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(i) Santosh wanted to get better and higher education while as per the tradition she had to go to the local village school. So she was not satisfied with the kind of education she received in the village school. (ii) She decided to fight the system in her own quiet way by revolting against it at the right moment.
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What did Santosh decide in Class 9?

Reach for the Top Extra Questions and Answers Reference to Context – Read the extracts given below and answer the questions that follow. Question 1. The only woman in the world who has scaled Mt Everest twice was born in a society where the birth of a son was regarded as a blessing, and a daughter, though not considered a curse, was not generally welcome.

• (a) Name the only woman in the world who has climbed Mt Everest twice. Answer:
• The only woman to climb Mt Everest twice is Santosh Yadav.
• (b) What blessing did the holy man give her mother when she was expecting Santosh? Answer:
• The holy man blessed her mother that she give birth to a son.
• (c) Why was the holy man, who gave Santosh’s mother his blessings, surprised? Answer:
• The holy man was surprised when the grandmother requested blessing for a girl.
• (d) What does this show about her grandmother? Answer:
• Santosh’s grandmother was a progressive person who did not believe in conservative views.

Question 2. The girl was given the name ‘Santosh ‘, which means contentment. But Santosh was not always content with her place in a traditional way of life. She began living life on her own terms from the start. (a) What was the girl named? How was she different from her name? Answer: The girl was named Santosh, which means contentment. She was not content with a traditional way of life.

1. (b) What kind of society was Santosh born in? Answer:
2. Santosh was born in a society where the birth of a son was regarded as a blessing, and that of a daughter was not generally welcome.
3. (c) How did she began living her life from the beginning? Answer:
4. Santosh lived her life on her own terms from the beginning.
5. (d) Give an instance of her unconventional behaviour from her childhood? Answer:
6. While other girls wore traditional Indian dresses, Santosh preferred shorts.

Question 3. “From the very beginning I was quite determined that if I chose a correct and a rational path, the others around me had to change, not me. ”

• (a) Who speaks these words? Answer:
• Santosh Yadav, the mountaineer from Haryana, speaks these words.
• (b) What kind of choices did the speaker make? Answer:
• Santosh Yadav always chose the correct and rational path.
• (c) How was the speaker able to change those around her? Answer:
• Santosh Yadav was able to change those around her by making them yield to her firm decision through logic and rational argument.
• (d) What light do these words throw on the speaker? Answer:
• These words show that right from her childhood, Santosh did not wish to follow conventions and tradition blindly, but had a logical and rational approach.

Question 4. Santosh’s parents were affluent landowners who could afford to send their children to the best schools, even to the country’s capital, New Delhi, which was quite close by. But, in line with the prevailing custom in the family, Santosh had to make do with the local village school.

1. Santosh’s parents sent their daughter to the local village school to study as it was customary to do so.
2. (c) What light does this throw on Santosh’s family? Answer:
3. Santosh’s family members were conservative in their thought.
4. (d) At what age did Santosh begin to fight the prevailing customs? Answer:
5. Santosh began to fight the system at the age of sixteen.

Question 5. So, she decided to fight the system in her own quiet way when the right moment arrived. And the right moment came when she turned sixteen. (a) Who is ‘she’ in this extract and which system did she decide to fight? Answer: ‘She’ in the extract refers to Santosh Yadav, the famous mountaineer.

• (b) How and why did she decide to fight the system? Answer:
• Santosh Yadav decided to fight the system in her quiet but firm way because she did not want to insult those who supported the traditions nor did she want to give in to the system.
• (c) What was ‘the right moment’? Answer:
• The right moment was when she turned sixteen and was under pressure from her parents to get married like other girls of her village.
• (d) What did’ she’ do at this moment? Answer:
• Santosh Yadav did not wish to get married at such a young age, so she threatened her parents that she would never marry if she was denied proper education.

Question 6. A marriage as early as that was the last thing on her mind. She threatened her parents that she would never marry if she did not get a proper education. She left home and got herself enrolled in a school in Delhi.

1. (a) What is meant by “a marriage as early as that”? Answer:
2. In Santosh’s village girls were married off at the age of sixteen.
3. (b) What did her parents want Santosh to do? Answer:
4. Santosh’s parents wanted her to get married at the age of sixteen.
5. (c) What did Santosh do the escape parental pressure? Answer:
6. Santosh Yadav left home and got herself enrolled in a school in Delhi.
7. (d) What light does this throw on Santosh’s character? Answer:
8. Santosh was a person with a progressive way of thought and strong determination.

Question 7. When her parents refused to pay for her education, she politely informed them of her plans to earn money by working part time to pay her school fees.

