CBSE Class 10/9/8 - English - Reading Comprehension (Unseen Passage) (Set-14)(#eduvictors)(#readingComprehension)

English - Reading Comprehension 

(Unseen Passage) (Set-14)

For CBSE Class 8 - 10

Reading comprehension is an ability to read content, comprehend its significance, and to incorporate with what the reader knows already.

The motivation behind reading  is comprehension, that is, to be able to gather meaning from the passage text. Comprehension skills don't naturally evolve, it requires practice and one has to enhance word recognition and vocabulary skills. Students need to learn techniques to assist them with turning out to be dynamic reader who comprehend and understand the content very well.

Reading comprehension depends on the reader’s experience, knowledge of language and recognition of syntactic structure.
To solve reading comprehension, follow these steps:

Step 1: Read the entire passage at a moderate pace (not very slow not very fast)
Step 2: Try to identify main points and summarize the contents of each paragraph in your own words.
Step 3: Do some doodling on rough sheet i,e, create graphic organisers (webs, cause and effect charts, outlines) 
Step 4: Try to map a story.
Step 5: For data or date related passages, do mental maths quickly.
Step 6: Don’t make conclusions which are not in the comprehension.
Step 7: Answer the questions by eliminating the wrong options.


Question 1:  Read the passage given below and complete the statements that follow:

(1) Tourists to Jammu and Kashmir have another attraction – a floating post office on the Dal Lake in Srinagar, the first in the country. ‘Floating Post Office, Dal Lake’ – claimed to be the only one such post office in the world – is built on an intricately carved maroon houseboat, fastened on the western edge of the Dal Lake.



(2) This post office lets you avail of all the regular postal services available in the country while being afloat. The seal used on everything posted from Floating Post Office is unique – along with the date and address, it bears the design of a boatman rowing a shikara on the Dal Lake. The special feature of this post office is that letters posted from here carry a special design which has the picturesque scenery of Dal Lake and Srinagar city. These pictures reach wherever these letters are posted to and hence promote Kashmir as a tourist destination across the world.

(3) This is actually a heritage post office that has existed since British times. It was called Nehru Park Post Office before 2011. But then the chief postmaster John Samuel renamed it as ‘Floating Post Office’.

(4) The post office’s houseboat has two small rooms – one serves as the office and the other a small museum that traces the philatelic history of the state postal department. It has a shop that sells postage stamps and other products.

(5) But for the locals, Floating Post office is more than an object of fascination. 1-2 crore is deposited per month in Floating Post Office by communities living in and around the Dal Lake. The lake has several islets that are home to more than 50,000 people.

(6) The greatest fear is the recurrence of 2014 like floods in which the houseboat had gone for a toss uncontrollably pushed by the flood. Rescue teams had to anchor it using special mechanism in a nearby highland. Then it was brought back on the Dal after the water receded. The biggest boon is that at no time of the year do you need a fan in this post-office !

Direction: Attempt the following questions on the basis of the passage you have read.

(i)  What is the location of the Floating Post Office in Srinagar?
(a) On dal lake
(b) Near centaur
(c) On Pari Mahal

(ii) What is special about the seal used in the post office?
(a) design of a houseboat on the Dal Lake
(b) design of a boatman rowing a shikara on the Dal Lake
(c) design of a chinar tree on the Dal Lake

(iii) The post office is helpful in promoting tourism _____________

(iv) Who renamed the post office as ‘Floating Post Office’?
(a) Chief Postmaster
(b) Postman
(c) Delivery agent

(v) The two rooms of the post office are used for_____

(vi) The post office is beneficial to the locals _______

(vii) What is the greatest fear that the post office has ?
(a) Floods
(b) Earthquakes
(c) Tsunami

(viii) How is the post office a big boon to the people?
(a) You do not need fan
(b) You need airconditioning
(c) You do not need heater

(ix) The flood came in the year ______ in Kashmir valley.



Answers:
i.  (a) On dal lake

ii.  (b) design of a boatman rowing a shikara on the Dal Lake

iii. As the letters posted from here carry a special design which has the picturesque scenery of Dal Lake and Srinagar city

iv. (a) Chief Postmaster

v. One serves as the office and the other a small museum that traces the philatelic history of the state postal department

vi. Floating Post office is more than an object of fascination. 1-2 crore is deposited per month in Floating Post Office by communities living in and around the Dal Lake. The lake has several islets that are home to more than 50,000 people.

vii. (a) Floods

viii. (a) You do not need fan

ix. 2014



Passage 2: Read the following passage carefully and answer the following questions:

(1) It is an indisputable fact that the world has gone too far with the innovation of new technologies such as mobile phones, the internet and so on, due to which people are able to tour the cosmos virtually sitting at one place using their smart devices or other technological gadgets. Though mobile
internet access is oftentimes hurried and short, it can still provide common internet features like alerts, weather data, emails, search engines, instant messages, and game and music downloading.

(2) Due to the easy access of smart phones, communication has been very effective and instant. People are able to convey their message all around the globe to their loved ones without spending hefty sums of money. Adults are always fond of such gadgets and they always welcome and adopt
such new technology readily. Further, young people have been able to broaden their minds and improve their skills by doing research on the Internet. For instance, they use smart phones to look up any new word they come across. As we know that most of the universities have online teaching provision and smart phones assist the students to complete their assignments on time.

