NCERT Solutions for Class 10 English First Flight Chapter 9 Madam Rides the Bus are part of NCERT Solutions for Class 10 English. Here we have given NCERT Solutions for Class 10 English First Flight Chapter 9 Madam Rides the Bus.

Board CBSE
Textbook NCERT
Class Class 10
Subject English First Flight
Chapter Chapter 9
Chapter Name Madam Rides the Bus
Category NCERT Solutions

NCERT Solutions for Class 10 English First Flight Chapter 9 Madam Rides the Bus

TEXTUAL EXERCISES

ORAL COMPREHENSION CHECK
(Page 119)

Question 1.
What was Valli’s favourite pastime ?
Answer:
Valli’s favourite pastime was to stand in the front doorway of her house. It was to watch what was happening in the street outside.

Question 2.
What was a source of unending joy for Valli ? What was her strongest desire ?
Answer:
The sight of the bus with new passengers was a source of unending joy for Valli. Her strongest desire was to ride on that bus.

Question 3.
What did Valli find out about the bus journey ? How did she find out these details ?
Or
What details did Valli pick up about the bus journey ? How did she pick up these details ?
Answer:
Valli found out that the town was six miles from the village. The fare was thirty paise one way. She found out these details about the bus etc, after hearing the passengers’ conversation.

Question 4.
What do you think Valli was planning to do ? (CBSE 2011)
Answer:
Valli planned to ride on the bus. She could take the one-o’clock afternoon bus. She would reach the town at one forty-five. She would be back home by about two forty-five.

ORAL COMPREHENSION CHECK
(Page 122)

Question 1.
Why does the conductor call Valli ‘madam’ ? (CBSE 2015)
Answer:
The conductor called Valli ‘madam’ because she behaved like a very great woman. She was quick in her answers to the conductor’s questions. Also she spoke with great confidence. This made him address her as ‘madam’.

Question 2.
Why does Valli stand up on the seat ? What does she see now ?
Answer:
Valli stands up on the seat. It was because she couldn’t see outside. The bus curtain had covered the lower part of her window. Now, she sees the canal and other things beyond it.

Question 3.
What does Valli tell the elderly man when he calls her a child ?
Answer:
Valli told the elderly man that there was nobody there who was a child. She said she had paid her fare of thirty paise like everyone else.

Question 4.
Why didn’t Valli want to make friends with the elderly woman ?
Answer:
Valli did not want to make friends with the elderly woman. It was because she looked ‘repulsive’ and smelled foul.

ORAL COMPREHENSION CHECK
(Page 125)

Question 1.
How did Valli save up money for her first journey ? Was it easy for her ?
Answer:
Valli saved up money for her first journey. She didn’t buy peppermints, toys, balloons etc. It was difficult for her.

Question 2.
What did Valli see on her way that made her laugh ?
Answer:
Valli saw a cow which had come before the bus with her raised tail. The driver sounded the horn. But the more he honked, the more frightened the animal became. It ran faster. It made her laugh.

Question 3.
Why didn’t she get off the bus at the bus station ?
Answer:
Valli didn’t get off the bus at the bus station in the town. It was because she was going back on the same bus.

Question 4.
Why didn’t Valli want to go to the stall and have a drink ? What does this tell you about her ? (CBSE 2015)
Answer:
Valli did not want to go to the stall and have a drink. It was because she didn’t have the money for that. She also declined the offer of a drink by the conductor. It tells that she was a wise, self-confident and self-respecting girl.

THINKING ABOUT THE TEXT
(Page 127)

Question 1.
What was Valli’s deepest desire ? Find the words and phrases in the story that tell you this.
Answer:
Valli’s deepest desire was to ride on the bus. It ran from her village to the nearby town. These words and phrases are : ‘Day after day she watched the bus’, ‘she wanted to ride on that bus, ‘This wish became stronger and stronger,’ ‘until it was an overwhelming desire.’ It crept in her due to the passengers riding it and talking about their journey to and fro the town.

Question 2.
How did Valli plan her bus ride ? What did she find out about the bus, and how did she save up the fare ?
Answer:
Valli planned her bus ride after knowing all the related facts. These were like the fare, the time it took to reach the town, when it started to and fro.

She found out all these details about the bus from the talks of the passengers. She also asked the people about these things to know about them.

Question 3.
What kind of a person is Valli ? To answer this question, pick out the following sentences from the text and fill in the blanks. The words you fill in are the clues to your answer.

