if the precis is not written on
the separate precis sheets provided and the
length of the precis exceeds or falls short of
more than 10 words of the prescribed length.
State the number of words used by you in the
precis and securely fasten the precis-sheets
inside the answer-book. (75)
Some wars in the past were quite as disorganiz-
ing and as destructive of the civilization of dev-
astated areas as was the Second World War. North
Africa has never regained the level of rosperity
that t enjoyed under the Romans. Persia never
recovered from the Mongols nor Syria from the
Turks. There have always been two kinds of wars,
those in which the vanquished incurred disaster,
and those in which they only incurred discom-
fort. We seem, unfortunately, to be entering upon
an era in which wars are of the former sort.
The atom bomb, and still more the hydrogen
bomb, have caused new fears, involving new
doubts as to the effects of science on human life.
Some eminent authorities, including Einstein,
have pointed out that there is a danger of the ex-
tinction of all life on this planet. I do not myself
think that this will happen in the next war, but I
think it may well happen in the next but one, if
that is allowed to occur. If this expectation is
correct, we have to choose, within the next fifty
years or so, between two alternatives. Either we
must allow the human race to exterminate itself,
or we must forgo certain liberties which are very
dear to us, more especially the liberty to kill for-
eigners whenever we fell so disposed. I think it
probable that mankind will choose its own exter-
mination as the preferable alternative. The choice
will be made, of course, by persuading ourselves
that it is not being made, since (so militarists on
both sides will say) the victory of the right is cer-
tain without risk of universal disaster. We are
perhaps living in the last age of man, and, if so, it
is to science that he will owe his extinction.
If, however, the human race decides to let itself
go on living, it will have to make very drastic
changes in its ways of thinking, feeling, and be-
having. We must learn not to say Never! Better
death than dishonour. We must learn to submit
to law, even when imposed by aliens whom we
hate and despise, and whom we believe to be blind
to all considerations of righteousness. Consider
some concrete examples. Jews and Arabs will
have to agree to submit to arbitration; if the award
goes against the Jews, the President of the United
States will have to ensure the victory of the party
to which he is opposed, since, if he supports the
international authority, he will lose the Jewish vote
in New York State. On the other hand, if the award
goes in favour of the Jews, the Mohammedan
world will be indignant, and will be supported by
all other malcontents. Or, to take another instance,
Eire will demand the right to oppress the Protes-
tants of Ulster, and on this issue the United States
will support Eire while Britain will support Ul-
ster. Could an international authority survive such
a dissension?
Again: India and Pakistan cannot agree about
Kashmir, therefore one of them must support
Russia and the other the United States. It will be
obvious to anyone who is an interested party in
one of these disputes that the issue is far more
important than the continuance of life on our
planet. The hope that the human race will allow
itself to survive is therefore somewhat slender.
But if human life is to continue in spite of sci-
ence, mankind will have to learn a discipline of
the passions which, in the past, has not been nec-
essary. Men will have to submit to the law, even
when they think the law unjust and iniquitous.
Nations which are persuaded that they are only
demanding the barest justice will have to acqui-
esce when this demand is denied them by the neu-
tral authority. I do not say that this is easy; I do
not prophesy that it will happen; I say only that if
it does not happen the human race will perish,
and will perish as a result of science.
4. (a) Fill in the blanks using the appropriate
form of the words given below: (10)
offensive, imagination, psychological, conceive,
vacation, entire, enthusiasm, lacerating, deify,
margin
(i) I do not believe in the .of an
ordinary politician.
(ii) She could not bear to look at his
.hand.
(iii) Most people do not have any clear
of judicial activism.
(iv) Who can dare to .the boss?
(v) A sensible person can .the
plight of others.
(vi) You have to consider the matter in its
(vii) It is difficult to ..such dull-

ards.
(viii) We can no longer ..the poor
and the suppressed.
(ix) You will have to .the house.
(x) ..is an interesting subject.
as a verb: (10)
(i) help
(ii) nurse
(iii) judge
(iv) pillory
(v) round
within brackets: (5)
(i) No metal is as costly as gold. (Use the com-
parative degree of costly)
(ii) I doubt if you have done it. (Change into a
negative sentence without changing the meaning)
(iii) He was elected leader. (Change into active
voice)
(iv) She confessed that she was guilty. (Turn it
into a simple sentence)
(v) She said, Can you write a poem? (Change
into indirect speech)
(i) Each of the scholars, belonging to various
countries, have spoken about it.
(ii) All were present except he and his sister.
(iii) I wonder if ten thousand rupees are a large
sum.
(iv) She lay the table an hour ago.
(v) He absented from the class for no reason.
(vi) He is untidy boy.
(vii) All his plans fell out for lack of help.
(viii) Of milk, coke and coffee the latter is my
favourite.
(ix) All this happened prior 1971 war.
(x) Scarcely had she gone that he arrived.
(b) Choose the appropriate words given in the
brackets to fill in the blanks in the following
sentences: (10)
(i) Nehruji made a . speech in Par-
liament on this occasion.
(historical, historic)
(ii) Such heavy responsibilities cannot be
.easily.
(born, borne)
(iii) The doctor visits him on
.days.
(alternative, alternate)
(iv) I do not know why he is
..towards me.
(contemptuous, contemptible)
(v) To work for more than eight hours is quite
(exhaustive, exhausting)
(vi) Democracy does not allow the
..of the minorities.
(prosecution, persecution)
(vii) No meeting of the ..of minis-
ters has been scheduled for tomorrow.
(council, cabinet)
(viii) All worldly pleasures are considered to be
..by saints.
(momentary, momentous)
(ix) Any . of secret documents
is punishable by law.
(tempering, tampering)
(x) He is an ..person to work with.
(amiable, amenable)
tences so as to bring out their meaning: (5)
(i) to come across
(ii) to be cut out for
(iii) over head and ears
(iv) to see eye to eye
(v) to draw the line
Compulsory Paper
Year 2004
(a) Indian Budget is a Gamble on the Monsoons
(b) Necessity of Water-Harvesting in India
(c) Social Harmony vs. Communal Frenzy
(d) Criminalization of Politics
(e) All That Glitters Is Not Gold
2. Read the following passage and answer, in
your own words, the questions that follow at
the end (5 x 15 = 75)
The flowering of Indian civilization constitutes
one of the most glorious chapters in the history
of mankind. A culture, remarkable for its moral
no less than for its material creativity, which has
endured for three millennia and more, is neces-
sarily a subject of great fascination. Yet over and
above its longevity, Indian civilization is also char-
acterized by some other features which deserve
to be highlighted in any review of its past. The
ability of this civilization to absorb alien cultures
without losing its distinctive identity has intrigued
scholars over the centuries; and this capacity for
creative absorption is as much in evidence today,
when India is undergoing a seminal transforma-
tion into a modern industrial community, as it was
in the centuries past, when alien communities with
novel ways of life migrated into the subcontinent,
to be drawn into the living matrix of Indian soci-
ety; The continuity of Indian civilization rests very
substantially upon social institutions and upon the
dissemination of a common corpus of religious
values among different classes and communities
in the subcontinent.
This civilization was also geared to a cycle of
agricultural activity which substantially deter-
mined the total ordering of society. Hence, the
fact that the great epicentres of Indian civiliza-
tion were located in the plains of the Indus and
the Ganga in the north; and those of the Mahanadi,
the Godavari, the Krishna, and the Cauvery in
the south. Over the centuries the people living in
these riverine regions had conjured into existence
a round of economic activity and a set of social
institutions, which were designed to produce the
agricultural wealth which sustained life. Indeed,
the structure of rural society; with a central place
occupied by the cultivating classes, which were
linked by ties of patronage and prescription to
numerous artisanal and menial groups; and the
fabric of caste society; with the interlocking in-
stitutions of Varna and Jati has to be looked upon
as the historical answer of the Indian genius to
the needs of sustaining production in a rural so-
ciety; The striking feature of this social organiza-
tion was the premium which it put on self-suffi-
ciency and survival within the framework of an
agrarian civilization.
(a) What is the most distinctive feature of Indian
civilization?
(b) Which section of the society occupied a cen-
tral place in Indian civilization?
(c) Identify the great epicentres of Indian civili-
zation as narrated in the passage.
(d) On what did the Indian social organization
lay emphasis?
(e) What does the phrase conjured into exist-
ence mean?
your own words in about 220 to 240 words.
Marks will be deduced if the precis is not writ-
ten on the separate precis sheets provided and
if it is longer or shorter than the prescribed
limit. State the number of words used by you
in the precis at its end and securely fasten the
precis-sheets inside the answer-book. (75)
There is some similarity between Italy and India.
Both are ancient countries with long raditions of
culture behind them, though Italy is a newcomer
compared to India, and India is a much more vast
country Both are split up politically, and yet the
conception of Italia, like that of India, never died,
and in all their diversity the unity was predomi-
nant. In Italy the unity was largely a Roman unity,
for that great city had dominated the country and
been the fount and symbol of unity. In India there
was no such single centre or dominant city, al-
though Benares might well be called the Eternal
City of the East, not only for India, but also for
Eastern Asia. But, unlike Rome, Benares never
dabbled in empire or thought of temporal power.
