Visvesvarayya

Unit - 1

MOKSHAGUNDAMVISVESVARAYA

Sir Mokshagundam Visvesvaraya (1861 - 1962) was born in 1861 in

Muddenahalli situated in Karnataka state. He is a notable Indian engineer,

scholar, statesman and worked as the Diwan of Mysore during 1912 to

1918. He was the recipient of the Indian Republic’s highest honour, theBharat Ratna, in 1955. He was knighted as a Commander of the British

Indian Empire by King George V for his myriad contributions to the public.

He received accolades internationally as a pre-eminent engineer of India. He was the chief

designer of the flood protection system for the city of Hyderabad as well as the chief engineer

responsible for the construction of the Krishna Raja Sagara Dam in Mysore. We celebrate

Engineers’ Day on the occasion of his birthday on 15 September every year.

Pre-Reading

1. Name some popular professional courses you intend to choose for higher studies?

2. Why do you think that students migrate to other countries for higher studies?

3. Do you prefer to serve your country or go abroad?

4. If you prefer to stay in India how best and what do you intend to contribute to your

country?

“Remember, your work may be only to sweep a railway crossing, but it is your duty to keep it so

clean that no other crossing in the world is as clean as yours” - Mokshagundam Visvesvaraya

On the 15th of September 1861, more than a century ago a little boy was born in Muddenahalliin the Chikkaballapur Taluk of Kolar District (Mysore State). His father Srinivasa Sastry and hismother Venkatalakshmamma named him Visvesvaraya. Srinivasa Sastry was a great Sanskritscholar of those days. Both he and his wife were good and pious couple who led a very simple andspiritual life. Even though they were not very well off, both of them decided to educate the littleboy.

Right from his childhood days, Visvesvaraya learnt from his parents deep respect for theculture and the traditions of the land. His father enrolled him in a school in their tiny Taluk itself andVisvesvaraya completed his early education there. He was a good and a diligent student and waskeenly interested in pursuing his studies. So with his parents consent and blessing, he set out toBangalore in order to go in for higher education when he was around fifteen years old. In Bangalore,he joined the Central College. But unfortunately, his pocket was empty and he had no roof over hishead. But this helpless state did not bog Visvesvaraya down. Instead he started looking for a jobthat would sustain him and pay for his studies. He found a family from Coorg, who was looking fora tutor for their children. Visvesvaraya, himself a student at that time, became their tutor. He livedwith them and earned a few rupees with which he completed his education. As a student heearned every rupee by his hard work.

Discipline was ever his watchword. All through his student days he worked hard and in asystematic way. He was an early riser and started his work quite early. Though he was poverty-stricken, he continued to study well and stood high in the B.A. Examination. When he was twenty,he managed to get some help from the Government of Mysore and joined the Science College inPoona to study Engineering. Three years later, by sheer determination and hard work, he rankedfirst in the L.C.E. and the E.C.E. Examinations (these were like the B.E. Examination of today).

As soon as the results were out, the Government of Bombay offered him the post of anAssistant Engineer at Nasik. Visvesvaraya was very happy and he worked with utmost commitmentand excelled in his post. When he was 32 years old, a very difficult task was assigned to himwhere he was asked to find a way of supplying water from the river Sindhu to a town calledSukkur. He prepared an ingenious plan, which amazed the other famous engineers. He developeda new system called the Block System where he devised steel doors; these could stop the wastefulflow of water in dams. Even British officers of those times were astonished by his dexterity andthey were full of praise for the invention.

2 Epitome of Wisdom

The Government appreciated Visvesvaraya’s genius and sincerity. He was promoted to higherpositions. From Bombay, Visvesvaraya went to Hyderabad as the Chief Engineer. Here he showedan extraordinary performance that was simply impossible at that time.

The river Musi divided the city of Hyderabad into two. When rains lashed, the river was infloods and the waters of the river poured into many houses, and men and cattle were carried away.He got the entire area of the river Musi surveyed and went through official records of the previousfloods. He collected data of rainfall in the neighbouringBombay and Madras provinces. He studied the figuresof heavy rainfall in different parts of the world. He foundthat in the catchment area of the river Musi, aboveHyderabad, there were 788 small tanks, which workedout at five tanks to every three square miles ofcatchment area. Of these, 221 tanks gave way owingto the recent floods. He identified the place where theheaviest rainfall had occurred and where and when thereservoir broke down during floods. The water whichflowed out had a speed of four miles per hour. He found that smaller the catchment area, greater theeffect of the floods. He proposed the construction of one dam across the Musi at a distance of eighty-two miles above the city, and another across the Esi, a tributary of Musi, at a distance of six and a halfmiles. He planned dams to tame the Musi and also suggested that lovely parks should be laid out onthe banks of the river. The work was undertaken in 1913 and before the construction was completed,Visvesvaraya had become the Dewan of Mysore. But he continued to visit Hyderabad to supervisethe construction of the dams and other schemes taken up by him. These dams, known as Himayatsagarand Osmansagar, provide water to the twin cities of Hyderabad and Secunderabad. Visvesvarayawas instrumental for all the privileges Hyderabad has got, such as improved drainage system, plentyof water resources, electricity even today.

