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Santosh Yadav - Beehive - Class 9 - CBSE English
Santosh Yadav, Class 9, Beehive, "Read about Santosh Yadav, the first woman to climb Mt. Everest twice, and her inspiring journey from a small village in Haryana to the top of the world."
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Summary - Santosh Yadav | Beehive | Class 9 Literature | CBSE English
Santosh Yadav, the only woman to have scaled Mt Everest twice, was born in a family where the birth of a son was considered a blessing, and a daughter was not generally welcome. Santosh was born the sixth child in a family with five sons, and her grandmother, who was present during her birth, told a travelling βholy manβ that they did not want a son. Santosh's parents were affluent landowners who could afford to send their children to the best schools, but Santosh had to make do with the local village school. She decided to fight the system in her own quiet way when the right moment arrived. At sixteen, most of the girls in her village used to get married, but Santosh was under pressure from her parents to get married as well. However, she wanted to pursue her education, so she left home and got herself enrolled in a school in Delhi. Her parents agreed to pay for her education after she threatened that she would never marry if she did not get a proper education.
Santosh joined Maharani College in Jaipur, and from her hostel room, she could see villagers going up the hill and suddenly vanishing after a while. She decided to check it out herself and found a few mountaineers. She asked if she could join them, and to her pleasant surprise, they answered in the affirmative and motivated her to take up climbing. She saved money and enrolled in a course at Uttarkashiβs Nehru Institute of Mountaineering. After that, she went on an expedition every year, and in 1992, at barely twenty years of age, she scaled Mt Everest, becoming the youngest woman in the world to achieve the feat. She also developed a remarkable resistance to cold and altitude. During the 1992 Everest mission, Santosh Yadav provided special care to a climber who lay dying at the South Col. She managed to save another climber, Mohan Singh, who would have met the same fate had she not shared her oxygen with him. Within twelve months, she scaled the Everest a second time, becoming the only woman to have done so, and secured 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 nationβs top honours, the Padmashri. Santosh Yadav is also a fervent environmentalist who collected and brought down 500 kilograms of garbage from the Himalayas. She feels proud as an Indian and describes her feelings when she was literally βon top of the worldβ as indescribable.

Themes - Santosh Yadav | Beehive | Class 9 Literature | CBSE English
Challenging Gender Norms
- The chapter highlights the societal expectations of gender roles in traditional Indian families, where the birth of a son is considered a blessing while the birth of a daughter is not always welcomed.
- Santosh Yadav challenges these gender norms by pursuing her dreams of climbing mountains and receiving an education, despite pressure to marry at a young age.
Pursuit of Education
- Santosh Yadav is determined ...
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Important Lines - Santosh Yadav | Beehive | Class 9 Literature | CBSE English
There are several important lines in this chapter that highlight the determination and courage of Santosh Yadav. Some of them are:
- "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."
- "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...
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Vocabulary - Santosh Yadav | Beehive | Class 9 Literature | CBSE English
- Society - a community of people living in a particular country or region and having shared customs, laws, and organizations.
- Blessing - the act or words of asking for God's help and protection.
- Affluent - having a great deal of money; wealthy.
- Prevailing - existing or most common at a particular time or in a particular place.
- Enrolled - to officially register...
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Santosh Yadav - Questions and Answers | Beehive | Class 9 Literature | CBSE English
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But, to everyone's surprise, the unborn child's grandΒ mother, who was standing close by, told him that they did not want a son. a. Who is the 'unborn child' referred to in the above extract? b. Who is 'him' in the above extract? c. Why was everyone surprised? d. How was grandmother's wish fulfilled?
a. The Unborn child refers to Santosh Yadav. b. βHimβ refers to the holy man who was blessing Santosh Yadav's mother. c. Everyone was surprised because in their society son was generally preferred but not daughters. d. Grandmotherβs wish was fulfilled as Santosh was born the sixth child in a family with five sons.
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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. Who does 'she' in the above extract refer to? b. When did her parents refuse to pay her fee and why? c. How did she plan to pay her fee? d. How was the fee finally paid?
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I asked if I could join them. To my pleasant surprise, they answered in the affirmative and motivated me to take to climbing. a. Who is the speaker in this extract? b. What did she wish to join? Why? c. Why was the speaker pleasantly surprised? d. What impact did the motivation have on her?
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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. a. Who does 'she' refer to? b. Whom did she manage to save? c. How did she save him? d. What 'fate' is the author talking about?
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It took some time for the enormity of the moment to sink in... a. Who is the speaker of these words? b. Which 'moment' is referred to here? c. Why was the 'moment' enormous? d. Why did it take some time to 'sink in'?
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In what kind of society was Santosh born?
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What blessing did Santosh's grandmother seek from the 'holy man'? Was it fulfilled?
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What do you know about the early life of Santosh?
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How was Santosh's name self-contradictory?
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How did Santosh force people around to change instead of changing herself?
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Why did Santosh's parents decide to send her to the village school although they were rich enough to afford a city school?
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What 'right moment' was Santosh waiting for? When did it come?
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Why did Santosh hate the idea of an early marriage?
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How was going to the Kasturba Hostel a turning point in Santosh's life?
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Why did Santosh have to write a letter of apology to her father?
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How do you know that Santosh's progress in mountaineering was very rapid?
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What qualities made Santosh an excellent mountaineer?
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How was Santosh a true team-player?
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When did Santosh get an opportunity to scale the Everest for the second time?
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How does Santosh describe the moment when she unfurled the tricolor on Mt. Everest?
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In what way did Santosh become a fervent environmentalist?
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How did Santosh differ from the people of the society she was born and grew up in?
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What qualities in Santosh Yadav helped her get into the record books both times she conquered Mount Everest? What can one learn from her?
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βIf I choose a correct and rational path, the others around me had to change not me,β said Santosh Yadav. How does her life justify her words?
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Compare and contrast Santosh Yadav with Maria Sharapova.
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Why was the βholy manβ who gave Santoshβs mother his blessings surprised?
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Give an example to show that even as a young girl, Santosh was not ready to accept anything unreasonable.
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When did she leave home for Delhi, and why?
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Why did Santoshβs parents agree to pay for her schooling in Delhi? What are the mental qualities of Santosh brought into light by this incident?
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How did Santosh begin to climb mountains?
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What incidents during the Everest expedition show Santoshβs concern for her teammates?
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What shows her concern for the environment?
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How does she describe her feelings at the summit of the Everest?
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Santosh Yadav got into the record books both times she scaled Mt Everest. What were the reasons for this?
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Complete the following statements.
- From her room in Kasturba Hostel, Santosh used to _______________
- When she finished college, Santosh had to write a letter of apology to her father because _______________
- During the Everest expedition, her seniors in the team admired her _______________ while _______________endeared her to fellow climbers.
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Pick out words from the text that mean the same as the following words or expressions. (Look in the paragraphs indicated.)
- took to be true without proof (1):
- based on reason; sensible; reasonable (2):
- the usual way of doing things (3):
- a strong desire arising from within (5):
- the power to endure, without falling ill (7):
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Quiz - Santosh Yadav | Beehive | Class 9 Literature | CBSE English
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