Indian culture was so widespread all over India
that no part of the country could be called the
heart of that culture. From Kanyakumari to
Amarnath and Badrinath in the Himalayas, from
Dwarka to Pun, the same ideas coursed, and if
there was a clash of ideas in one place, the noise
of it soon reached distant parts of the country.
Just as Italy gave the gift of culture and religion
to Western Europe, India did so to Eastern Asia
though China was as old and venerable as India.
And even when Italy was lying prostrate politi-
cally, her life coursed through the veins of Eu-
rope. It was Metternich who called Italy a geo-
graphical expression, and many a would-be
Metternich has used that phrase for India, and,
strangely enough, there is a similarity even in their
geographical positions in the two continents.
More interesting is the comparison of England
with Austria, for has not England of the twenti-
eth century been compared to Austria of the nine-
teenth, proud and haughty and imposing still, but
with the roots that gave strength shriveling up
and decay eating its way into the mighty fabric. It
is curious how one cannot resist the tendency to
give an anthropomorphic form to a country. Such
is the force of habit and early associations. India
becomes Bharat Mata, Mother India, a beautiful
lady, very old but ever youthful in appearance,
sad-eyed and forlorn, cruelly treated by aliens and
outsiders, and calling upon her children to pro-
tect her. Some such picture rouses the emotions
of hundreds of thousands and drives them to ac-
tion and sacrifice. And yet India is in the main,
the peasant and the worker, not beautiful to look
at, for poverty is not beautiful.
Does the beautiful lady of our imaginations rep-
resent the bare-bodied and bent workers in the
fields and factories? Or the small group of those
who have from ages past crushed the masses and
exploited them, imposed cruel customs on them
and made many of them even untouchable ? We
seek to cover truth by the creatures of our imagi-
nations and endeavour to escape from reality to a
world of dreams. And yet, despite these different
classes and their mutual conflicts there was a com-
mon bond which united them in India, and one is
amazed at its persistence and tenacity and endur-
ing vitality. What was this strength due to? Nor
merely the passive strength and weight of inertia
and tradition, great as these always are. There
was an active sustaining principle, for it resisted
successfully powerful outside influences and ab-
sorbed internal forces that rose to combat it.
And yet with all its strength it could not preserve
political freedom or endeavour to bring about
political unity. These latter do not appear to have
been considered worth much trouble; their im-
portance was very foolishly ignored, and we have
suffered for this neglect. Right through history
the old Indian ideal did not glorify political and
military triumph, and it looked down upon money
and the professional moneymaking class. Honour
and wealth did not go together, and honour was
meant to go, at least in theory, to the men who
served the community with little in the shape of
financial reward. The old culture managed to live
through many a fierce storm and tempest, but
though it kept its outer form, it lost its real con-
tent. Today it is fighting silently and desperately
against a new and all-powerful opponent the
bania civilization of the capitalist West. It will
succumb to this newcomer, for the West brings
science, and science brings food for the hungry
millions. But the West also brings an antidote to
the evils of this cut-throat civilization the prin-
ciples of socialism, of cooperation, and service
to the community for the common good.
4. (a) Fill in the blanks using the appropriate
forms of the words given below: (10)
burn, near, harm, perfect, invite, create, join, ad-
minister, spendthrift, skill
(i) I did not accept the .because I
was angry
(ii) An honest man is the noblest .of
God.
(iii) His father prevented him from
.a dance school.
(iv) A judge should ..equal justice to
all.
(v) He looks gentle enough, but he can be
at times.
(vi) He has his case to my satis-
faction.
(vii) Your opponent is too to
cope with.
(viii) Despite suggestions to the contrary, he con-
tinued to be a
(ix) The ..sun made the traveller
thirsty.
(x) Bombay is the seaport to Europe.
as a verb: (10)
(i) present
(ii) move
(iii) issue
(iv) pain
(v) crowd
within brackets: (5)
(i) He had to sign or be executed.
(Turn into a complex sentence)
(ii) Given the order.
(Use the passive form)
(iii) I was doubtful whether it was you.
(Turn into a negative sentence)
(iv) He was disgraced his family.
(Use the noun form of disgraced)
(v) He was so tired that he could not stand.
(Turn into a simple sentence replacing so by
too)
(i) The rain was accompanied by hail and storm.
(ii) I cannot help but think that he is a fool.
(iii) I have never seen a clever man at engineer-
ing than him.
(iv) It is all the more better if he marries your
daughter.
(v) Objections to this proposal can be stated as
thus.
(vi) He travelled from one corner of India to the
other.
(vii) She could not make up the mind.
(viii) They tried to wipe out the poor widows
tears.
(ix) It is the best ideal each person may aspire
for.
(x) You are not entitled for admission
(b) Choose the appropriate words from those
given in the brackets to fill in the blanks in
the following sentences:10
(i) She has a .appearance.
(gracious, graceful)
(ii) Out principal is a man of kind and
nature
(judicious, judicial)
(iii) He is to both praise and blame.
(sensible, sensitive)
(iv) Gandhiji was the head of the
Congress party
(virtuous, virtual)
(v) I do not regard his scheme as
(practicable, practical)
(vi) The Equator is an line round
the world.
(imaginative, imaginary)
(vii) The ship sailed ashore in spite of
difficulties.
(elemental, elementary)
(viii) Acts of negligence are pun-
ishable by law.
(willing, wilful)
(ix) He was offered a job.
(temporal, temporary)
(x) I am the owner of the house.
(rightful, righteous)
(c) Use the following phrases in your sentences
so as to bring out their meaning: (5)
(i) to call forth
(ii) to fall through
(iii) to get along
(iv) to lay bare
(v) to put up with
Compulsory Paper
Year 2005
(a) Environment and Conservation
(b) Role of Women in Social Transformation
(c) Nuclear Energy in War and Peace
(d) Indias Foreign Policy and World Power
(e) Television and its Impact on Youth
x 15 = 75)
It is wrong to believe that science has totally
eclipsed literature with its inspiring zeal. That
literature plays a subordinate role to science is
equally untrue. Nevertheless, it is undeniable that
science has comparatively a wider range for its
impact on the physical world than literature. But
that does not mean that literature has been in-
corporated in the realm of science to the extent
that it loses its distinct individuality. The reality
is that both co-exist without the one overshad-
owing the other, Those who think that science
has pushed literature into shade reducing it to a
non-entity seem to be simply imaginative and
illogical in the comparisons of their respective
merits. It is no doubt unquestionable that prod-
ucts of science are of greater material value than
those which make an emotional appeal, e.g., a
bridge is of greater use to the public than a poem.
But thereby one should not ignore the impor-
tance of a poem which will continue to appeal to
human mind for time to come. It is indisputable
that a scientific theory like the one propounded
by Einstein is not without its philosophical im-
port as it lays its impress on the future growth of
literature. But to be effective in this respect, sci-
ence should unfold its principles by appealing to
human emotions and not through crude and con-
crete material facts. Darwins theory of Natural
Selection in its exposition of the evolution of
man by appeal to emotions and imagination of
men has been conducive to the growth of nine-
teenth century literature. Mans emotional atti-
tudes to life and vicissitudes of his fortune are
colored not only by his inherited instincts and faith
in his fate but also by his hope in point of lon-
gevity of life and betterment of future prospects.
Oriented by a scientific theory, they give a colour
to literature.
Literature feeds the emotional and imaginative
hunger of man in this perspective science will not
oust literature but enrich it by its impact on hu-
man life. Science can provide amenities of life for
human comfort but fails to lend or impart spiri-
tual pleasure Delight that literature instills in man
far transcends the comforts which science pro-
vides.
(a) What is the basic contribution of science to
humankind?
(b) What aspect of human life is fulfilled by works
of literature?
(c) How have Darwins and Einsteins theories
proved conducive to the growth of literature?
(d) How is science friendly and not hostile to the
growth of literature?
(e) Briefly enumerate the key ideas in the pas-
sage.
your own words in about 220 to 240 words.
Marks will he deducted if the precis is not
written on the separate precis sheets provided
and if it is longer or shorter than the pre-
scribed limit. State the number of words used
by you in the precis at its end and securely
fasten the precis-sheets inside the answer-
book. (75)
Gautama, the Buddha, has suffered as much as
anyone from critics without a sense of history.
He has been cried up, and cried down, with an
equal lack of historical imagination. Buddhism
came to be widely known in the west in the latter
part of the 19th century when a wave of scepti-
cism spread over the world as a result of the
growth of science and enlightenment. Positivism,
agnosticism atheism and ethical humanism found
wide support. In much of the literature of doubt
and disbelief, the name of Buddha is mentioned
with respect. The humanists honour him as one
of the earliest protagonists of their cause- the
happiness the dignity, and the mental integrity of
mankind.
Those who declare that man cannot know real-
ity and others who affirm that there is no reality
to know, use his name. Agnostics quote his ex-
ample. Social idealists, ethical mystics rational-
ist prophets are all attracted by his teaching.