The resourcefulness of Visvesvaraya earned him the position of the Chief Engineer in theMysore State. But Visvesvaraya was not just interested in buildings, roads and bridges. He saw thatthe people of India were in a miserable condition. There were very few schools and only six personsout of every hundred could read and write. Many people were just farmers who depended

completely on the rains for their food. He saw that ignorance, poverty and sickness plagued the

people and he wanted to bring about a change.

Krishnaraja Sagar Dam, in the vicinity of the renowned Brindavan Gardens, is reminiscent

of Visvesvaraya’s ingenuity. The dam was conceived not only for the purpose of irrigation, but

3Mokshagundam Visvesvaraya

also for providing electricity to the Kolar goldfields. As the work of construction was proceeding,

the river Cauvery rose in spate. Visvesvaraya directed the work to be carried out with greater

enthusiasm. He advised 2,000 more labourers to be taken in where 10,000 had already been

employed. The gold company asked him to give an assurance of supplying power by July

1915 in order to pay extra money to the workers. This was an additional incentive to complete

the work in time. He directed the work to be carried on non-stop day and night, advising the

use of bright ‘Washington’ lights during the night. Doctors were appointed to treat workers

afflicted by malaria. He directed the Chief Engineer, the Inspector General of Police and the

Deputy Commissioner of the District to camp at the spot to speed up the work, to look after the

security of the persons and property, and supervise the work in general. By facing all unexpected

problems and difficulties with courage, he got the work completed well in time. Power was also

supplied to Kolar goldfields by July 1915.

Visvesvaraya suggested that an Economic Conference had to be set up to find ways of

removing ignorance, poverty and sickness. He can be credited with economic planning in

India. He started agricultural and horticultural shows

and established agricultural schools and experimental

farms. Rehabilitation of the handloom industry was also

taken up. A Central Government weaving factory was

established to provide weavers with latest designs and

techniques in weaving. The State Bank of Mysore was

founded in 1913 for financing the projects. Prior to

1916, sandalwood was being auctioned in Mysore and

the purchasers used to export it to France, Italy, and

Germany where it was treated to yield sandal oil, the

base for various perfumes and toiletries. Rice mills, oil mills, sugarcane crushing mills and

power looms sprang up everywhere. Thus industrialisation in the state picked up momentum.

It was Visvesvaraya who gave the clarion call - Industrialize or Perish.

Visvesvaraya continued to be the Chief Engineer of Mysore for three years. In 1912

when he was 51, the Maharaja of Mysore chose Visvesvaraya as his Dewan or his Chief Minister.

Soon after Visvesvaraya became the Dewan, one of his relatives went to him. He asked

Visvesvaraya, “Can you get me into a higher post for a better pay with your recommendation

to the Maharaja?” Visvesvaraya who was very straightforward, answered ‘No’ to him. At the

same time, he was kind hearted and as long as the relative was alive, he paid him a hundred

rupees every month from his pocket. He was always neatly dressed and ready for work by

seven in the morning. He was known everywhere for his discipline and tidiness. There was not

4 Epitome of Wisdom

a crease or a wrinkle anywhere on his clothes. As the Dewan, he got a car from the Government

for his use. He used the Government car for government work and for his private work he used

his own car. Those were days when people had to work by candle light. He used, for official

work, the stationery and the candles supplied by the Government; for his private work he used

stationery and candles, which he had bought. He was such an honest man. Once, one of his

friends was advised rest after some illness. He wanted to spend some days in Bangalore. The

friend wrote a letter to him asking for a house for some days. He thought the Dewan would

give him a Government Guest House, free of rent. The Dewan did give him a Government

House; but as long as the friend stayed there, Visvesvaraya himself paid the rent of Rs. 250 a

month. It showed his honesty.

Visvesvaraya planned everything smoothly,

methodically and without any hurry. Visvesvaraya realized

that industry was the backbone of a country. So he developed

the existing industries. He also got experts from other

countries to help the local craftsmen by teaching their skills.

Thus many new industries came up during his tenure as the

Chief Minister. He started the Sandal Oil Factory, the Soap

Factory, the Metals Factory, the Chrome Tanning Factory and Bhadravati Iron and Steel Works.

He also brought in many hotels into Mysore and played a major role in the laying of railway

lines.

Visvesvaraya always believed in the value of education. When he became the Dewan,

there were about 4,500 schools in Mysore State. In six Years about 6,500 new schools were

opened. He also stressed on education for women. He established the Maharani’s College in

Mysore where the first hostel for girls was also opened. He also made arrangements for the

government to give scholarships to intelligent students to go to foreign countries for studies.

Visvesvaraya achieved much in six years what others could not have accomplished in

sixty years. People asked each other, “Is he a magician?” many a time. But for Visvesvaraya it

was no magic. He always believed only in hard work. He once said, “The curse of our country

is laziness. At first sight everyone seems to be working. But in fact, one-man works and the

others watch him. As someone said with contempt, “It looks as if five men are working. But

really only one- man works. One man will be doing nothing. One man will be resting. Another

man will be watching them. Yet another man will be helping these three.”