  1. “Stop the bus ! Stop tjie bus !” And a tiny hand was raised ……….
  2. “Yes, I ………. go to town,” said Valli, still standing outside the bus.
  3. “There’s nobody here ………. ” she said haughtily, “I’ve paid my thirty paise like everyone else.”
  4. “Never mind,” she said, “I can ………. You don’t have to help me.” “I’m not a child. I tell you,” she said, ……….
  5. ‘You needn’t bother about me. I ………. ” Valli said, turning her face toward the window and staring out.
  6. Then she turned to the conductor and said, “Well, sir, I hope ………. ”

Answer:

  1. commandingly
  2. simply have to
  3. who’s a child
  4. get on by myself; haughtily/ irritably
  5. can take care of myself
  6. to see you again.

Valli is self-confident. She has a commanding nature. She is determined also. She is self-dependent. She gets irritated if things don’t move her way and others hold a low opinion about her. She has an amiable nature also. She is more wise than her age.

Question 4.
Why does the conductor refer to Valli as ‘madam’ ?
Answer:
The conductor refers to Valli as ‘madam’. It is because she behaves more like an educated, mature and self-confident woman. She is self-dependent. She knows more about things than other children of her age.

Question 5.
Find the lines in the text which tell you that Valli was enjoying her ride on the bus.
Answer:
These lines are : ‘Suddenly Valli clapped her hands with glee,’ ‘Somehow this was very funny to Valli,’ ‘She laughed and laughed …,’ ‘Struck dumb with wonder, Valli gaped at everything.’

Question 6.
Why does Valli refuse to look out of the window on her way back ? (CBSE 2011)
Answer:
Valli refuses to look out of the window on her way back. It is because the beautiful creature now looked horrible. The memory of the dead cow haunted her. It dampened her enthusiasm about life.

Question 7.
What does Valli mean when she says, “I was just agreeing with what you said about things happening without our knowledge.”
Answer:
Valli means that many things happen in our midst and in the world outside. We do not know about them all. Even if we know we can’t understand the things completely.

Question 8.
The author describes the things that Valli sees from an eight-year old’s point of view. Can you find evidence from the text for this statement ?
Answer:
The following evidence is from the text to support it: ‘The most fascinating thing of all was the bus that travelled between her village and the nearest town,’ ‘Valli devoured everything with her eyes,’ ‘Oh, it was all so wonderful!’ palm trees, grassland, distant mountains, and the blue, blue sky, Valli’s standing to look outside when the bus curtain covers the lower part of her window, ‘Somehow this was very funny to Valli’ (seeing the cow run ahead of the bus), ‘She laughed and laughed ……… ’, ‘Struck dumb with wonder, Valli gaped at everything.’

SPEAKING
This story has a lot of people talking in it. The
Answer:
— For self attempt.

WRITING
Write a page—about three paragraphs—on one of the following topics.

Question 1.
Have you ever planned something entirely on your own, without taking grown-ups into your confidence ? What did you plan, and how ? Did you carry out your plan ?
Answer:
I remember I made a plan to visit Delhi on my own. We lived in a town near to Delhi. I wanted to buy a few books when I was about 12 years old.

I talked to my uncle to buy the books from shops at Nai Sarak. I enquired about the bus or train timing to and fro. Then I planned at what time I would go by bus or train.

When I went there, I was wonderstruck at the crowd. I reached Nai Sarak. I asked different bookshops for my books. I got them and thought of returning. It was my first visit to Delhi. I was amazed to see things around me. These were like buildings, roads, various vehicles, temples, Red Fort etc. It was a strange experience for me who lived in a village. I wondered how people lived such a busy life !

Question 2.
Have you made a journey that was unforgettable in some way ? What made it memorable 1
Answer:
I also remember a journey that became unforgettable. I was travelling from Meerut to my place of residence in Delhi. There was a big crowd in the bus. Passengers stood face to face. Somebody picked my pocket.

The conductor came. I put my hand on my pocket to buy the ticket. But to my horror my purse had gone. I went pale but for a moment. I told the conductor about my plight. He didn’t believe. But when I showed him my cut-out pocket, he believed.

A kind person offered money to buy my fare. I saw him an angel. After reaching home, I sent that person the money by money order. I can’t forget this, though I had only fifty rupees in my purse. But the scene was quite insulting for no fault of my own.

Question 3.
Are you concerned about traffic, and road safety ? What are your concerns ? How would you make road travel safer and more enjoyable ?
Answer:
— For self attempt.

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