Great as is the value of the Buddhas teaching for
our age, we cannot hope to understand its true
significance without reference to the environment
in which he lived. This effort of historical imagi-
nation is not easy. To view the Buddha as a thinker
of the sixth century B.C., living, moving and
teaching in its peculiar conditions, is a task of
extreme difficulty and delicacy; and the work of
reconstruction can never be complete. But we
may be reasonably certain that it yields a picture
which in its main outlines, at least, must corre-
spond fairly well to the reality. The supremacy
of the ethical is the clue to the teaching of the
Buddha. His conceptions of life and the universe
are derived from his severely practical outlook.
The existence of everything depends on a cause.
If we remove the cause, the effect will disappear.
If the source of all suffering is destroyed, suffer-
ing will disappear. The only way in which we can
remove the cause of suffering is by purifying the
heart and following the moral law. Man is not
divine but is to become divine. His divine status
is something to be built up by good thoughts,
good words, and good deeds. The ego consists
of the feelings that burn us, of the passions we
brood over, of the desires that hunt us and of the
decisions we make. These are the things that give
life its dramatic character. There is nothing ab-
solute and permanent in them.
That is why we can become something different
from what we are. The reality of the person is
the creative will. When we deny the clamour of
emotions, stay the stream of things, silence the
appetites of body, we feel the power of self within
our own being. For the Buddha, the impulse to
dharma, to justice and kindliness is operative in
things, and its efficient activity will mean the re-
duction of disorder, cruelty and oppression.
Dharma is organic to existence and its implica-
tion of karma or right action is the builder of the
world. There is not in the Buddhas teaching that
deep personal loyalty, passion of love, and inti-
mate dialogue between soul and soul resembling
closely in its expression of earthly love. And yet
the essence of religion, the vision of a reality
which stands beyond and within the passing flux
of immediate things, the intuitive loyalty to some-
thing larger than and beyond oneself, and abso-
lute active in the world, is in him. We find in
Gautama, the Buddha, in powerful combination,
spiritual profundity and moral strength of the
highest order and a discreet intellectual reserve.
He is one of those rare spirits who bring to men
a realization of their own divinity and make the
spiritual life seem adventurous and attractive, so
that they may go forth into the world with a new
interest and a new joy of heart. While his great
intellect and wisdom gave him comprehension of
the highest truth, his warm heart led him to de-
vote his life to save from sorrow suffering hu-
manity. The greatness of his personality, his pro-
phetic zeal, and burning love for suffering human-
ity made a deep impression on those with whom
he lived; but his true greatness stands out clearer
and brighter as the ages pass, and even the scep-
tical minded are turning to him with a more real
appreciations a deeper reverence and a truer
worship. He is one of those few heroes of hu-
manity who have made epochs in the history of
our race, with a message for other times as well
as their own.
(i) Too great a variety of studies destruct the mind.
(ii) The whole fleet of their ships were captured
(iii) Each of these students have done their work.
(iv) None but fools has ever believed it.
(v) He is one of the cleverest boys that has passed
through the school.
(vi) My friend, philosopher and guide have come.
(vii) The majority are opposed to this proposal.
(viii) He told me that he saw his father last month.
(ix) If he would have worked hard, he would have
passed the examination.
(x) Unless he will be more careful, he will not
recover.
(b) Add the suffix able or ible to each of the
following words making necessary changes in
spelling. Write out the new words. (10)
(i) Advice
(ii) Contempt
(iii) Force
(iv) Access
(v) Value
(vi) Reduce
(vii) Discern
(viii) Agree
(ix) Detach
(x) Reverse
tences so as to bring out their meaning: (5)
(i) Apple of discord
(ii) A bolt from the blue
(iii) A feather in ones cap
(iv) Achilles heel
(v) A man of letters
5. (a) Which of the two words within brackets
in the following sentences is correct in the con-
text? (10)
(i) Poets often (sore, soar) to great heights of
imagination.
(ii) Knowledge (proceeds, proceeds) from the
Goddess of Learning.
(iii) The tower was struck by (lightning, lighten-
ing) and fell down.
(iv) Kanpur lies on the air (rout, route) to
Calcutta.
(v) Everyone is (jealous, zealous) of him.
(vi) The crocodile emerged from the river and
(seized, ceased) a goat.
(vii) He was found in (collusion, collision) with
the plotters.
(viii) Wicked persons are not (illegible, eligible)
for responsible posts.
(ix) He is a man of (lose, loose) character.
(x) The Emperor is staying at the royal (mansion,
mention).
as a verb: (10)
(i) Book
(ii) Bare
(iii) Clam
(iv) Drive
(v) Face
(c) Change the following sentences into Indi-
rect Speech: (10)
(i) He said, I am too ill to speak now.
(ii) The policeman said to the man, Where are
you going?
(iii) She said to her children, Let me work un-
disturbed.
(iv) He said to the students, Do not sit here.
(v) He said, May god pardon the sinner.
Compulsory Paper
Year 2006
(a) Social Impact of Black Money
(b) Women Combat Forces
(c) Internet as Virtual Library
(d) Fashion Boom in India
(e) Are we Aggressive and Rude People?
2. Read the passage carefully and write your
answers to the following questions in clear,
correct and concise language (5 x 15 = 75)
There is no reason to believe that there are fun-
damental differences between the East and the
West. Human beings are everywhere human and
hold the same deepest values. The differences
which are, no doubt, significant, are related to
external, temporary social conditions and are al-
terable with them. East and West are relative
terms. They are geographical expressions and not
cultural types. The differences among countries
like China, Japan and India are quite as signifi-
cant as those among European or American coun-
tries. Specific cultural patterns with distinctive
beliefs and habits developed in different regions
in relative isolation from one another. There were
periods when China and India were pre-eminent
in cultural affairs, others when Western nations
became dominant. For the last four centuries
Western nations aided by scientific development
have dominated the East. The world has now
reached a state of inter-communication. All soci-
eties are fast becoming industrialized and new sets
of values are springing up. We are called upon to
participate in the painful birth of a new civiliza-
tion. If we are to live together in peace we must
develop international cooperation and under-
standing.
It is for the political leaders to determine the prac-
tical steps by which the sources of power and
communication now available to us can be used
for closer cooperation and friendliness among the
people of the world. No political understanding
can be made permanent without understanding
at the cultural level. Apart from its intrinsic im-
portance, such understanding contributes to the
enrichment of human experience. Facile gener-
alizations are made by philosophers of history
which are highly misleading. Hegel in his Lec-
tures on the philosophy of History says that Per-
sia is the land of light; Greece the land of grace;
India the land of dream; Rome the land of Em-
pire,
(a) What does the passage say about cultural dif-
ferences in different regions?
(b) What comments does the author make about
the similarities and dissimilarities between the East
and the West?
(c) What, according to the passage, is the role of
communication in building up a new civilization?
(d) How will cultural understanding at the inter-
national level benefit human societies?
(e) Why does the author call the statements of
Hegel facile generalization?
3. Make a precis of the following passage keep-
ing the length within the limits of 230-240
words. It is not necessary to suggest a title.
Failure to write within the word limit may
result in deduction of marks. The precis must
be written on the separate precis sheets pro-
vided for the purpose that must then be se-
curely fastened inside the answer book. Clearly
state the number of words in the precis at the
end. (75)
We all show our feelings on issues by the way we
look and react. This has been referred to as body
language. We tend to lean forward, hand on chin
when we are interested, or turn away when disin-
terested. Our hands and arms can indicate we are
open to what is being said by being relaxed, or
show that we are not by being clenched or
crossed. We are, therefore, making body pictures
of what we feel and think all the time. Indeed
people who are taking to us can often get as much
information from our body posture as from what
we say of how we say it. We might calmly but
show we are anxious by moving from foot to foot
or by blushing. It is hard to control ones
behavioural reactions, for it is more of a stimulus
response reaction than the words we use.
Nevertheless through training it is feasible to por-
tray the image you want to others. With the ad-
vent of television as a major political medium there
is a lot of effort going into grooming representa-
tives of organizations and particularly chief ex-
ecutives to control their gestures and gesticula-
tions. All this may sound as if you need to be a
good actor in order to be successful at conversa-
tion control. The answer is, in one sense you do.
There is no use in saying one thing and doing
another. The actual visual behaviour of shaking
your head, for example while saying yes will
deafen the words. Those who are effective at
conversation control act in a congruent way. Their
behaviour matches their words. You can see they
mean what they say. They present an authentic
picture because their visuals match their verbals.
With practice it is possible to improve perfor-
mance in conversation without adding any more
words. The improvement can come because you
improve your visual gestures and gesticulations.
For example, you can encourage another person
by smiling when he/she says something that
pleases you. Indeed the smile is a very powerful
gesture. It can switch people on and off if done
at the appropriate time.
Psychologists refer to the laws of conditioning
and reinforcement. To be skilled in conversation
control you need to know and apply these laws.
Conditioning means having an effect on
someones behaviour by introducing a condition
that either encourages or discourages that
behaviour. For example, we have all been condi-
tioned to stop when we see a red light at a traffic
intersection, and to proceed if we see a green light.