Sir Visvesvaraya was also a fearless patriot. In those days the Englishmen considered

themselves the Lords of the country. The Maharaja of Mysore had the tradition of holding a


Durbar during the Dasara festivities every year. On the day of the Durbar, the Europeans were

given comfortable chairs but Indians were required to sit on the floor. Visvesvaraya went to the

Durbar for the first time in 1910. The arrangements pained him. The next year he did not attend

the Durbar. When the officers of the palace made enquiries, he frankly gave the reason. The

very next year all the Europeans and Indians were given chairs. Following this a British officer

wrote a letter to him. In his letter he said, “In the Maharaja’s Durbar, I want a cushion to rest my

feet because the chair is too high.” Visvesvaraya promptly got the legs of the chair shortened

and wrote back saying- “the height has been reduced.” It showed his fearlessness.

In 1918 at the age of 57, he took voluntary retirement. He went to the Palace in the

Government car and gave the letter and returned in his own car. After retirement he went

abroad numerous times, for some work or the other. Wherever he went, he used to keep a

notebook and a pencil in his hand. He made notes on every new information with which he

could help the country. After his retirement when the

Bhadravati Factory was in trouble, he worked as the

Chairman giving advice for its restoration. At that time,

the Government had not decided the salary for him. It

took them some years to do so but by then the

Government owed him more than a hundred thousand

rupees. When they finally decided to pay him,

Visvesvaraya said, “I will not touch a single rupee. Start

an institute where boys can learn some profession.” The

government followed his wish and wanted to name it after Visvesvaraya. But he said, “Name it

after the Maharaja of Mysore.” Thus the Sri Jayachamarajendra Polytechnic Institute of Bangalore

came about.

In 1944, an association arranged a conference where Visvesvaraya was the Chairman.

The Governor of Berar, an Englishman, was to open the conference. In those days the Governors

were very powerful, highly respected and obeyed. The conference was to discuss a resolution

that India should have a national government. The Governor said that the resolution should not

be discussed. “Otherwise,” he said, “I will not come.” Visvesvaraya was unperturbed by the

objection and said to his friends, “All right. Why wait for him? Let us go on with the conference”.

Such was his commitment towards the country that he did not care a powerful person who

hindered the growth.

Because of his genius, experience and mellow wisdom people wanted to hear him and

quite often he was to make speeches. Whenever he had to make a speech he would think about

6 Epitome of Wisdom

what he was going to say, write the speech, get it typed and utter every word and revise it. He

would revise it four or five times and give it a final shape.

Once he visited a Primary School in his native village, Muddenahalli. He gave the teacher

ten rupees and asked him to distribute sweets to the children. The teacher requested him saying,

“Please say a few words to the children, sir.” Sir Visvesvaraya spoke for five minutes and went

away. But later he was unhappy because he had spoken without preparation. Some days later

he prepared a speech and went to the school again; once again he distributed sweets to the

children and made his speech to his satisfaction.

He toiled on briskly though old age crept around him. When he was around 92, he went

to Fatna where he was called to study a plan for a bridge across the Ganga. The sun was cruel

and the heat was unbearable. There were parts of the site to which he could not go by car. The

Government had arranged to have him carried in a chair. But he refused to use the chair. He got

off the car and started walking briskly much to the amazement of the rest.

In 1955 when he was 94 years of age, Visvesvaraya was honoured with ‘Bharat Ratna’

or the Gem of India by the Government of India.

His memory even when he was almost a hundred years old remained pristine. Fifty years

after he had tamed river Musi, at the age of 97, there was a discussion about the river with

certain others where some references were made to some intricate details. Visvesvaraya called

a servant and pointing to a bookshelf, said, “Bring the three or four books in the middle of the

third row.” Then he opened one of them and pointed exactly to the detail under discussion on

that page.

When he finally turned 100, people all over India showered their

affection and respect on the Grand Old Man. The Government of India

also brought out a stamp in his honor. Somebody once said to him, “You

have done great service to the country. You are like Bhishmacharya.” He

replied, “You make me remember what a small man I am. What am I

before Bhishmacharya?” He was so modest. Even at the age of 100, he

rose to receive a visitor; he got up again when the visitor was leaving.

Visvesvaraya silently passed away on 14th of April 1962. Then his age was 101 years.

‘Success in life depends on action, that is, on what you do, and not what you feel or think

and the price of success is hard work.’ This was, in fact, exemplified by Visvesvaraya during

his lifetime. He was by birth poor, by tradition a gentleman, by occupation an engineer, by

circumstances a Dewan, by ideology a scientist, and by efforts an industrialist. He had the


courage of conviction and strength of mind to act accordingly. He had

been a combination of endeavor, adventure, courage, intellect, capacity

and strength. He led the country to the path of progress and his each and

every creation was considered mighty and magnificent. But far mightier

and far more magnificent was the matchless Dreamer, Achiever and Leader

who paved the way to modern India.

