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Questions/Answers
Q.1. What does the Line 'Born in a society where the birth of a son was regarded as a blessing and a daughter, though not a curse, was not generally welcome', mean? Ans.1. Santosh came from a family that was conservative and orthodox. The society was patriarchal; the birth of a son was regarded as a blessing and the birth of a daughter, though not considered a curse, was not generally welcome.
Q.2. Why was the 'holy man' surprised? Ans.2. The holy man expected that like all other families in the village, the family would also wish for the birth of a son. However, when he was told by Santosh's grandmother that they wanted to have a daughter, he was surprised.
Q.3. Give a brief about her family and where she was born. Ans.3. Santosh was born into an affluent family of landlords in Joniyawas, a small village in the Rewari District of Haryana. She was the sixth child in a conservative family, the only sister to five brothers. The society in this region was very conservative and orthodox. People were rigidly patriarchal and gender-biased. The birth of a girl was generally not welcome and people strictly adhered to conservative traditions. Her family too was orthodox and conservative in matters related to the education and upbringing of girls.
Q.4. What did her name mean? Ans.4. Santosh's name means contentment.
Q.5. Did she justify her name? Ans.5. No, Santosh was not always content with her place in a traditional way of life and wanted to live a life on her own terms. She believed that if she chose a correct and a rational path, others would have to change and align themselves to her choices, and not Santosh to theirs.
Q.6. Why did her parents not send her to school in Delhi which was close by? Ans.6. Santosh's parents were affluent and could afford to send Santosh to a school in Delhi. But they sent her to the local village school because they strictly followed tradition and it was customary in their society to send girls to the local school only.
Q.7. What happened when she turned sixteen? Ans.7. Santosh left home for Delhi when she turned sixteen because her parents had begun to pressurize her to get married in keeping with the traditional practice in their community. She decided that it was the right moment to rebel and she quietly got herself enrolled in a school in Delhi to continue her studies.
Q.8. Where did Santosh Yadav do her college Education? Ans.8. Santosh Yadav joined the Maharani College in Delhi to get education.
Q.9. Give a pen portrait of Santosh Yadav. Ans.9. Santosh Yadav was a very brave girl. There is no doubt that Santosh had the courage to change the established traditions. She was not content with her place in the traditional way of life. She began living life on her own terms from the start. Where the other girls wore traditional Indian dresses, Santosh preferred shorts. Santosh got admitted to the local school but she decided to find the system in her own way when the right moment arrived. At 16, most of the girls in her village used to get married. She was also pressurized but she warned her parents that she would never marry if she did not get a proper education. She left home and got enrolled in a school in Delhi. She did not want any money from her parents for the school fee because she was earning money from a job. Then she got admission in the Maharani Gayatri Devi college in Jaipur. There she saw some mountaineers climbing the Aravali Hills and this was the movement from where she got in the field of Mountain climbing. And this girl became the first woman to climb Mount Everest twice in her life.
Q.10. What are the qualities of Santosh Yadav that you would want to emulate and why? Ans.10. Success comes at a cost. You have to pay for success in a currency of dedication, hard work, focus and will power. The same was with Santosh when she achieved success for herself. Santosh Yadav was born in an orthodox society where the girl child was not welcomed. From her early childhood, she showed the qualities of a rebel. She went to study out of her village despite her parents' unwillingness. She also enrolled herself to pursue mountaneering which determination. Santosh showed qualities in her training like physical endurance, iron will, mental toughness and resistance to cold and altitude. These qualities helped her to scale Mount Everest twice and get her name into the record books. She is an inspiration for all of us. One can learn the values of being mentally tough, determined, dedicated and helping others from her. Her life shows us that nothing is impossible if one is passionate and determined about one's goal.