People can be conditioned in conversation by such
visual cues. For example if you want someone to
continue talking, smile and nod at regular inter-
vals. The smile sets up the green light permission
as a condition for the other person to speak. The
nod reinforces what is being said and gives the
unspoken permission to continue. People are very
sensitive to such permission cues and clues. If
you stop smiling and head nodding, they will usu-
ally stop and you can then contribute. Likewise
you can influence the attention of people with
whom you are talking by the way you use your
eyes and hands, particularly when you are address-
ing a group. To exercise control it is important to
make eye contact with one or more people. If it
is a group, move your eye contact from time to
time so that each person is being conditioned to
the fact that it could be their turn next for you to
speak to them.
Body language and the gestures and gesticula-
tions you make are key aspects of conversation
control. Many books have been written on the
subject of how our body very often tells others
what we are thinking before we have spoken. The
visual clues get through much more quickly than
the verbal ones. Also use your hands to empha-
size a point or get them to direct the listeners
gaze where you want it to concentrate. The
pointed finger or the open palm tells the story.
Our task is to line up what we say with what we
do and vice versa, if you do clench your fist and
are angry, then your words should reflect this. If
you are relaxed, happy and smiling, they say no.
(words: 705)
4. (a) Rewrite the following sentences after
making necessary correction of errors: (10)
(i) Neither percept nor dscipline are so forceful
as example.
(ii) Do you know if there is a house for letting in
the neighbourhood.
(iii) Who you said was coming to see me in the
morning?
(iv) He was finding it increasingly difficult to mike
his two ends meet.
(v) The poor people of the village buy neither
vegetables nor grow them,
(vi) On entering the hail, the humber of visitors
surprised me
(vii) The short story should not exceed more than
two hundred words.
(viii) Before giving the mixture to the child shake
it thoroughly.
(ix) Nothing has or could be more tragic than his
death.
(x) The reason that the students these days are so
undisciplined is that they do not get any guid-
ance from their parents.
(b) Fill in the blanks with appropriate prepo-
sition/particle and rewrite the completed sen-
tences: (5)
(i) I told him that he could not catch a big fish
__________ a small rod.
(ii) He was taken __________ task for shortage
in cash balance.
(iii) The father pulled ___________ his son for
his extravagant habits.
(iv) He is so clever, it is difficult to see
__________ his tricks.
(v) I have been invited by my friend __________
tea.
(c) Choose the appropriate verb form to fill in
the blanks and rewrite the sentences: (5)
(i) The efficiency of a plant ________ by the load
it can take.
(A) knows (B) is known
(C) has been known (D) has known
(ii) Everyday last week my aunt _______ a plate.
(A) breaks (B) was broken
(C) broke (D) has broken
(iii) If I _________ one more question, I would
have passed.
(A) had answered (B) would have answered
(C) would answer (D) has broken
(iv) He promised _______________ me a post
in his department.
(A) to have given (B) having given
(C) have given (D) to give
(v) Please dont ______________ when you go
out.
(A) leave opening the door (B) leave the door
open
(C) Leave the door opened (D) leave open the
door
(d) Change the following sentences into Indi-
rect Speech: (5)
(i) He said, I will not approve of such a behaviour
in future.
(ii) He said on the telephone, We kept on doing
our work till late night.
(iii) She said, As your mother is ill, you must go
home at once.
(iv) Ram said to Sita, Do you intend to come
with me to the forest?
(v) The child said to the Sherpa, Why didnt you
choose to climb to the Moon?
5. (a) Fill in the blank with an appropriate
derivative of the word given within brackets
& rewrite the sentences: (10)
For example: It has been raining (continue) con-
tinuously for two days.
(i) She had few rights but all the (responsible)
_______ of her work.
(ii) Women chose not to vote (machine)
____________ at the bidding of their men folk.
(iii) In South Africa, certain areas are (exclude)
__________ meant for white people.
(iv) The Pathans of the Frontier are (descend)
__________ of Genghis Khan.
(v) The court ordered him a heavy fine and
(prison) ____________ of 3 years.
(vi) India lodged a complaint with Pakistan for
(courage) ________ terrorism in Kashmir.
(vii) Candidates with Graduate degrees in (Hu-
man) _________and Arts prefer office jobs.
(viii) Despite ne call for ceasefire, the war con-
tinued (abate) __________.
(ix) A creative person is known for his (source)
___________ and flexibility.
(x) The police could not control the situation as
the protesters (number) _________ them mani-
fold.
(b) Make sentences using the following words
as directed so as to bring out the meaning: 10
(i) Pitch (as noun and verb)
(ii) Mirror (as noun and verb)
(iii) Humble (as adjective and verb)
(iv) In (as adverb and preposition)
(c) Use the following phrases/idioms in sen-
tences so as to bring out the meaning: (5)
(i) bell the cat
(ii) thank ones stars
(iii) be on tenterhooks
(iv) true to ones salt colours
(v) come ant with flying
Compulsory Paper
Year 2007
(a) Heritage Tourism is Good for Us
(b) Importance of a Work-Ethic
(c) Should Mercy-Killing be Legalized for Ter-
minally ill Patients?
(d) The Culture of Modesty
(e) Eternal Vigilance is the Price of Liberty.
2. Read the passage carefully and write your
answers to the following questions in clear,
correct and concise language: (5 x 15 = 75)
An educated man should know what is first-rate
in those activities which spring from the creative
and intellectual faculties of human nature, such
as literature, art, architecture and music. I should
like to add science and philosophy, but in these
two subjects it is difficult for any but the expert
to estimate quality, and many educated people
have not the close knowledge necessary to judge
their real worth. On the other hand everyone has
close and daily contact with the other four. Ar-
chitecture surrounds him in every city, literature
meets him on every book-stall, music assails his
ears on his radio set and from every juke-box;
and art in its protean aspects of form and colour
is a part of daily life. The architecture may often
be bad, the literature and music often puerile, the
art often undeserving of the name; but that is all
the more reason why we should be able, in all of
them, to distinguish good from bad.
To judge by the literature offered us in hotel book-
stands, and by most of the music played on the
radio and by jukeboxes we might be more dis-
criminating in these fields than we are if it be said
that music and art and literature are not essen-
tials of life but. its frills, I would reply that if so, it
is curious that they are among the few immortal
things in the world, and that should a man wish
to be remembered two thousand years hence, the
only certain way is to write a great poem or book,
compose a great symphony, paint a great picture,
carve a great sculpture, or build a great building.
(a) What is it that is necessary for an educated
person to know?
(b) Why does the author exclude science and phi-
losophy from it?
(c) What makes it practically easy for an edu-
cated man to be able to know literature, art, ar-
chitecture and music?
(d) How does exposure to ordinary literature and
music help us?
(e) What is the authors argument to prove that
music, art and literature are essentials of life?
3. Make a prcis of the following passage keep-
ing the length within the limits of 230-240
words. It is not necessary to suggest a title.
Failure to write within the word limit may
result in deduction of marks. The prcis must
be written on the separate prcis sheets pro-
vided for the purpose that must then be se-
curely fastened inside the answer book. (75)
What part should reading play in our lives? It
should certainly not be a substitute for action,
not for independent thinking, nor for conversa-
tion; but it may be a help and stimulant to action;
thought and talk; and it is capable of providing
almost infinite pleasure. There on our bookshelves
or on summons from a library are wits, wisdom,
adventure, romance from all ages and from all
over the world. Is there any wonder that our eyes
sometimes stray wistfully to the bookshelves and
away from a dull visitor, or that we shirk a tire-
some duty for an exciting book?
Books or people? Reading or conversation, lis-
tening in to a broadcast or watching a television
programme? Which is the better way to gain
knowledge or to spend your leisure? Some for-
tunate people seem always to find time for both
and to enjoy both almost equally. My great friend,
Arthur Wanchope, a fine soldier, an able admin-
istrator and a very gifted personality, was a con-
stant reader; yet always ready to lay aside a book
for talk.
The advantages of reading over talk are, of course,
many. We can select the book that suits our mood,
can go at our own pace, skip or turn back whereas
we cannot turn over two pages of a tedious com-
panion or close him or her, with a bang. But read-
ing too has its own drawbacks. It lacks the hu-
man touch, the salt of life, and is therefore a dan-
gerous substitute for thought or action. Bacon in
one of his essays observes that reading maketh a
full man; conference (that is talking) a ready man;
and writing an exact man. One would like to be
full of knowledge, ready in speech and exact by
training. What short of books have impressed me
and what books have found a permanent place
on my bookshelves?
To begin with my profession-soldiering. I do not
believe that soldiering, a practical business, in
which human nature is the main element, can be
learnt from text-books. But for those who have
grasped the principles of war and have understood
that the human factor is the most important ele-
ment in it. There is military reading that is quite
fascinating and valuable. Real and re-read the
campaigns of the great commanders, said Napo-
leon. I would venture to put it differently and
would say that the lives and characters of the great
commanders are what students of war should
examine, since their campaigns are only incidents
in them; and that the behaviour of leaders and of
their men in the field is the real subject for study.