Glossary

diligent : hard-workingpious : devout, religiouswatchword : sloganingenious : cleverdexterity : skill in performing taskslash : a swift and sweeping movementinstrumental : active, influentialresourcefulness : creativityplagued : troubledvicinity : surrounding areareminiscent : recollective, remindfulspate : a sudden outpouring floodrehabilitation : restoremomentum : impetus, energyclarion call : an urgent call to actionperish : diemethodical : disciplined, systematiccontempt : dislikenumerous : many, plentifulunperturbed : untroubled, undisturbedmellow : matured, developedtoil on : hard and continuous workpristine : pure, uncorruptedintricate : complexconviction : a firmly held beliefendeavour : effortmagnificent : wonderful, outstanding

8 Epitome of Wisdom

Text - based Questions

A. Say whether each of the following statements is TRUE or FALSE.

1. Visvesvaraya ranked first in the L.C.E. and the E.C.E. Examinations.

2. Esi is a tributary of Sindhu river.

3. Power was supplied to Kolar Gold fields in 1915.

4. In 1955, when he was 89 years old, Visvesvaraya was honoured with Bharat Ratna.

5. Visvesvaraya compared himself with Bhishmacharya.

B. Answer the following questions in about 100-150 words each.

1. Write briefly about Visvesvaraya’s education.

2. Describe the construction of Krishna Sagar Dam.

3. What was the system Visvesvaraya devised for solving the water problem in Nasik?

4. How did Visvesvaraya plan for the growth of Indian economy?

5. How did Visvesvaraya solve the water problem in the twin cities of Hyderabad andSecunderabad?

C. Answer the following questions in about 200-250 words each.

1. Visvesvaraya is known as the versatile genius. Describe his contribution to thedevelopment of our Nation.

2. “Visvesvaraya is the father of technologically Independent India”. Explain.

3. Discuss the role of Visvesvaraya as a true patriot.

4. Explain the incidents which reveal Visvesvaraya’s modesty and humility.

5. What according to you is more important between knowledge and wisdom? Justify youranswer with suitable examples from the lesson.

PREFIXES AND SUFFIXESPrefixes and suffixes together are called affixes. Affixes, when added to the base/root words newwords are created. Prefixes are those which are added at the beginning of a word while suffixes arethose which are added at the end of a word. For example, mis- is a prefix in the word ‘mismatch’ and–ness is a suffix in the word ‘darkness’.

Vocabulary


Some common prefixes and their meanings are:

pre– ‘before’ post- ‘after’

mis- ‘ bad(ly)’ in-/im-/il-/un- ‘not’

sub– ‘ under’ re- ‘again’

inter– ‘ between’ semi– ‘half’

Most of the suffixes change the parts of speech of a word. Here are a few common ones:

-tion/-ion/sion ‘verb to noun’ collect-ion

-ly ‘adjective to adverb’ slow-ly

-ness ‘adjective to noun dark-ness

-en ‘adjective to verb’ strength-en

-ous ‘noun to adjective’ glory-ous

-ful ‘noun to adjective’ beauty-ful

Exercises

A. List any five words ending with the following suffixes. You can pick some of the words fromthe text or write the words by guesswork.

- ous ........................................................................................................

- eer .......................................................................................................

- ment.......................................................................................................

- ly .......................................................................................................

- ism .......................................................................................................

- able .......................................................................................................

- ion .......................................................................................................

- er .......................................................................................................

- cy .......................................................................................................

- mis .......................................................................................................

10 Epitome of Wisdom

B. Look at the following words.

keeness darkness kindness gentleness

i) These are abstract nouns. These are derived from the adjectives, keen, dark, kind andgentle respectively. ‘-ness’ is an affix which when added to an adjective changes theadjective into an abstract noun. Can you list 10 more abstract nouns which are derivedfrom adjectives by adding the suffix ‘-ness’.

ii) We can also derive adjectives from nouns. For example, the adjectives like delightful andbeautiful are derived from the nouns delight and beauty. Here the suffix used is ‘-ful’. Canyou list 10 adjectives derived from nouns by the addition of the suffix ‘-ful’?

iii) ‘-ly’ is another suffix which when added to an adjective, we obtain adverb forms. Forexample, the adverb desperately is derived from the adjective desperate. Can you list 10more adverbs which are derived from adjectives by the addition of the suffix ‘-ly’?

iv) What are the other suffixes you know which can be used to derive words belonging to oneparts of speech from words belonging to other parts of speech? Mention each of them withat least two examples.

For example: courage (N) courageous (adj) courageously(adv)

........................ ........................ ........................

........................ ........................ ........................

........................ ........................ ........................

C. Full in each blank with an appropriate form of the word given in brackets. You will have to useprefixes and/or suffixes to make it a meaningful sentence.

