CBSE Class 10 English Madam Rides the Bus Important Questions Set 06

Long Answer Questions

Question 1. 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 listened carefully to conversations between her neighbours and people who regularly used the bus and she also asked a few discreet questions here and there. This way, she picked up various small details about the bus journey. The town was six miles from her village. The fare was thirty paise one way. The trip to the town took forty-five minutes. On reaching town, if she stayed in her seat and paid another thirty paise, she could return home on the same bus. With all this information, she planned her ride on the bus during the hour in the afternoon when her mother took a nap. Valli had saved up the money for her first journey by resisting every temptation to buy peppermints, toys, balloons, etc. At the village fair, she had resolutely stifled a strong desire to ride the merry-go-round, even though she had the money.

Question 2. An eight-year-old girl travelling alone in a bus. Is it right on the girl’s part to take this journey? What would have happened if she had informed her mother before leaving?
Answer: An eight-year-old girl travelling alone in a bus does not happen too often these days. It was not right on Valli’s part to have undertaken this journey alone. Anything could have gone wrong. The bus may not have returned by the same route or the same day. She had not informed her mother about it so, if the bus had been delayed due to unknown reasons her family wouldn’t have known where to look for her. She was lucky to get good people as passengers, the conductor and the driver.
If Valli had informed her mother before leaving, either her mother would have refused to let her do so or she would have herself taken her on the ride.

Question 3. Describe Valli’s planning for the bus ride.
Answer: Valli craved to take the bus ride. She planned her ride meticulously. She started by finding out about the fare and the timings of the bus. She made arrangements for the fare and also decided what time would be suitable for her. Once she had done all the necessary preparation, she was ready for her secret excursion. She also found out how much time it took to go to the city and back. She had learnt that one could remain sitting in the bus and come back to the village in the same bus. She saved money for the fare by resisting all temptations like peppermints, toys and even a ride on the merry-go-round at the village fair. She planned her excursion when her mother took her afternoon nap.

Question 4. Once we decide to achieve something, so many difficulties come in our way. With focused attention we can make that achievement. How did Valli succeed in fulfilling her desire of riding a bus ? (Board Question)
Answer: Eight-year-old Valli’s desire was to ride the bus that travelled between her village and the nearest town. Her desire was so strong that it overcame her fears prompting her to plan her trip meticulously. She collected all the details of the journey and saved every coin that came her way. She maintained her will power so much, that she did not even get tempted to go shopping. After taking all the precautions to ensure that she had a safe journey, she fulfilled her dream of riding a bus. Despite her young age, she returned back home safely.
Valli teaches us that once we decide to achieve something, many difficulties may come our way but with courage and confidence, we can accomplish the task.

Question 5. Whenever we want to achieve something, difficulties always come in our way. What did Valli have to do to go and ride in a bus? (Board Question)
Answer: Ambition is the key to fulfillment of one’s needs. One must always be ambitious in life. Valli was a simple girl who also had ambitions. Her greatest ambition or her growing desire was to ride a bus. This desire stemmed from watching the bus pass through her village everyday. All this intrigued her. To undertake her first bus journey, she did her bit of research. She watched the bus, took a note of its schedule and listened to people’s conversations about their journey by bus. She even found out the fare of the bus, which was 30 paise for a trip. Gradually, she used all of this information to collect money for the bus fare as well as to undertake her first bus journey.