In my general reading history, biography and
travel occupy a prominent place; and since I have
spent a considerable proportion of my life in the
East there are a good number of volumes on In-
dia and the Middle East. There is plenty of po-
etry on my shelves and a good deal of it is in my
head. Poetry should dance in the mind, and blow
one a kiss; or gallop to adventure with a cheer;
or whisper gently of things past; not shuffle or
slouch past with dark incomprehensible
mutterings. Perhaps I am getting old, anyway I
prefer the old poets.
Lastly comes what is sometimes called escapist
literature, the books we read with no other aim,
than to rest or amuse the mind; to forget the days
chores and the morrows anxieties. This is per-
haps the most pleasant form of reading for most,
and I suspect the only form of reading for many.
The volume chosen may either be a thriller or
soother a thriller to bring sense of adventure
into the dull daily routine or a soother to rest
tired nerves. Our grandfathers in their leisurely
days were content with the stately, comfortable
three volume novel, but that had passed before
the beginning of this century.
You will choose your books as you choose your
friends, with taste and discrimination; I hope;
because they can tell you something of your pro-
fession and interests, because they are wise and
helpful, because they can stir your blood with tales
of adventure, or because they are gay and witty. I
can only wish you will get as much pleasure from
them as I get from my books. (Words: 703)
making necessary correction of errors: (10)
(i) The Greeks were brave peoples.
(ii) His hat was blown off by the strong air.
(iii) I am the one who am to blame.
(iv) We should sympathies with blind.
(v) Id rather play cricket and not swim.
(vi) Walking through the front door a wasp stung
him.
(vii) Two plus nine are eleven.
(viii) I have built the house in 1960.
(ix) Their wedding has not been a very happy one.
(x) Choose only such friends whom you can trust.
(b) Rewrite the following sentences, inserting
suitable articles where necessary: (5)
(i) What kind of ______ animals is it?
(ii) He will return in _____ hour.
(iii) He is ______ richest man in our street.
(iv) Gold is not ______ useful metal.
(v) While there is ______ life there is hope.
(c) Form Verbs from the following Nouns: (5)
(i) Courage
(ii) Memory
(iii) Prison
(iv) Class
(v) Friend
(d) Put the verbs in bracket in the correct tense
and rewrite the following: (5)
India (have) many calendars which Indians (use)
since very early times. More than thirty (be) still
in use. One difficulty about having so many cal-
endars (be) that the same date (fall) on different
days according to each.
5. (a) Use each of the following words in two
separate sentences, first as a Noun and then
as a Verb: (10)
(i) Bank
(ii) Battle
(iii) Bite
(iv) Brave
(v) Brush
(b) Change the following sentences into their
corresponding (a) Negatives and (b) Ques-
tions: (10)
(i) Ram resembles his father.
(ii) Raju studies French.
(iii) The bicycle costs Rs. 500.
(iv) The thief broke the window open.
(v) My mother has a beautiful umbrella.
(c) Use the following phrases/idioms in sen-
tences so as to bring out the meaning: (5)
(i) The Lions share
(ii) Close shave
(iii) At daggers drawn
(iv) (To) die in harness
(v) (To) eat ones words
Compulsory Paper
Year 2008
(N/A)
Compulsory Paper
Year 2009
Q 1. Write an essay in about 300 words on
any one of the following: (100 Marks)
(a) Why are our farmers committing suicide?
(b) Ragging: should it be distinguished from
brutality or criminality?
(c) Sweet are the uses of adversity.
(d) Reforms of sports bodies in our country
(e) Alternative sources of energy for our coun-
try
Q 2. Read carefully the passage below and
write your answers to the questions that fol-
low, in clear, correct and concise language:
(515=75 Marks)
The altogether new thing in the world then was
the scientific method of research, which in that
period of Galileo, Kepler, Descartes, Harvey and
Francis Bacon was advancing with enormous
strides. All walls, all the limitations, all the cer-
tainties of the ages were in dissolution, tottering.
In fact this epoch, in which we are participating
still, with continually opening vistas, can be com-
pared in magnitude and promise only to that of
the 8th to the 4th millenniums B.C. : of the birth
of civilization in the Near East, when the inven-
tions of food production, grain agriculture and
stockbreeding, released mankind from the primi-
tive condition or foraging and so made possible
an establishment of soundly grounded communi-
ties: first villages, then towns, then cities, king-
doms, and empires. Leo Frobenius wrote of that
age as the Monumental Age, and of the age now
dawning as the Global :
"In all previous ages, only restricted portions of
the surface of the earth were known. Men looked
out from the narrowest, upon a somewhat larger
neighbourhood, and beyond that, a great un-
known. They were all, so to say, insular: bound
in. Whereas our view is confined no longer to a
spot of space on the surface of this earth. It sur-
veys the whole of the planet. And this fact, this
lack of horizon, is something new."
It is chiefly to the scientific method of research
that this release of mankind is due, and every de-
veloped individual has been freed from the once
protective but now dissolved horizons of the lo-
cal land, local moral code, local modes of group
thought and sentiment. Not only in the sciences
but in every department of life the will and cour-
age to credit one's own senses and to honor ones
own decisions, to name one's own virtues and to
claim one's own vision of truth, have been the
generative forces of the new age. There is a grow-
ing realization even in the moral field that all Judg-
ments are (to use Nietzsche's words) "human, all
too human,"
1. What is the "epoch in which we are participat-
ing still"?
2. In what way is it comparable to the period of
the 8th to the 4th millenniums B.C.?
3. What is meant by the new lack of horizon?
4. What do you think is implied by "all the cer-
tainties of the ages" that were "in dissolution"
during the period of Galileo and his fellow scien-
tists?
5. What is the new freedom we have found, and
why does it require courage?
Q 3. Make a prcis of the following passage in
about 235 words. It is not necessary to sug-
gest a title. Failure to write within the word
limit may result in deduction of marks. The
prcis must be written on the separate prcis
sheets provided, which must then be fastened
securely inside the answer book. (75 Marks)
There are, of course, many motivating factors in
human behaviour, but we would claim that na-
tionalism is particularly worthy of study. Why is
it particularly significant? Its significance lies in
its power to arouse passionate loyalties and ha-
treds that motivate acts of extreme violence and
courage; people kill and die for their nations. Of
course it is not alone in this: people are driven to
similar extremes to protect their families, their
extended families or 'tribes', their home areas with
their populations; and their religious groups and
the holy places and symbols of their religions.
However, these other loyalties are often rather
easier to understand than nationalism. Parents
making supreme sacrifices for their children can
be seen as obeying a universal imperative in life
forms, the instinct to protect one's own genetic
material. This instinct can also be seen at work in
the urge to protect one's extended family; but then
the extended family, or on a slightly larger scale
the 'tribe', can also be seen, in perhaps the major-
ity of circumstances in which human beings have
existed, as essential for the survival of the indi-
vidual and the nuclear family. The nation is not
generally essential to survival in this way. Of
course, if the entire nation were to be wiped out,
the individuals and their families would die, but
the disappearance of the nation as a social unit
would not in itself pose a threat to individual or
family survival: only if it were to be accompanied
by ethnic violence or severe economic collapse
would it be life-threatening, and such cataclys-
mic events are not an inevitable consequence of
the loss of political independence. Conversely,
there is no logical connection between the gain-
ing of political independence by a subject nation
and increased life chances for its citizens. In many,
perhaps the vast majority, of modern nations there
is likewise no evidence that in defending the na-
tion one is defending one's own genetic material;
the notion that the citizens of modem nations are
kinsfolk, while the citizens of (potentially) hos-
tile neighbours are aliens, makes no sense in view
of the highly varied genetic make-up of most
modern populations,'
Devotion to one's religious group, like support
for one's nation, is much less obviously to the
individual's advantage than is defence of the fam-
ily, but we would maintain that it can be more
comprehensible than nationalism. It can be seen
in ideological terms as the defence of a world view
and its symbols, against rival world views, which
are considered to be fundamentally erroneous and
which, if successful, would force the conquered
to act in ways abhorrent to their beliefs. While
the defence of one's nation has often been seen as
the defence of one's religion, and while modern
hostilities between nations frequently do have a
religious dimension, there are many serious na-
tional conflicts that have no clear religious ele-
ment; the two world wars were fought in Europe
with Catholic France, Protestant Britain, and
Orthodox Russia opposing Germany with its
mixed Catholic and Protestant population. Thus,
while modern nationalisms may be linked to reli-
gion, many cases can be found without any clear
religious dimension. Not only do modern nation-
alisms lack a religious element: there is often (to
outsiders) no obvious ideological difference be-
tween rival nations. Hence, while defence of one's
religion can be seen as defence of an entire sys-
tem of beliefs, a world view, it is difficult in many
cases to claim that this is true of the defence of
one's nation. There is in fact a good case for see-
ing nations as 'imagined communities', and such
would be the view of some commentators.
Such imagined communities could not, of course,
exist unless they fulfilled a need. We can postu-
late that the need to belong to a community of
some kind is a fundamental human characteris-
tic, and that nations have arisen to fulfil this need,
as earlier more primary communities local,
'tribal', and religious have lost their significance
through economic and social change. But why
should this need be fulfilled by nations, rather than
some other type of unit? There is strong support
in the literature for a view of nations as products
of particular social and economic conditions op-
erating from around the mid-eighteenth century,
as products of 'modernization'.