1. He was acting in ....................................... . (child)

2. Some of the big towns are dreadfully ........................................ . (crowd)

3. The team that he supported was able to win the ........................................ .(champion)

4. The leader is ........................................ of doing service to people.(capability)

5. I couldn’t find any ........................................ in his theory. (weak)

6. He wants to be a ........................................ when he grows up. (mathematics)

7. There were only a ........................................ of people at the match. (hand)


8. She arrived late at work because she had ........................................ . (sleep)

9. They had to ........................................ the lion before they could catch it. (tranquil)

10. He needed to ........................................ the temperature. (regular)

11. The officer was prosecuted for ........................................ the funds.(use)

12. I am ........................................ to contact him on telephone.(able)

13. She looked at her ........................................ in the mirror. (reflect)

14. The committee has ........................................ the chairman’s decision. (approval)

15. She had no ........................................ of going to see him. (intend)

16. The principal ........................................ the flag and hoisted it. (furled)

17. The film was ........................................ good. (surprise)

18. The band ........................................ the crowd with its music.(rock)

19. I don’t like him at all. He’s so ........................................ . (satisfy)

20. The film was so ........................................ that we left before the end. (bore)

D. Match the following words with their meanings.

A B

1. ridicule ( ) A. a man devoid of kind feeling and sympathy

2. ensconce ( ) B. incapable of being effaced

3. idiosyncratic ( ) C. one who lives in solitude

4. recluse ( ) D. peculiar to the individual

5. penetrate ( ) E. to give up a throne voluntarily

6. sabotage ( ) F. a pardonable offense

7. abdicate ( ) G. to pass through

8. callous ( ) H. fix firmly

9. venial ( ) I. a deliberate act of destruction

10. ineffaceable ( ) J. behavior intended to mock or humiliate


JOINING IDEAS BY CONJUNCTIONS

Look at the following sentences from the lesson about Visvesaraya:

1. He lived with them and earned a few rupees.

2. Though he was poverty-stricken, he continued to study well.

3. When he was twenty, he managed to get some help from the Government of Mysore.

4. As soon as the results were out, the Government of Bombay offered him the post of anAssistant Engineer at Nasik.

In each of these sentences, we see that two ideas are connected. For example, in the firstsentence, two ideas, (i) Visvesvaraya lived with some people and (ii) he earned a few rupees are joined.These two ideas are joined by what we call conjunction ‘and’. Can you list the conjunctions used toconnect ideas in the rest of the sentences?

There are two types of conjunctions (i) coordinating conjunctions and (ii) subordinatingconjunctions. Coordinating conjunctions are words like and, or and but. The sentences formed byusing these are compound sentences. Therefore the sentence in (1) above is a compound sentence.

On the other hand, subordinating conjunctions create complex sentences. In the sentences (2),(3) and (4) above, though, when and as soon as are the subordinating conjunctions and the sentencesare complex sentences.

Coordinating conjunctions

Coordinating conjunctions can join two or more words, phrases or sentences.

For example,

small and beautiful (two adjectives)

a dog and a cat (two noun phrases)

She is a doctor and her husband is a lawyer. (two sentences)

There are mainly three coordinating conjunctions, viz., and, or and but.

Would you like some tea or some fruit juice?

Vocabulary


I had a banana, some corn flakes and a cup of coffee for breakfast.

They offered lunch but I didn’t eat.

Subordinating Conjunctions

Subordinating conjunctions combine the main idea with a subordinate idea. Some of the importantconjunctions are so, because, that, when, though, even though, and although.

For example,

Though he is rich, he is not happy.

Here he is happy is the main clause and though he is rich is the subordinate clause. Mainclauses are independent while subordinate clauses are not. Each subordinate conjunction conveys aspecific meaning. For example, a because-clause talks about a reason.

Study the following complex sentences containing subordinate clauses.

a) It began to rain, so I didn’t go out.

b) It began to rain, but I went out.

In sentence (a), the subordinate clause gives the expected result but in the sentence (b), the subordinateclause gives the unexpected result.

Similar is the case with the following sentences:

c) Because I was thirsty, I drank water.

d) Though I was thirsty, I didn’t drink water.

Although, even though and though have the same meaning. So substituting one for the other doesnot change the meaning of the sentence.

Though/Although/Even though he studied day and night, he wasn’t able to get a good score inTOEFL.

You can change the order of the clauses in the above sentence, yet the meaning does not change.

Some conjunctions like after, before and and refer to time. For example, look at the following sentences:

We started the party after my friend came / had come home.

Did you reach the station before the train arrived / had arrived?

When the teacher came / had come into the classroom, all the students stood up.


Conditional Clauses

Conditional clauses begin with the subordinating conjunction if. That’s why, they are called if-

clauses. There are three types of conditional clauses, namely, (i) those that refer to real situations

(ii) those that refer to present/future imaginary situations and (iii) past imaginary situations. The

following sentences illustrate these:

i) If it rains, I will not go to college. (It is possible that it rains) (Real condition)

ii) If the teacher saw this, she would punish us. (It is least possible that she sees us.)

(Imaginary condition – present/future)

iii) If you hadn’t come on time, you would have missed the opportunity. (You had come on

time.) (Imaginary condition – past)

Notice the tenses in the above sentences. In the first one, the if-clause is in present simple

tense and the main clause is in future. In the second sentence, the if-clause is in past simple tense

and the main clause contains the auxiliary would and the main verb. Lastly in the third sentence, the

if-clause contains past perfect and the main clause has would+have+verb.

