1. Read the following passage and answer the questions given below

I have been particularly influenced by a sustained association with Mazdoor Kisan Shakti Sangathan (MKSS) in Rajasthan and, more recently, with Akal Sangharsh Samiti. The latter is an all Rajasthan network of about 50 grassroot organizations that came together in late 2000 to defend the rights of drought-affected people, especially the right to employment. This campaign involved a good deal of action oriented (even 'action based') research, focussing for instance on living conditions in drought-affected areas, the government's response to the crisis, and corruption in relief works.

My association with this campaign was an eye-opening experience in many ways. I discovered, for instance, that my painstakingly accumulated academic baggage was not always as useful as I had expected in this venture. After 15 years of research on hunger and famines, one is perhaps entitled to feel like an 'expert' of sorts on these matters. Yet I did not always find myself better equipped than others to understand the practical issues that arose in this situation. At times, I even felt embarrassingly ignorant compared with local people who had little formal education but sharp understanding of the real world. Some of them were curious about my collaborative work with Amartya Sen (who had become a household name in India after winning the the Nobel Prize of Economics), but when I tried to explain to them the main insights of this work, they were not exactly impressed. Thought they did not disagree, there was no enthusiasm in their approval, no acknowledgement of depth or importance.

What made Mazdoor Kisan Shakti Sangathan and Akal Sangharsh Samiti come together?

What was the focus of their campaign?

What did the writer of the passage learn from the campaign?

Give a suitable title to the passage.

Pick out, from the text, the opposite of the word 'former'.

What do you think is the meaning of the phrase eye-opening experience'

2. Do as directed.

The tourist facilities (improve) considerably in the Eastern zone since last year. (Write the verb in brackets in the correct tense)

I am having five dictionaries. (Rewrite correctly)

We have enclosed the payment along with the order. (Rewrite in the passive voice)

She is too old to cope with the stress of the modem lifestyle. (Rewrite after removing too)

She said, "I want to go to Chandigarh tomorrow." (Rewrite in indirect speech)

3. As a client, you have not been able to repay the loan taken from your bank, in the stipulated time and the bank has charged a penal interest. Write a letter to the Bank Manager requesting him to waive off the additional interest/penalty.

4. As the Company Secretary of Engineers India Limited, write the minutes of a recently held meeting of the sales team.

5. You are a librarian in a public library. Write a conversation with a visitor who wants to seek information regarding the terms and conditions of membership, the amount of security deposit, annual subscription, number of books issued at a time and the period of issue. You must take 10 turns.