Q 4. Answer as directed: (25 Marks)
(a) Rewrite the following sentences after mak-
ing necessary corrections: (10 Marks)
1. The bear had a ring on it's nose.
2. This shirt is too lose for me.
3. This coat looks a bit small l'd like to try on it.
4. Let's listen the music.
5. Do you know what is the answer?
6. The weather today is too good.
7. I saw him yesterday only.
8. Who you want to see?
9. The ice cream's good may I please have little
more?
10. His office is quite opposite to my house.
(b) Supply the missing words: (5 Marks)
1. The shopkeeper refused to bargain-
the customer.
2. He did not be believe bargaining.
3. He had already decided a fair price.
4. The customer was looking a bar-
gain.
5. They argued - the price for a long
time.
(c) Use the correct form of the verb in brack-
ets: (5 Marks)
1. I do not usually an umbrella but
today I'm- one. (CARRY)
2. She never - about her children.
(WORRY)
3. That child always when he has a bath.
Listen, he's now. (CRY)
(d) Form the opposites of these words by adding
a prefix: (5 Marks)
1. do -
2. credible -
3. ambiguous -
4. lawful -
5. legal -
Q 5. Answer as directed: (25 Marks)
(a) Combine the following sentences using
tooto (5 Marks)
1. The coffee was hot.
We could not drink it.
2. You are now old.
You cannot continue to work.
3. The child was very small.
It could not walk.
4. This book is heavy.
I cannot carry it.
5. She was shocked.
She did not react.
(b) Rewrite these sentences so that they begin
with the word it. (5 Marks)
1. To talk like that is silly.
2. To hear your voice was good.
3. To tell the truth is essential.
4. To have friends is better than money.
5. To think for yourself is difficult.
(c) Combine these sentences using one of the
words although, but, yet, so or because. Use each
word once. (5 Marks)
1. They were tired. They worked late into
the night.
2. He slept early. He woke up late.
3. He was on medication. He felt drowsy.
4. She was very angry. She said nothing.
5. The engine stopped. It had heated up.
(d) Combine the following sentences using
enough to. (5 Marks)
1. The wind was strong. It could blow
people away.
2. The print was clear. We could read it
easily.
3. It was hot. We could cook food with
the sun's rays.
4. You are old. You should know better.
5. The essay was good. It earned full
marks.
(e) Rewrite these sentences, using a form of the
word get and a suitable preposition or preposi-
tions instead of the word(s) underlined. (5 Marks)
1. Has the company recovered from its
losses?
2. I'd like to continue with my cooking
now, if I may.
3. How do you manage with so little to
eat?
4. Did you establish a connection with New
York on the telephone?
5. Put the milk away where the cat can't
reach it.
Compulsory Paper
Year 2010
Write an essay in about 300 words any 1 of
the following. 100 mks.
increasing consumerism in the middle class in
India
are traditional forms of protest no longer ef-
fective?
The nuclear civil liability bill
To feed our increasing population , forest ar-
eas need to be cleared to increase land area avail-
able for cultivation. Do you agree?
Need to check politicization of sports bodies
in India
2. read the following passage carefully & based
on it, answer the questions given below it in
clear , correct & concise language. 515 = 75
according to the findings of recent government
survey there are an estimated of 3.3 million reg-
istered NGOs working in the country one for
every 400 Indians . not only has the number of
NGOs in India risen dramatically but so has their
influence. In some of Indias flagship develop-
ment efforts the national rural employment guar-
antee act, the national rural health mission, the
right to education or even the draft right to food
act NGOs have been at forefront both in for-
mulating in these laws & policies & in implement-
ing them. NGOs have helped voice the concerns
of some of the Indias most vulnerable groups &
focus the attention of the government on critical,
social & development issues. They have also
spearheaded efforts to expose corruption & mal-
administration in government bringing in much
needed transparency.
But despite the growing influence of NGOs in
India today, we know very little about them, their
structure, activities, sources of funding & more
importantly, how accountable they are to the
people they represent. This is alarming given the
crores of rupees in development aid that NGOs
receive from the government & from donors ev-
ery year. Ironically, though NGOs have been
watchdogs of the government for many years
there has been little regulation or monitoring of
their own activities. Leading many to ask a very
fundamental question : who watches the watch-
ers?
Interestingly , although India has probably the
worlds highest NGOs population , the debate on
NGO accountability is still in its nascent stages.
Across the world NGOs have been experiment-
ing with different ways of addressing the issue of
accountability ; Indian NGOs would do well by
learning from these efforts . for example , NGOs
in Kenya are legally required to comply with code
of conduct for NGOs developed by the national
council of NGOs a self regulatory body set up
under the NGO coordination act in 1990. the code
ensures that NGOs comply with basic ethical &
governance standards. Similarly in Uganda, the
NGO quality assurance mechanism (QuAM) cer-
tifies NGO against a set of quality standards de-
signed to ensure NGO credibility. In chile, chile
transparent has developed transparency standards
for NGOs which require organizations to estab-
lish online information about their mission , vi-
sion, activities, staff, details of funding etc.
what are Indias important development
schemes?
how do NGOs help vulnerable groups in In-
dia?
what do we know about structure , activities
& sources of funding of NGOs in India?
whom does authors describes as watchers?
Why?
how do the NGOs in other nations deal with
the issue of accountability?
3. make a precise of the following passage in
about 210 230 words .
failure to write within the stipulated word limit
may result in deduction of marks. The precise
must be written on the separate precise sheets
provided which must be then fastened securely
inside the answer book. 75 mks.
In many respects sakuntala is comparable to the
more idyllic comedies of Shakespeare, & kanvas
hermitage is surely not far from the forest of arden.
The plot of the play, like many of the Shakespeare
plot, depends much on happy chances & on the
super-natural , which, of course, was quite ac-
ceptable to the audience for which kalidasa wrote.
Its characters , even to the minor ones , are hap-
pily delineated individuals . kalidasa makes no
pretence to realism, but his dialogue is fresh &
vigorous . in fact the dialogue of the better San-
skrit plays generally seems based on vernacular,
& is full of idiomatic expressions. Indian playgo-
ers did not demand the conflict of feelings &
emotions which is the chief substance of serious
European drama , but kalidasa was quite capable
of portraying such conflict effectively. His beau-
ties & merits are tarnished by any translation, but
few who can read him in the original would doubt
that, both as poet & dramatist , he was one of the
great men of the world.
There were many other dramatist . sudraka , prob-
ably kalidasas approximate contemporary , has
left only one play the little clay cart
(Mricchakatika) . this is the most realistic of In-
dian dramas , unraveling a complicated story ,
rich in humor & pathos & crowded with action ,
of the love of a poor Brahman , carudutta, for
the virtuous courtesan vasantasena; this story is
interwoven with one of political intrigue, leading
up to the overthrow of the wicked king palaka,
& the play contains a vivid trial scene, after which
the hero is saved from execution at the last mo-
ment. It is notable for its realistic depiction of
city life , & for its host of minor characters, all of
whom are drawn with skill & individuality. It has
more than once been performed in translation on
the European stage, &, to a western audience, is
certainly the most easily appreciated of Indian
plays.
Vishakadutta was the dramatist of politics. His
only complete surviving play, the ministers sig-
net ring (mudrarakshasa) deals with the schemes
of the wily chanakya to foil the plots of rakshasa,
the minister of the last of the nandas, & to place
chandragupta maurya firmly on the throne. The
plot is exceedingly complicated , but is worked
out with great skill , & play is beautifully con-
structed to lead up, like the little clay cart , to a
pathetic scene where one of the chief characters
is saved from death by impalement at the last
movement .
Second only to kalidasa in the esteem of the crit-
ics was bhavabhuti , who lived at kanyakubja in
the early 8th c. three of his plays malati &
madhava , deeds of the great hero
(mahaviracharita) & the later deeds of rama
(uttararamacharita). The first is the love story with
the pseudo-realistic background , full of incident
of an exciting or horrific type, in which the hero-
ine is more than one rescued from death , while
the two latter plays tell the story of rama . by
western standards as a dramatist bhavabhuti falls
short of those we have mentioned earlier . his
plots are weakly constructed & his characters lack
individuality. His greatness rests on his deep un-
derstanding of sorrow; in his treatment of the
pathetic & the terrible he perhaps excels kalidasa.
4.a. rewrite the following sentences after mak-
ing necessary corrections , if any: 10 .
I live half of a mile from here.
do you like music? I like.
do you like some more coffee
he worked like a waiter for two years.
like what does she look?
I know him since 1960.
I wasnt use to drive big car.
he suggested me to try the main car park
I have never met so nice person
too many mathematics is taught in schools.
b. rewrite the following sentences inserting
suitable article(s) , wherever necessary. 5 mks
i. my grandfather has hard life
ii. she hit him in stomach
iii. queen had dinner with president
vi. my friend is in hospital.
c. rewrite the following sentences inserting
suitable prepositions in the blank spaces. 5
i. I am angry ________ her _______ lying.
ii. I was red ________ at his remarks
iii. could you explain this rule ________ me
please?
vi. people have always been kind ________ me.
d. give the antonyms of the following adjectives.