Meanings of Conjunctions

Each conjunction, whether it is coordinating conjunction or subordinating conjunction, adds two

or more ideas and bears some meaning. Given below are some conjunctions and their common

meanings:

Coordinating Conjunction Meaning

and Addition

or Alternatives

but Contrast

so Result

either … or Choice

neither ... nor Negation of choice


Subordinating Conjunctions Meanings

when, whenever, before, after, as soon as Time

because, for, as, since Cause

though, although, even though Concession

while, whereas Comparison

as if, as though Manner

so that Purpose

if, unless Condition

Exercises

A. The following ideas are from the lesson on Visvesaraya. Find them and join them with anappropriate conjunction.

1. The rains lashed. The river was in floods.

2. Visvesvaraya worked with utmost commitment. He excelled in his post.

3. Visvesvaraya completed the construction work in Hyderabad. He became the Dewan ofMysore.

4. Visvesvaraya earned the position of Chief Engineer in the Mysore State. He was not justinterested in buildings, roads and bridges.

5. Visvesvaraya became the Dewan. One of his relatives went to him for recommendationfor higher pay.

6. There was not a crease on his clothes. There was not a wrinkle on his clothes.

7. Visvesvaraya became the Dewan. There were about 4,500 schools in Mysore State.

8. The officers of the palace made the enquiries. He frankly gave the reason.

9. The Bhadravati Factory was in trouble. He worked as the Chairman giving advice for itsrestoration.

10. Visvesvaraya was 94 years of age. He was honoured with “Bharat Ratna’ by the Governmentof India.


B. The following conjunctions are also used in the lesson ‘Visvesaraya’ to join ideas. Find themin the text, write at least one sentence illustrating each conjunction and say what meaning doesthe conjunction convey there.

1. though

2. not only … but also

3. where

4. because

5. as long as

C. Combine each pair of sentences with a conjunction given below.

while as if as soon as if because when

as so that before as after till

1. a) I was standing in balcony.

b) I saw your car.

2. a) Please ring me up.

b) You reach the station.

3. a) Ram should introduce the team to the Chief Guest.

b) Ram is the captain of our team.

4. a) They went to see a movie.

b) They had their lunch.

5. a) Uma looked very beautiful.

b) I met her last time.

6. a) Harish hit the ball.

b) He was a professional cricket player.

7. a) We couldn’t go out.

b) It was raining.

8. a) Rajan reached the station early.

b) He could catch the first train to Hyderabad.


9. a) It is very hot.

b) I will not go to college.

10. a) Rima was watching TV.

b) Her husband was reading the newspaper.

ADVERBS

An adverb is a word that modifies a verb or an adjective. An adverb usually answers questionslike how? how often? when? where? and why? Most of the adverbs are derived from adjective by addingthe suffix –ly. For example, happily, slowly, brightly.

The children were happily singing the happy birthday tune.

However some adverbs are irregular. They do not end with the suffix –ly.

For example:

We worked very hard on the project.

The Indian team played well this time.

Depending on what they mean, adverbs can be classified into different classes. We shall look atthem briefly.

Adverbs like quickly, legibly, and clearly are called adverbs of manner as they describe the waysomething is done.

He spoke clearly. (manner)

They quickly finished the work and went to bed. (manner)

There are certain adverbs that tell us when something happens/ happened. These are calledadverbs of time.

Can you come to gym tomorrow? (time)

There are yet some other adverbs which talk about the place of action. These are called adverbsof place.

I kept the book here, but I don’t find it now. (place)

The other class of adverbs which are very common are adverbs of frequency.

He often visits the library. (frequency)

Some adverbs show how sure we are about some action and those are known as adverbs ofprobability.

Perhaps he knows the answer.

Probably she comes home early.


Adverbs may also give information about the extent or degree of something. These are calledadverbs of degree.

It is an extremely interesting film.

She talks a lot.

Exercises

A. Write the adverbs formed from the adjectives given below and use them in your own sentences.

1. comfortable....................................................................................................

....................................................................................................

2. merry ....................................................................................................

....................................................................................................

3. quiet ....................................................................................................

....................................................................................................

4. amicable ....................................................................................................

....................................................................................................

5. heavy ....................................................................................................

....................................................................................................

A. Listen to the conversation (TRACK - 1) on the CD and answer the following questions.

1. Which one of the following statements is true? ( )

a. Both the speakers are new students.

b. Karthik is a new student.

c. Priya is a new student.

d. None of them is a new student.

Listening


2. Where do you think the conversation is taking place? ( )

a. Library

b. Classroom

c. Canteen

d. Sports room

3. Where are Karthik and Priya from? ( )

a. Vizag

b. Vijayawada

c. Khammam

d. Kurnool

4. Where is Priya from? ( )

a. Vizag

b. Vijayawada

c. Karimnagar

d. Warangal

5. What does Priya say about homework? ( )

a. Teachers don’t give homework.

b. Teachers give a lot of homework.

c. Teachers give a little homework.

d. Teachers sometimes give homework.

B. Listen to the conversation (TRACK - 2) on the CD and answer the following questions.

1. What was Karthik confused about? ( )

a. about a course

b. about college

c. about a classroom

d. about a friend


2. When did Priya do the EDC course? ( )

a. in her Intermediate

b. in the last semester

c. in the previous year

d. two semesters back

3. Who teaches EDC course? ( )

a. Prof. Bharat

b. Prof. Bharani

c. Prof. Bharati

d. Prof. Bhanumati

4. Which of the following statements is true about the Grade that Priya got in EDC?

a. She got a B grade. ( )

b. She didn’t get a better grade.

c. She got a better grade in EDC than any other subject.

d. She got a C grade.