• (a) Where did Santosh go for her education? Answer:
• Santosh decided to go to Delhi for her education.
• (b) Why did her parents refuse to pay for her education? Answer:
• Her parents refused to pay for her education because Santosh did not follow the family tradition of getting married early and got herself enrolled in a school in Delhi against their wishes.
• (c) What does this tell you about her parents? Answer:
• They were conservative and traditional in their thought and tried to pressurise their daughter into following the same path.
• (d) How did she react to her parents’ decision? Answer:
• Santosh refused to give up her studies and told her parents that she would manage to pay her school expenses by working part time.

Question 8. “I used to watch villagers from my room, going up the hill and suddenly vanishing after a while. One day I decided to check it out myself. I found nobody except a few mountaineers. I asked if I could join them. To my pleasant surprise, they answered in the affirmative and motivated me to take to climbing. ”

1. (a) From where did the speaker see people going up the hill? Answer:
2. The speaker saw people going up the hill from her room in Kasturba Hostel, Jaipur.
3. (b) Where did she see the villagers going? Answer:
4. She saw the villagers going up the hill.
5. (c) What did she decide to do one day? Answer:
6. One day she decided check out climbing the hill for herself.
7. (d) How did this prove a turning point in her life? Answer:
8. This climb up the hill with some mountaineers motivated her to take to mountaineering.

Question 9. Then there was no looking back for this determined young girl. She saved money and enrolled in a course at Uttarkashi’s Nehru Institute of Mountaineering.

• (a) What does the word ‘then’ imply? Answer:
• The word ‘then’ implies the point of time from when she took the decision to take up mountaineering.
• (b) Why did she enrol herself at Uttarkashi’s Nehru Institute of Mountaineering? Answer:
• She enrolled herself at Uttarkashi’s Nehru Institute of Mountaineering to train for mountaineering.
• (c) How did she pay for the course? Answer:
• She saved money and paid for the course.
• (d) What light does this throw on Santosh’s character? Answer:
• This shows her strong determination and strength of purpose in her desire to pursue her goals.

Question 10. I had to write a letter of apology to my father without whose permission I had got myself enrolled at Uttarkashi. (a) Why did Santosh have to write a letter of apology to her father? Answer: Santosh Yadav had to write a letter of apology to her father because she had got herself enrolled for a mountaineering course without seeking his permission.

1. (b) Where had she enrolled herself and why? Answer:
2. She had enrolled herself at the Uttarkashi’s Nehru Institute of Mountaineering in order to get proper training to pursue her interest in mountain climbing.
3. (c) Why didn’t Santosh seek her father’s permission before getting enrolled in the Institute? Answer:
4. Santosh knew that her father would not allow her to pursue a career in mountaineering, so she decided to let her parents know about it after joining the institute.
5. (d) What light does this extract reflect on the speaker’s character? Answer:

The extract shows that Santosh was adamant and determined to live life according to her choices. She did not mean to insult her parents in any way but at the same time did not wish to let go of her dreams and ambition. Question 11. Thereafter, Santosh went on an expedition every year.

• (a) On what expedition did Santosh go every year? Answer:
• Santosh went on a mountaineering expedition every year.
• (b) What skills did Santosh develop during her time at the Institute? Answer:

At the Institute Santosh’s climbing skills matured rapidly. Also, she developed a remarkable resistance to cold and the altitude.

1. (c) What inherent skills did Santosh helped that helped her achieve success in mountaineering? Answer:
2. Santosh possessed an iron will, an immense capacity for physical endurance and an amazing mental toughness that helped her achieve success in mountaineering.
3. (d) At what age did she climb Mt Everest for the first time? Answer:
4. Santosh climbed Mt Everest in 1992, at barely twenty years of age, becoming the youngest woman in the world to do so.

Question 12. If her climbing skills, physical fitness, and mental strength impressed her seniors, her concern for others and desire to work together with them found her a special place in the hearts of fellow climbers.

• (a) Why were her seniors impressed with Santosh? Answer:
• Santosh’s seniors were impressed with her because of her climbing skills, physical fitness, and mental strength.
• (b) What endeared her to her fellow climbers? Answer:
• Her team-spirit and her concern for her fellow climbers endeared her to them.
• (c) Give an example of Santosh’s concern for others. Answer:

Santosh Yadav tried her best to save the lives of two fellow climbers. She succeeded in saving the life of one, Mohan Singh, by sharing her oxygen with him.

1. (d) What great honour was given to Santosh by the Indian government in recognition of her achievements? Answer:
2. In recognition of her achievements the Indian government bestowed upon her one of the nation’s top honours, the Padmashri.
3. Maria Sharapova

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What did Santosh decide to do?