5
i. common
ii. loyal
iii. formal
iv. mature
v. sensitive.
5.answer as directed.
a. rewrite the following using passive struc-
ture. 5
i. she gave her sister the car
ii. I had already shown the suspects photograph
to the policewomen
iii. they believe him to be dangerous
iv. they made him tell them everything
v. they elected me president.
b. change the following sentence into indirect
speech. 5
i. he wrote in his letter , I saw poonam at the
theater a couple of days ago.
ii. the forecast says , it will rain tomorrow
iii. he said to me , it would be nice if I could see
you again.
iv. I said, if I had any money Id buy you a drink
v. the teacher said, why dont you work harder?.

c. rewrite the following sentences , changing
them into simple ones. 5
i. I wonder who I should invite
ii show him what he should do
iii she couldnt decide whether she should answer
his letter.
iv he dint know where he should park his car.
v. tell me why I should pay
d. add a question tag at the end of each of the
following sentences. 5.
i pooja can speak french
ii the meeting is at ten
iii you dint speak to mohan
iv she wouldnt like a pet
v harish gave you a cheque
e. rewrite the following sentences using it in the
beginning as a preparatory subject. 5
i to make mistakes is easy
ii to wait for people who were late made him an-
gry
iii my ambition was to retire at thirty
iv your task is to get across the river without be-
ing seen
v for you to ask ramesh would be a big mistake.
Compulsory Paper
Year 2011
one of the following : 100
(a) The predicaments of Democracy.
(b) In India when inflation rises govenance stalls.
(c) Modern world's fears about nuclear energy.
(d) Information Technology transforming the In-
dian Society.
(e) Inventions generate necessity.
2. Read carefully the passage below and write
your answers to the questions that follow in
clear, correct and concise language:
'Water is the basis of all life. Every animal and
every plant contains a substantial proportion of
free or combined water in its body, and no kind
of physiological activity is possible in which the
fluid does not play an essential part. Water is, of
course, necessary for animal life. While moisture
in the soil is equally imperative for the life and
growth of plants and trees. Though the quantity
necessary varies enormously with the species. The
conservation and utilisation of water is thus fun-
damental for human welfare. Apart from artesian
water the ulimate source in all cases is rain or
snowfall. Much of Indian Agriculture depends on
seasonal rainfall and is therefore very sensitive to
any failure or irregularity of the same. It is clear
that the adoption of techniques preventing soil
erosion would also help to conserve and keep the
water where it is wanted. In other words, on and
in the soil, and such techniques therefore serve a
double purpose. Its is evident, however that in a
country having only a seasonal rainfall an immense
quantity of rain-water must be necessarily run off
the ground. The collection and utilization of wa-
ter is therefore of vital importance. Much of it
flows down into the streams and rivers and ulti-
mately finds its way to the sea. The harnessing of
our rivers. the waters of which now mostly run
to waste is a great national problem which must
be considered and dealt with on national lines.
Closely connected with the conservation of wa-
ter supplies is the problem of afforestation. The
systematic planning of suitable trees in every pos-
sible or even in impossible areas and the
developement of what one can call civilized for-
ests as distinguished from wild and untamed
jungle is one the most urgent needs of India. Such
plantation would directly and indirectly prove a
source of untold wealth to the country. They
would check soil erosion and conserve the rain-
fall of the country from flowing away to waste
and would provide the necessary supplies of cheap
fuel and thus stop unnecessary waste of farm-
yard manure.
Questions:
1. Where does the world get water from ?
2. What is the national problem relating to our
rivers ?
3. What are the benefits of afforestation ?
4. What is fundamental for human welfare ?
5. What are the advantages of preventing soil ero-
sion ?
about 204 words. It is not necessary to sug-
gest a title. Failure to write within the word
limit may result in deduction of marks. The
precis must be written on seprate precis sheets
provided, which must then be fastened se-
curely inside the answer book. 75
'While all the religious teachers tell us that com-
passion gives us a motive for existence, a guide
for action and a reason for courage and help us
to diminish the sum of human suffering, in the
very name of God, who is all compassion, abomi-
nable crimes have been committed in the world.
It is not enough to believe in God of love but we
must love. The rains that makes the lower plains
fertile are formed in the upper layers of the atmo-
sphere.
The saints are the masters who are not stained-
glass figures, remote and ethereal in their sancity.
There is nothing in them, which we would like to
spread everywhere in the world. It is there but
what it is, we cannot say. It is there in their blood
and bones, in the breath of their speech, in the
lights and shades of their speech, in the lights and
shades of their personalities, a mystery that can
be lived but no spoken in words.
On the rock of moral law and not on the shifting
sands of political or economic expediency can be
built a civilized society with individual freedom,
social justice and political equality. Truth, free-
dom and righteousness are essential to peace. The
Evangelist tells us how 'the devil taketh him up
into an exceeding high mountain, and showeth
him all the kingdoms of the world, and the glory
of them. And saith unto him, 'All these things will
I give thee, if thou wilt fall down and worship
me'. Then saith Jesus unto him, Get thee hence,
Satan; for it is written, Thou shalt worship thy
Lord, Thy God and Him alone shalt thou serve'.
In the new society we need a new universal reli-
gion. By it we mean not a uniform religion but a
religion of awareness and love of wisdom and
compassion, prajna and karuna. of truth and love.
Religion must be cured of their provincialism and
made to reveal their universality. This does not
mean spiritual vagueness or ambiguity.
Tolerance implies an elementary right belonging
to the dignity of every man. The right to believe
like the right to live a free, unfettered -is fun-
damental to the concept of both-we have had
in our country peaceful co-existence of different
religions. It is not passive co-existence but an
active fellowship, a close inter-relation of the best
of different religions.
Co-existence is the first step and fraternity is the
goal. We have not adhered steadfastly to these
ideals and have suffered often. Yet the ideal has
been kept in view and support by great leaders
like Ram Mohan Roy, Ramakrishna, Tagore and
Gandhiji.
The view of tolerance is based on the conviction
that all transcendental use of the logical catego-
ries, all attempt to submit the transcendent to the
finite are wrong. Nature and history announce
God's presence but do not disclose his whole na-
ture. Religions are cut off from one another by
mutual incomprehensiveness. We are born or
trained in certain traditions of religion.
Loyalty to tradition does not mean imprisonment
within it. We adopt different symbolic represen-
tations of the supreme determined by our age,
circumstances, upbringing and by narrower loy-
alties of caste, class, race or nation. Whatever
progress we make at the expense of those values
is morally wrong.
The seers of all religions affirm that the various
peoples of the world form a community with a
common purpose and a common destiny. It is said
that the whole world is the fatherland of a noble
soul. The application of this universality of spirit
requires us to look upon our common enemies
not as monsters of evil but as misled by their ob-
sessions and as capable of change.
making necessary corrections : 10
1. Saints desire nothing________the society.
2. I regret at the delay in doing this.
3. I congratulate you for your success.
4. Ram as well as Mohan have gone.
5. He has passed order on my application.
6. He is more intelligent than any boy.
7. What will be ensued on this.
8. This is high time that we should change the
bike.
9. I did nothing but laughed.
10. I informed him, "Leave the room."
(b) Supply the missing words :
1. The wages of sin ______death. 5
2. I trust______God.
3. I have no fondness_____music.
4. I have no doubt_____your honesty.
5. I am Conscious______my duties.
(c) Use the correct forms of the verbs in brackets
: 5
1. I remember ______her when she was a little
girl. (SEE)
2. You will ______twenty-four hours to consider
your decision. (GIVE)
3. Can you hear what he_____? (SAY)
(d) Write the opposites of the following : 5
1. Notorious
2. Legitimate
3. Responsible
4. Satisfaction
5. Promotion
5. Answer as directed :
(a) Rewrite the following sentences removing
'too..to'. 5
1. He is too honest to steal.
2. He is too weak to run.
3. She is too shy to sing.
4. He was too shocked to speak.
5. The matter will be too complicated to resolve.
(b) Rewrite the following sentences using 'It'
in the beginning as a subject.
1. To scold the boys would be foolish.
2. Smoking is bad for him.
3. To call after ten was unusual for him.
4. Keeping the windows open on the roadside
does not look decent.
5. To play games on sundays is not allowed.
Compulsory Paper
Year 2012
Question 1. Write an essay in about 300 words
on any one of the following:
(a) Indian women in international sports.
(b) Cultivation of organic foods
(c) Foreign Direct Investment om retail - boon
or bane?
(d) How effective are our system and institutions
in dealing with disasters?
(e) Food Security - legislation and implementa-
tion.