5. Which of the following statements is true about Karthik? ( )

a. He is more confused after talking to Priya.

b. He is not going to stay in EDC class.

c. He doesn’t like EDC class.

d. He is relieved after talking to Priya

Here are some common expressions used for responding to opinion - based questions.

In my opinion / view ...............................................

Generally speaking, I think ...............................................

To my mind ...............................................

Listening


I’d just like to say ...............................................

As far as I’m concerned ...............................................

I’m quite convinced that ...............................................(use this expression only to expressa very strong opinion!)

To be quite honest / frank ...............................................

If you ask me ...............................................

Personally, I haven’t the faintest idea about / whether... (starting with this expression maybe interpreted as off-hand and could suggest that you have nothing else to say!)

Exercise

Now frame appropriate questions related to the issues highlighted given below. And also writemeaningful responses to the questions framed and enact a role play based on the guidelinesgiven by your teacher.

1. Eve teasing

Q) ..................................................................................................................

Ans: Yes, I do think there is a need for constant police patrolling …. Apart from usingadvance chips in the mobiles that could timely detect and record the incident and reportedto the authorities with a call trace techniques ………. .

2. Fashion Designing

Q) ....................................................................................................................

Ans. .................................................................................................................

3. Teen drug use

Q) ....................................................................................................................

Ans. .................................................................................................................

4. Use of Cell phones

Q) ....................................................................................................................

Ans. .................................................................................................................


5. Genetically-engineered food

Q) ....................................................................................................................

Ans. .................................................................................................................

THE PALM ISLANDS

Since the 1980s, Dubai has come to the

forefront of global business and tourism. The

ruler of Dubai, Sheik Mohammed bin Rashid al

Maktoum, pursued development in tourism as

a way to eliminate the emirate’s dependence on

dwindling oil supplies.

But Dubai’s development is limited by

geographical setting. It is a small desert nation

with a coastline of only 37 miles long. High-rise

buildings and hotels gobbled up Dubai’s Persian

Gulf coast in the 1990s, standing like a wall of

buildings.

In 1993, construction of the future home the Burj Al Aram, a seven-star hotel began on Dubai’s first

man-made island. The striking structure stands out from the surrounding skyscrapers, and it is located 919

feet out into the sea. This keeps its shadow from interfering with a nearby beach resort. The success of Burj

Al Arab’s offshore encouraged the Arabs to formulate an even grander plan: enormous artificial islands.

Sheik Mohammed first sketched the palm design as a way to have the properties a maximum view of

the beach. The longest frond on the smallest island spans about a mile of sea and contains property on both

sides. The Palm Islands of Dubai in the United Arab Emirates are the world’s largest artificial islands, each

manmade island designed in the shape of a palm tree. It is considered the eighth wonder of the world.

Claiming the title of the largest manmade archipelago in the world, the Palm Islands can be seen from space.

Each of them is shaped like a palm tree, but remember there are no actual palm trees in it.

The Palm Islands consisting of the three islands - the Palm Jumeirah, the Palm Jebel Ali and the Palm

Deira — that make up the Palms, made Dubai a more popular travel destination. Sheik Mohammed teamed

Reading


up with Dubai-based developer Nakheel’s Properties to create islands for the emirate, whose desert climate

and short coastline limited tourism development. The addition of the Palms in fact increased the coastline

of the small emirate by 166 percent, according to a Dubai trip guide.

The whole project took just four years to complete and each island required nearly 12 million pounds

of rock and more than 53 million pounds of sand from the ocean floor to construct. Jumeirah, the only island

open to the public, houses the Burj Al-Arab seven- star luxury hotel. The Palm Jumeirah also includes

residential property as well as commercial attractions like The Trunk, 16 Fronds and Crescent. The first

residents, who include David Beckham, moved to Jumeirah during the summer of 2007. In all, the Palm

Islands house 60 luxury hotels, 4,000 residential villas, 1,000 water homes, 5,000 shoreline apartments

and multiple marinas, restaurants, shopping malls, sports facilities, health spas, cinemas and dive sites.

Exercises

A. Choose the correct answer from the given options to complete each sentence.

1. Dubai’s development is limited by geographical setting. It is a small desert nation with a

coastline of only ................................................

a. 73 miles long. b. 37 miles long. c. 919 feet long d. 60 fronds long.

2. The construction of the Burj Al Aram, ................................................ began on Dubai’s

first man-made island.

a. a seven-star hotel b. palm island c. skyscraper d. enormous island

3. ................................................ hotels gobbled up Dubai’s Persian Gulf coast in the

1990s, standing like a wall of buildings.

a. islands b. high rise buildings c. palm trees d. desert climate

4. The whole project took just ................................................ years to complete.

a. 7 years b. 14 years c. 6 years d. 4 years

5. The island required nearly ................................................ million pounds of rock and

more than ................................................ million pounds of sand from the ocean floor

to construct.

a. 12 and 53 b. 53 and 12 c. 21 and 35 d. 119 and 919


B. Answer the following questions:

1. Why did the ruler of Dubai want to develop tourism?

2. What is the advantage of having a palm tree design?

3. Which island is used as a residential area?

4. What is the increase in the coastal line because of the Palm islands?

5. Where was the sand taken from to make the islands?

6. What unique features make the Palm Island the eighth wonder of the world?

PARAGRAPH WRITING

Structure of a paragraph

A paragraph is the basic unit of writing. It consists of three parts, namely, (i) a topic sentence (ii)supporting sentences and (iii) a closing sentence.