Santosh “decided to fight the system Santosh “decided to fight the system in her own quite way when the right moment arrived”, Elaborate Posted by Dechen Bhutia 2 years, 2 months ago Santosh was a very rational and progressive girl, who wished to shape her life herself.

She says, “From the very beginning I was quite determined that if I chose a correct and a rational path, the others around me had to change, not me.” Though it was not easy for a girl who came from a rigid patriarchal and traditional environment, she decided to fight the system in her own quiet way when the right moment arrived.

And the right moment came when she turned sixteen. At sixteen, most of the girls in her village used to get married. Santosh, too, was under pressure from her parents to do the same. Instead of giving in, she opposed her parents’ decision to marry her off at the early age of sixteen and got herself enrolled in a school in Delhi.

When her parents refused to pay for her education in the city, she told them politely that she would earn money for her fees by working part-time. She politely but firmly made it clear that she was determined to overcome all obstacles. Finally, her parents had to surrender. Her decision to take up mountaineering as a career was also handled very boldly by her.

She took admission in Uttarkashi’s Nehru Institute of Mountaineering without seeking the permission of her parents leaving them with no choice but to accept her decision. Thus, Santosh rebelled against the orthodox, conservative system in a quiet but firm way.
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Why did Santosh parents agree to pay for her schooling in Delhi Class 9?

Her parents got ready because she informed them of her plans to earn money by working part-time to pay for her school fees. The parents realised her determination and interest and agreed.
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What do you know about Santosh urge for higher education?

Reach for the Top Part 1 Lesson Explanation – The only woman in the world who has scaled Mt Everest twice was born in a society where the birth of a son was regarded as a blessing, and a daughter, though not considered a curse, was not generally welcome.

When her mother was expecting Santosh, a traveling ‘holy man’, giving her his blessing, assumed that she wanted a son. But, to everyone’s surprise, the unborn child’s grandmother, who was standing close by, told him that they did not want a son. The ‘holy man’ was also surprised! Nevertheless, he gave the requested blessing,

and as destiny would have it, the blessing seemed to work. Santosh was born the sixth child in a family with five sons, a sister to five brothers. She was born in the small village of Joniya was of Rewari District in Haryana. When this article was written, Santosh Yadav was the only woman in the world to have climbed Mount Everest twice.

She was born in such a society that was biased towards having a male child over a female child. Although they did not consider the birth of a girl child to be unfortunate, it was not celebrated either. When Santosh was to be born, a saint, assuming that Santosh’s mother wanted a son, blessed her that she would beget a son.

As she already had five sons, Santosh’s grandmother said to the saint that they did not want a son. The saint was amazed to hear this and blessed her alternatively. The blessing turned into a reality as Santosh was born. She was the youngest child, a sister to five brothers.

Santosh was born in a village named Joniyawas in the Rewari district of Haryana. The girl was given the name ‘Santosh’, which means contentment. But Santosh was not always content with her place in a traditional way of life. She began living life on her own terms from the start. Where other girls wore traditional Indian dresses, Santosh preferred shorts.

Looking back, she says now, “From the very beginning I was quite determined that if I chose a correct and a rational path, the others around me had to change, not me.” Contentment: satisfaction Although Santosh’s name means contentment, she was dissatisfied with the traditional way of life.

From a young age, she started living life on her own terms. While other girls wore traditional Indian dresses like salwar kameez, she preferred wearing shorts. Santosh recollects that from childhood, she was determined to live life according to what she felt was right for her. If she was right in her way, then others would have to change their way and not her.

Santosh’s parents were affluent landowners who could afford to send their children to the best schools, even to the country’s capital, New Delhi, which was quite close by. But, in line with the prevailing custom in the family, Santosh had to make do with the local village school.

So, she decided to fight the system in her own quiet way when the right moment arrived. And the right moment came when she turned sixteen. At sixteen, most of the girls in her village used to get married. Santosh was also under pressure from her parents to do the same. Affluent: well-to-do In line with: following or in accordance with, according to Custom: tradition Santosh’s parents owned land and were wealthy.

They could even afford the money to send their children to study in schools in Delhi which was near their village. Still, due to the prevailing customs, they decided to send Santosh to a school in the village. Santosh decided that she had to take her own path when the right time cam.

1. At the age of sixteen, as most of the girls in her village were married off, she was also pressurised by her parents.
2. A marriage as early as that was the last thing on her mind.
3. She threatened her parents that she would never marry if she did not get a proper education.
4. She left home and got herself enrolled in a school in Delhi.