(3) The mobile phone has been a lifesaver for a lot of people in case of an emergency. Likewise, use of smart phones can be of vital importance in preventing crimes in the society by providing information to the security forces in time.

(4) Nonetheless, for the young the use of mobile phone can be like an addiction and they can misuse it. Young people are also prone to getting involved in undesirable activities on the Internet. This might have adverse effect on their academic performance. Therefore, young people should always be monitored and made aware of its bad outcomes. Also a major contributor to its popularity is the availability of prepaid or pay as you go services from a phone shop or an online store. This allows subscribers to load text or airtime credits to their handsets by the use of their credit cards, debit cards or by buying a prepaid card from the network they subscribe to. This plan also doesn’t commit a particular customer to a contract. If prepaid card is not that appealing to you, then you can opt to subscribe using the pay by month plan.


2.1 On the basis of your reading of the passage, answer the following questions in 30 – 40 words .

(i) How are Smart phones helpful in communication?
(ii) What are the benefits of mobile phones for the young generation?
(iii)How can Mobile phones be considered ‘lifesavers’?
(iv) Give two demerits of mobile phones?

2.2 On the basis of your reading of the passage, answer the following  (MCQs):

(i) In para 1, synonym of ‘innovation’ is ________.
(a) production
(b) sincerity
(c) invention
(d) prevention

(ii) Mobile internet can provide access to:
(a) telegram
(b) emails
(c) schools
(d) university

(iii) Meaning of the word ‘adverse’ in para 4 is:
(a) positive
(b) negative
(c) admirable
(d) unguided

(iv) According to the passage, one can opt for __________ plan if prepaid plan doesn’t suit.
(a) yearly
(b) weekly
(c) monthly
(d) daily



Answers:
Answer2.1:
i) Due to the easy access of smart phones, communication has been very effective and instant. People are able to convey their message all around the globe to their loved ones without spending hefty sums of money.

ii) Through mobile phones ,young people have been able to broaden their minds and improve their skills by doing research on the Internet. For instance, they use smart phones to look up any new word they come across. As we know that most of the universities have online teaching provision and smart phones assist the students to complete their assignments on time.

iii) The mobile phone has been a lifesaver for a lot of people in case of an emergency. Likewise, use of smart phones can be of vital importance in preventing crimes in the society by providing information to the security forces in time.


iv) Demerits :
i. The young the use of mobile phone can be like an addiction and they can misuse it.
ii. The mobile phone has been a lifesaver for a lot of people in case of an emergency. Likewise, use of smart phones can be of vital importance in preventing crimes in the society by providing information to the security forces in time.

Answer 2.2
i)   (c) Invention
ii). (b) emails
iii). (b) negative
iv). (c) monthly



Question 3(Unsolved): Read the passage carefully

Tribals, gypsies and aboriginals (generally grouped as Adivasis or the original inhabitants) are a vanishing lot. They walk and talk differently, do not conform to our ways of life, occupy territory that we need badly for our needs and development - the cards are all against them. Yet, they have some special talents and ways that we can take cues and learn to use to advantage, if only we treat them well and attempt to understand them. The Nari kuravas are expert foresters and forages, the Bhils are experts in what we call as sustainable way of life; they make a hundred useful things from leaves, roots, shoots and barks, and materials from small game animals. Some tribes are expert metallurgists while some others find medical use in many a herb and shrub. These discoveries, crafts and skills that they have learnt over generations of living as one with nature - skills and innovations that modern man can admire and learn from.

For eight months of the year, the Moken live off the sea, depending upon an amazing number of organisms therein. They use nets, traps, spears and harpoons, and spend a lot of time diving and staying under water. No snorkel, no sea goggles, no air cylinders, or flippers for them - thy make do as is, or at best use primitive gear. During the monsoon season they move ashore and live in temporary thatched huts, trading with the local people.


Complete the statements given below by choosing the most appropriate options: 
(i) The Adivasis have learnt the art of living as
(a) they have felt the need for it.
(b) they live in harmony with nature.
(c) they have been taught in their schools
(d) they are civilized

(ii) The Bhils are experts in    .
(a) hunting and catching wild animals
(b) gathering wild fruits and vegetables
(c) making a hundred useful things from plants
(d) farming and horticulture

(iii) If they are treated well and people try to understand them better    .
(a) we can learn a lot from them
(b) one can learn to be contented
(c) they would become civilized
(d) the adivasis would become educated


(iv) 'The aboriginals are a vanishing lot' would mean .
(a) they are shifting all the time
(b) they are fast disappearing
(c) are leaving the country
(d) are available all the time

(v) They can be called competent and skilled because
(a) they make the best use of resources available.
(b) they can read and write.
(c) they are receiving education,
(d) they have pursued some business or the other.


☛See also:
Reading Comprehension (Set-1)
Reading Comprehension (Set-2)
Reading Comprehension(Set-3) 
Reading Comprehension(Set-4)
Reading Comprehension (Set-5)
Reading Comprehension (Set-6)

Reading Comprehension (Set-7)
Reading Comprehension (Set-8)
Reading Comprehension (Set-11)
Reading Comprehension (Set-12)
Reading Comprehension (Set-13)