Topic Sentence

The topic sentence is the first sentence in a paragraph. It introduces the main idea of theparagraph. In other words, it indicates to the reader what the paragraph will be about.

Supporting Sentences

Supporting sentences occur after the topic sentence, making up the body of a paragraph. Theygive details to develop and support the main idea of the paragraph. Supporting sentences are used totalk about facts, details and examples which substantiate or illustrate the topic sentence.

Closing Sentence

The closing sentence is the last sentence in a paragraph. It restates the main idea of theparagraph.

Now let us look at an example paragraph and identify its parts.

Writing


TOPIC SENTENCE

SUPPORTING SENTENCES

CONCLUDING SENTENCE

More recreational time is required for students for betterconcentration on lessons in class.

As a matter of fact, a student who takes a break ofmore than 45 minutes consistently scores better ontests immediately following the break. It is furthersuggested by clinical analysis that physical exerciseimproves the ability of the students to focus onacademic materials.

Longer periods of break are clearly necessary to allowstudents to be successful in their studies.

How do I write a paragraph?

Before writing

Before you actually begin writing, form a mental picture of the paragraph. Follow the six stepsgiven below to form a mental picture:

Six steps for mind mapping

1. Think carefully about what you are going to write. Ask yourself: Who is my audience?What am I going to write in this paragraph? What is the most important part of my paragraph?What is my introductory sentence? What facts or ideas can I use to support my introductorysentence? What can I add to make this paragraph interesting? Do I need more facts onthis topic? If yes, where can I find more facts on this topic?

2. Now write down your answers to the questions in your notebook. Don’t spend a lot of timedoing this; just write what is necessary for you to write the paragraph.

3. Write down facts related to the topic. Make sure that the facts you are writing are relatedto the topic of your paragraph. Avoid all unnecessary details.

4. Write down your own ideas.

5. Choose the main idea from the ideas you have noted down. If you are not able to decidethe most important point, just choose one point and stick to it throughout your paragraph.

6. Organize your facts and ideas. Remember the organization of facts and ideas shoulddevelop your main idea. The organization should lead your reader from one point to another.


Writing stage

Once you have made the sketch of the ideas related to the topic, you are ready to write theparagraph. This is the writing stage. Follow the steps given below at this stage:

1. Write the topic sentence, supporting sentences, and closing sentence.

2. Write clear and simple sentences to express your Ideas.

3. Focus on the main idea of your paragraph.

4. Use the dictionary to find the words you need to express your ideas.

Editing stage

At this stage, check your paragraph for mistakes and correct them. There may be different kindsof mistakes. Follow the steps given below:

1. Check spelling.

2. Check grammar.

3. Read the paragraph again.

4. Make sure each sentence is grammatically correct.

5. See if subjects and verbs in all the sentences agree with each other.

6. Check the verb forms and tense in each sentence.

7. Make sure that each sentence makes sense.

Exercises

Jumbled Sentences

A. Rewrite the following sentences meaningfully by changing the order of the words.

Example: 1. ever after I out school go hardly.

Answer: I hardly ever go out after school.

2. week play twice usually We a football

3. sister late My school always for is

4. go I on often Saturdays swimming

5. cooked My pizza dinner for a fantastic father

6. Spain you with Did grandparents in your stay

7. school last walked every We to day week


8. at you CDs Did listen the any weekend to

9. new like some I’d buy shoes to

10. friends with On to I some a Saturday party went

B. Arrange the following jumbled sentences to make a paragraph.

1. In addition, circulars of the University Grants Commission on ragging, rulings of the HighCourt and Supreme Court in ragging cases, and other related literature, are being circulatedamong the students.

2. But what was common among all these colleges was the orientation on anti-raggingmeasures.

3. Each college had charted out the day differently for the students.

4. The boards and complaint boxes are already put up or are in the process of being readiedwith names and numbers of new members from the college and also that of the PoliceDepartment.

5. Colleges have already constituted fresh anti-ragging committees or are in the process ofconstituting one with representatives from the second and third-year students.

C. Arrange the following jumbled sentences to make a paragraph.

1. Sri Krishna College of Arts and Science that reopened in the second week for the seniorshad the freshers come in on last Friday.

2. Students, along with parents, spent the whole day in college familiarising themselves.

3. There were a few colleges that decided to go about it differently.

4. There were even some small mementoes to remember their entry into college life.

5. The customary welcome with chocolates and roses was made, besides a few culturalevents.

D. Write a paragraph on each of the following.

1. True friendship

2. Your immediate goal.

E. Mention your long term goals. Then write a paragraph on each of them.


Visvesvarayya

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