NCERT Solution of Class 9 English Chapter 7 Reach for the Top
Part 1 Santosh Yadav
I. Answer these questions in one or two sentences each.
Question 1:
Why was the ‘holy man’ who gave Santosh’s mother his blessings surprised?
Answer
The ‘holy man’ who gave Santosh’s mother his blessings was surprised because her grandmother sought blessings for a daughter. In this society most of the people ask the seers to bless for a son.
NCERT Solution of Class 9 English Chapter 7 Reach for the Top
Question 2:
Give an example to show that even as a young girl Santosh was not ready to accept anything unreasonable.
Answer
She used to wear shorts and not the traditional dresses meant for girls.
NCERT Solution of Class 9 English Chapter 7 Reach for the Top
Question 3:
Why was Santosh sent to the local school?
Answer
Santosh was sent to the local school in line with the prevailing custom in the family.
NCERT Solution of Class 9 English Chapter 7 Reach for the Top
Question 4:
When did she leave home for Delhi, and why?
Answer
She left home for Delhi when she was 16 because she wanted to get a proper education.
NCERT Solution of Class 9 English Chapter 7 Reach for the Top
Question 5:
Why did Santosh’s parents agree to pay for her schooling in Delhi? What mental qualities of Santosh are brought into light by this incident?
Answer
Santosh’s parents had refused to pay for her education in Delhi. Santosh told her parents politely that she would do part-time work to pay her school fees. At this, the parents agreed to pay for her schooling. This incident shows that Santosh was a girl of iron determination.
NCERT Solution of Class 9 English Chapter 7 Reach for the Top
II. Answer each of these questions in a short paragraph (about 30 words).
Question 1:
Santosh Yadav got into the record books both times she scaled Mt Everest. What were the reasons for this?
Answer
When Santosh Yadav first climbed Mt Everest, she became the youngest woman in the world to reach the feat. When she climbed Everest the second time, she became the only woman to have climbed it twice.
Question 2:
How did Santosh begin to climb mountains?
Answer
Santosh had joined Maharani College in Jaipur. She was living in Kasturba Hostel. This hostel faced the Aravali Hills. Once Santosh met some mountaineers there. They encouraged her to take to climbing. Santosh saved some money. She joined a course at Uttarkashi Nehru Institute of Mountaineering. After doing this course, Santosh went on a climbing expedition every year.
Question 3:
What incidents during the Everest expedition show Santosh’s concern for her team-mates?
Answer
Santosh Yadav provided special care to a climber who lay dying at the south pole in 1992 Everest Mission. She saved Mohan Singh, who would have lost his life had she not shared her oxygen with him.
Question 4:
What shows her concern for the environment?
Answer
Santosh was really concerned for the environment. She collected and brought down 500 kilograms of garbage from the Himalayas.
Question 5:
How does she describe her feelings at the summit of the Everest?
Answer
Santosh felt herself on the top of the world. It was for her a spiritual moment. She unfurled the Indian flag. She held it aloft. She felt proud as an Indian.
NCERT Solution of Class 9 English Chapter 7 Reach for the Top
III. Complete the following statements.
(1) From her room in Kasturba Hostel, Santosh used to ______________________________.
(2) When she finished college, Santosh had to write a letter of apology to her father because ___________
(3) During the Everest expedition, her seniors in the team admired her _____ while ______ endeared her to fellow climbers.
Answer
1. From her room in Kasturba Hostel, Santosh used to watch villagers from her room, going up the hill and suddenly vanishing after a while.
2. When she finished college, Santosh had to write a letter of apology to her father because she had got herself enrolled at Uttarkashi without his permission.
3. During the Everest expedition, her seniors in the team admired her climbing skills, physical fitness and mental strength, while her concern for others and desire to work together with them endeared her to fellow climbers.
NCERT Solution of Class 9 English Chapter 7 Reach for the Top
IV. Pick out words from the text that mean the same as the following words or expressions. (Look in the paragraphs indicated.)
1. took to be true without proof (1): ______________________________________
2. based on reason; sensible; reasonable (2): ______________________________
3 the usual way of doing things (3): ______________________________________
4. a strong desire arising from within (5): __________________________________
5. the power to endure, without falling ill (7): _______________________________
Answer
1. blessing
2. rational
3. custom
4. urge
5. resistance/endurance
Part II Maria Sharapova
I. Identify the two parts in the sentences below by underlining the part that gives us the information in brackets.
1. Where other girls wore traditional Indian dresses, Santosh preferred shorts.
(Contrasts her dress with that of others)
2. She left home and got herself enrolled in a school in Delhi. (Tells us what happened after the first action.)
3. She decided to fight the system when the right moment arrived. (Tells us when she was going to fight the system.)
4. Little Maria had not yet celebrated her tenth birthday when she was packed off to train in the United States. (Tells us when Maria was sent to the U.S.)
Answer
1. Where other girls wore traditional Indian dresses, Santosh preferred shorts.
2. She left home and got herself enrolled in a school in Delhi.
3. She decided to fight the system when the right moment arrived.
4. Little Maria had not yet celebrated her tenth birthday when she was packed off to train in the United States.
NCERT Solution of Class 9 English Chapter 7 Reach for the Top
II. Now rewrite the pairs of sentences given below as one sentence.
1. Grandfather told me about the old days. All books were printed on paper then.
2. What do you do after you finish the book? Perhaps you just throw it away.
3. He gave the little girl an apple. He took the computer apart.
4. You have nothing. That makes you very determined.
5. I never thought of quitting. I knew what I wanted.
Answer
1. Grandfather told me about the old days when all books were printed on paper.
2. After finishing the book, perhaps you just throw it away.
3. He gave the little girl an apple and took the computer apart.
4. Having nothing makes you very determined.
5. I never thought of quitting as I knew what I wanted.
NCERT Solution of Class 9 English Chapter 7 Reach for the Top
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