Question 2. Read carefully the passage below
and write you answers to the questions that
follow in clear, correct and concise language:
Oratory demands enthusiasm, which can spring
only in an earnest soul; and neither beauty of com-
position not graceful delivery can compensate for
want of passion. To be able to interest people
without tiring them in a prime test of oratory. It
is a gift that me draw valuable aid from such natu-
ral advantages as a noble figure, handsome coun-
tenance, and pleasant voice,. But there has been
no lack of eminent orators of ungainly mien at
any time. Few have equaled Sir Robert Peel in
skilful management of the House of Commons,
but he often assumed very undignified postures
standing with his hands behind his coat tails, or
thumbs buried in the pockets of his waistcoat,
and threw one leg over the other in attitudes of
nonchalance. The composition of his speeches
was slovenly and they were noted for the disor-
der of their contents, Oliver Cromwell was one
of the most influential speakers of his day, but he
rarely wore clean linen and his voice was "harsh
and untuneable."
The indispensable requisite of oratory is a mind
well-stored with knowledge and information,
sound reasoning, wit and humour, vehemence,
fire, and imaginative insight all conducive to en-
hance the power of eloquence; but the same
speakers are not able to make the same impres-
sion in all places, not secure the same effect at all
times. The pinnacle of triumph of oratory is
reached when a speaker is able to magnetise his
hearers into thinking as he thinks, and feeling as
he feels. When Sheridan has concluded his fa-
mous speech in Parliament on the "Begum
Charge", so great was the excitement caused by
it that the Minister concerned besought the House
of adjourn the decision of the question, "as being
incapacitated from forming a just judgement un-
der the influence of such powerful eloquence."
It is clear that there is a rivalry between the ora-
tor and the occasion and the dazzling effect of
the moment does not always endure later cool
reflection.
The world moves in continual cycle of action and
reaction, and the homage paid to speakers is fol-
lowed by tests in the course of which there is
unrelenting research as to what extent precept
and example tally. When there is no wide gulf
between the two, further speeches are listened to
with increased respect.
Questions:
(a) What are the most important qualities required
for becoming a good orator?
(b) What was the effect created by Sheridan's
speech?
(c) How can you judge the true effect of a good
oration?
(d) What research does the audience do when they
listen to speakers?
Question 3. Make a precis of the following pas-
sage in about 200 words, It is not necessary to
suggest a title. Failure to write within the
world limit may result in deduction of marks.
The precis must be written on the separate
precis sheets provided, which must then be
fastened securely inside the answer-book.
Taking into account the compelling and inescap-
able reality of an increasingly resource constrained
world, India needs to link the aspirations of the
people and its prospects for accelerated growth
to what I would call a "resource-frugal" instead
of a "resource-intensive" strategy of development.
I believe that such a strategy would enable India
to sustain a high rate of growth over a more ex-
tended period of time, delivering affluence with-
out waste, and current welfare without sacrific-
ing the welfare of future generations. I will touch
upon just a few illustrative examples.
The notion of frugality is current in some sectors
of our economy and has been successful enough
to attract international attention. "Frugal manu-
facture" is already acclaimed as Indian industry's
contribution to innovate production processes,
This involved the stripping down of complex
machinery or devices, to their most essential ap-
plications without frills. An example is the cost-
effective, easy to use, hand-held ECG machine,
which is a major contribution to public health.
The other is the use of the mobile telephone to
deliver information, services as well as funds on
a low-cost and widely spread platform. Even in
agriculture, there have been significant successes
in promoting production process which are dra-
matically economical in the use of water, dispence
with the use of costly and still deliver high agri-
cultural output, ensuring food security. this is fru-
gal agriculture. What should be appreciated is the
these innovations, by making products affordable,
lead to significant market expansion, This in turn
economies of scale, further lowering of cost and
generating even greater demand in a virtuous, self-
reinforcing circle.
The hallmark of any modern society is its ability
to deliver rapid affordable and efficient means of
mobility to its people. Enabling people to exer-
cise their right to mobility is a critical state re-
sponsibility. However, mobility is linked to the
use of energy and the use of scarce land, both of
which are in short supply in our country. It fol-
lows, therefore, that we must have a transport
strategy that ensures the most economical use of
these resources. The continued expansion of pri-
vate vehicular transportation is not sustainable.
If the density of private car ownership in India
were to approach U.S. or European levels, we
would be using liquid fuels far in excess of the
total consumption of all such fuels globally to-
day. Just as the space required for parking a bil-
lion cars and constructing highways for them to
run on, would occupy land on a scale that would
leave little space for any other activity. There-
fore, shifting resources from private transporta-
tion to public transportation and investing in the
latter to make them convenient, comfortable and
cost-effective is another essential component of
a "resource-frugal" strategy. Greater mobility
ensures a more productive population and a more
efficient distribution of goods and services. This
is what can ensure a sustained and high rate of
growth.
If frugal process is what India is good at, it can
add value to each of the sectors of its economy
by leveraging its proven strength in information
and communications technology. The system
which make modern economics run whether these
are the power supply networks, the transporta-
tion system, the distribution of goods and ser-
vices, the water supply system, to name only a
few are being transformed through the use of
modern data analytics. The placement of sensors
at critical points in any economic process, gener-
ated massive and continuous mass of real time
data, which high powered computers, using so-
phisticated software can analyse in considerable
detail and propose what are called "smart" solu-
tions. This reduces waste to the minimum, elimi-
nates redundancies in processes and improves
efficiencies all around. This, too, is an example
of "resource frugality". It is India which can pro-
vide the biggest market for such as a multiplier
across the board in a range of sectors in the In-
dian economy. What is important to appreciate
here is that such services are really the hallmark
of a flat world because they can ass value in de-
veloping societies as they can in advanced ones.
The purpose of providing these examples is to
ass some substance to the overall optimism I re-
tain about our future as a plural, democratic and
innovative society, despite the seeming gloom
around us.
What is more, each of these innovations enable
inclusive growth, because they empower the poor;
they profit from leveraging the power of num-
bers. What we need is to upscale these successes
from the margin to the mainstream, from the lo-
cal to the national level.
Question 4. (a) Rewrite the following sentences
after making necessary corrections, if any:
(i) The vehicular pollution causes serious harm
to human beings.
(ii) Both Ashish and Smita came late to college
today.
(iii) There is many problems relating to this mat-
ter.
(iv) Not only David passed but got a distinction.
(v) We'd like some information about the types
of cars available.
(vi) I prefer to pay by cash.
(vii) My uncle has proposed me a job in his com-
pany.
(viii) All of a sudden she burst in tears.
(ix) I enjoy this type of music still now.
(x) The teacher said me to submit the assignment
the next day.
(b): Rewrite the following sentences inserting
suitable article(s), wherever necessary:
(i) Oranges and lemons are citrus fruits,
(ii) Aijaz is tallest boy in class.
(iii) She teaches at University in Indiana but I don't
know which one it is.
(iv) New teacher seems to be very strict.
(v) It was beautiful sight to see.
(c) : Rewrite the following sentences inserting
suitable prepositions in the blank spaces:
(i) The Minister gave ____________ the prizes
on the annual day.
(ii) Seeing the children playing brought
____________ memories of my childhood games.
(iii) Randhir is always ready to take
____________ any responsibility.
(iv) The members decided to deal ____________
the problem collectively.
(v) I hope the picnic will not be called
____________.
(d) : Give the antonyms of the following words:
(i) useful
(ii) active
(iii) encourage
(iv) rational
(v) timely
Question 5. Answer as directed:
(a): Rewrite the following sentences using the
passive structure.
(i) They have permitted me to leave.
(ii) The rains have completely ruined the roads.
(iii) Why did you close the door.
(iv) History records his great achievements.
(v) They awarded her the degree at the Convo-
cation.
(b): Change the following sentences into indi-
rect speech:
(i) Anil to Ajay : "Why don't you join us for a
party on Saturday?"
(ii) Mrs Nair to Mr Shah : "Good Morning!
There's a small problem I want to speak to you
about."
(iii) Jack to Parimala : "How was your trip to the
National Park?"
(iv) Mr Patil to the Cashier : "Do you have change
for five hundreds rupees?"
(v) Susil to Prasad : "Congratulations! I'm so glad
you received the young scientists award."
(c) : Use the correct form of the verb in brack-
ets to fill in the blanks:
(i) The first such prize ____________ in 1199.
(AWARD)
(ii) The computer is a complex gadget and
____________ of many parts. (CONSIST)
(iii) Jacob ____________ his report already.
(COMPLETE)
(iv) The postman ____________ his bag and left.
(COLLECT)
(d) : Supply the missing words:
(i) The music was too loud ____________ she
adjusted the volume.
(ii) ____________ the technician worked for an
hour he was unable to repair the machine.
(iii) ____________ you pay attention you are
likely to miss the important points.
(iv) Raju calls his mother ____________ he finds
it difficult to manage on his own.
(v) Leave a wide margin ____________ the
tutor's comments can be written in it.
(e) : Rewrite the following sentences using 'It' in
the beginning as a preparatory subject:
(i) Finding fault with someone is easy.
(ii) For them to close down the family business
would be right.
(iii) To clean your car yourself would be a good
idea.
(iv) To eat alone was embarrassing for her.
(v) Shouting out to someone across the room is
rude.
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(iii) No one seems to have taken

(vii) The officer .through one

(b) Use each of the following words in two sepa-

(vii) It is difficult to ..such dull-

v. the teacher said, why dont you work harder?.

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