When her parents refused to pay for her education, she politely informed them of her plans to earn money by working part time to pay her school fees. Her parents then agreed to pay for her education. the last thing: the least important thing Politely: gently For her, getting married was nowhere in the list.

1. She wanted to get proper education before getting married.
2. Santosh left home and got admission in a school in Delhi.
3. Her parents refused to fund her studies and she gently replied that she would herself fund her studies by working part-time.
4. Upon seeing her determination, the parents softened their stand and agreed to pay for her education.

Wishing always to study “a bit more” and with her father slowly getting used to her urge for more education, Santosh passed the high school examinations and went to Jaipur. She joined Maharani College and got a room in Kasturba Hostel. Santosh remembers, “Kasturba Hostel faced the Aravalli Hills.

• I used to watch villagers from my room, going up the hill and suddenly vanishing after a while.
• One day I decided to check it out myself.
• I found nobody except a few mountaineers.
• I asked if I could join them.
• To my pleasant surprise, they answered in the affirmative and motivated me to take to climbing.” Urge: strong desire Check it out: find out the truth Answered in the affirmative: gave a positive reply Santosh wanted to be highly qualified and her father accepted her wish.

After passing high school, she joined to Maharani college at Jaipur and stayed at the Kasturba hostel. The Aravalli hills were near the hostel. Often she saw villagers climbing the hills and disappearing behind it. She was curious to know what was beyond the hills and one day, she decided to find out.

Santosh found a few mountaineers who allowed her to join them in their mountaineering expedition. Then there was no looking back for this determined young girl. She saved money and enrolled in a course at Uttarkashi’s Nehru Institute of Mountaineering. “My college semester in Jaipur was to end in April but it ended on the nineteenth of May.

And I was supposed to be in Uttarkashi on the twenty-first. So, I did not go back home; instead, I headed straight for the training. I had to write a letter of apology to my father without whose permission I had got myself enrolled at Uttarkashi.” No looking back: to progress without interruption or impediment Enrolled: took admission into Headed straight for: went towards Since then, Santosh progressed gradually to become an accomplished mountaineer. Thereafter, Santosh went on an expedition every year. Her climbing skills matured rapidly. Also, she developed a remarkable resistance to cold and the altitude. Equipped with an iron will, physical endurance and an amazing mental toughness, she proved herself repeatedly.

• The culmination of her hard work and sincerity came in 1992, just four years after she had shyly asked the Aravalli mountaineers if she could join them.
• At barely twenty years of age, Santosh Yadav scaled Mt Everest, becoming the youngest woman in the world to achieve the feat.
• If her climbing skills, physical fitness, and mental strength impressed her seniors, her concern for others and desire to work together with them found her a special place in the hearts of fellow climbers.

During the 1992 Everest mission, Santosh Yadav provided special care to a climber who lay dying at the South Col. She was unfortunately unsuccessful in saving him. However, she managed to save another climber, Mohan Singh, who would have met with the same fate had she not shared her oxygen with him.

Matured: developed Resistance: the ability not to be affected by something Equipped: supplied with Physical endurance: strength Culmination: end Scaled: climbed Santosh went on an expedition every year and improved her skills gradually. She developed immunity to cold weather and heights. Santosh had the qualities of physical strength, mental strength and strong will power.

In 1992, four years after her first casual climb on the Aravalli hills, she climbed Mount Everest. She was twenty years of age. Santosh became the youngest woman in the world to climb the peak. Her seniors were impressed by her qualities of physical strength, mental strength and strong will power. Within twelve months, Santosh found herself a member of an Indo-Nepalese Women’s Expedition that invited her to join them. She then scaled Everest a second time, thus setting a record as the only woman to have scaled Everest twice, and securing for herself and India a unique place in the annals of mountaineering.

In recognition of her achievements, the Indian government bestowed upon her one of the nation’s top honors, the Padma Shri. Annals: historic records Bestowed upon her: honoured her with Top honours: highest award Within the next year, she had joined a group of Indo – Nepalese mountaineer women. Then she climbed the peak the second time, becoming the only woman to have climbed the Everest twice.

Santosh made India proud by getting her name recording in the Historic records of mountaineering. The Indian government honoured her achievement by giving her the Padmashri award. Describing her feelings when she was literally ‘on top of the world’, Santosh has said, “It took some time for the enormity of the moment to sink in Then I unfurled the Indian tricolour and held it aloft on the roof of the world. the enormity of the moment: a very great moment sink in: be understood held it aloft: held it up high fervent: having strong and sincere feelings Santosh recollects her feelings when she was literally at the top of the world. She took time to realize that she had achieved something big.
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