You are Karan Kumar/Karuna Bajaj, a leading lawyer practising in Surat. You want to buy an independent house at City Light Road to be used as office-cum- residence. Draft an advertisement in about 50 words for the classified columns of a local newspaper. You can be contacted at 45645678

OR

On 30th November your school is going to hold its annual sports day. You want Mr. Dhanraj Pillai, a noted hockey player to give away the prizes to the budding sportspersons of the school. Write a formal invitation in about 50 words requesting him to grace the occasion. You are Karuna/Karan, Sports Secretary, Sunrise Global School, Agra.

Read the passage given below:

1. To ensure its perpetuity, the ground is well held by the panther both in space and in time. It enjoys a much wider distribution over the globe than its bigger cousins, and procreates sufficiently profusely to ensure its continuity for all time to come.

2. There seems to be no particular breeding season of the panther, although its sawing and caterwauling is more frequently heard during winter and summer. The gestation period is about ninety to hundred days (Whipsnade, ninety-two days). The litter normally consists of four cubs, rarely five. Of these, generally two survive and not more than one reaches maturity. I have never come across more than two cubs at the heels of the mother. Likewise, graziers in the forest have generally found only two cubs hidden away among rocks, hollows of trees, and other impossible places. 3. Panther cubs are generally in evidence in March. They are born blind. This is a provision of Nature against their drifting away from the place of safety in which they are lodged by their mother, and exposing themselves to the danger of their being devoured by hyenas, jackals, and other predators. They generally open their eyes in about three to four weeks.

4. The mother alone rears its cubs in seclusion. It keeps them out of the reach of the impulsive and impatient male. As a matter of fact the mother separates from the male soon after mating and forgets all about their tumultuous union. The story that the male often looks in to find out how the mother is progressing with her cubs has no foundation except in what we wish it should do at least.

5. The mother carries its cubs about by holding them by the scruff of their neck in its mouth. It trains them to stalk, and teaches them how to deliver the bite of death to the prey. The cubs learn to treat all and sundry with suspicion at their mother’s heels. Instinctively the cubs seek seclusion, keep to cover and protect their flanks by walking along the edge of the forest.

6. I have never had an opportunity to watch mother panther train its cubs. But in Pilibhit forests, I once saw a tigress giving some lessons to its little ones. I was sitting over its kill at Mala. As the sun set, the tigress materialised in the twilight behind my maghan. For about an hour, it scanned and surveyed the entire area looking and listening with the gravest concern. It even went to the road where my elephant was awaiting my signal. The mahout spotted it from a distance and drove the elephant away. F. When darkness descended upon the scene and all was well and safe, the tigress called its cubs by emitting a low haa-oon. The cubs, two in number and bigger than a full-grown cat, soon responded. They came trotting up to their mother and hurried straight to the kill in indecent haste. The mother spitted at them so furiously that they doubled back to its heels immediately. Thereafter, the mother and its cubs sat under cover about 50 feet (15 m) away from the kill to watch, wait, look, and listen. After about half an hour’s patient and fidgetless vigil the mother seemed to say ‘paid for’. At this signal, the cubs cautiously advanced, covering their flanks, towards the kill. No longer did they make a beeline for it, as they had done before.

7. The mother sat watching its cubs eat, and mounted guard on them. Che did not partake of the meal.

On the basis of your understanding of the passage complete the statements given below with the help of options that follow:

(a) To protect its cubs the mother panther hides them:

(i) among rocks

(ii) in the branches of the trees

(iii) behind the tree trunks

(iv) at its heels

(b) The male panther:

(i) is protective of its cubs

(ii) trains its cubs

(iii) watches the progress of the mother

(iv) is impulsive and impatient

Answer the following questions briefly:

(c) How many cubs does the mother panther rarely deliver?

(d) What may happen if the panther cubs are not born blind?

(e) Why did the mahaut drive his elephant away?

(f) Why did the tigress spit at its cubs?

(g) From the narrator’s observation what do we learn about the nature of the tigress?

(h) Why does the panther not face the risk of extinction?

(i) Find words from the passage which mean the same as each of the following:

(i) moving aimlessly (para 3)

(ii) came down/fell (para F)

Read the passage given below:

People tend to amass possessions, sometimes without being aware of doing so. They can have a delightful surprise when they find something useful which they did not know they owned. Those who never have to change house become indiscriminate collectors of what can only be described as clutter. They leave unwanted objects in drawers, cupboards and attics for years in the belief that they may one day need them. Old people also accumulate belongings for two other reasons, lack of physical and mental energy, and sentiment. Things owned for a long time are full of associations with the past, perhaps with the relatives who are dead, and so they gradually acquire a sentimental value.

Some things are collected deliberately in an attempt to avoid wastage. Among these are string and brown paper, kept by thrifty people when a parcel has been opened. collecting small items can be a mania. A lady cuts out from newspapers sketches of model clothes that she would like to buy if she had money. As she is not rich, the chances are that she will never be able to afford such purchases. It is a harmless habit, but it litters up her desk.

Collecting as a serious hobby is quite different and has many advantages. It provides relaxation for leisure hours, as just looking at one’s treasure is always a joy. One doesn’t have to go out for amusement as the collection is housed at home. Whatever it consists of - stamps, records, first editions of books, china- there is always something to do in connection with it, from finding the right place for the latest addition to verifying facts in reference books. This hobby educates one not only in the chosen subject, but also in general matters which have some bearing on it.

There are other benefits also. One gets to meet like-minded collectors to get advice, compare notes, exchange articles, to show off one’s latest find etc. So one’s circle of friends grows. Soon the hobby leads to travelling, perhaps a meeting in another town, possibly a trip abroad in search of a rare specimen, for collectors are not confined to one country. Over the years one may well become an authority on one’s hobby and will probably be asked to give informal talks to little gatherings and then, if successful, to larger audiences.

(a) On the basis of your understanding of the above passage make notes on it, using headings and subheadings. Use recognisable abbreviations (wherever necessary - minimum four) and a format you consider suitable. Also supply an appropriate title to it.

(b) Write a summary of the passage in about 80 words.

Along with air and water pollution, our cities are also under an attack of noise 6 pollution. Marriage processions, DJs during wedding receptions, loud music from neighbourhood flats etc. are all sources of noise which is not good for the old, the ailing and students. Write a letter in 120-150 words to the editor of a local newspaper describing the problem and making a request to the concerned authorities to solve it. You are Karan/Karuna, M 114, Mall Road, Delhi.

OR

In all big cities road rage has become a serious problem. A minor scratch, a little push, or a small brushing past can lead to a scuffle sometimes resulting even in murder. Write a letter in 120-150 words to the Police Commissioner giving your views on the problem and its solutions. You are Karuna/Karan, M 114, Mall Road, Delhi.

‘Brain drain is not a bane for a developing country like India’. Write a debate in 150-200 words either for or against the motion.

OR

Write a speech in 150-200 words on the topic, ‘Discipline shapes the future of a student’. It is to be delivered in the morning assembly. You are Karuna/Karan.