The train pulled out of the station – Pranjol buried his nose in his detective book again. Rajvir too was an ardent fan of detective stories but, at the moment he was keener on looking at the beautiful scenery. It was green, green everywhere. Rajvir had never seen so much greenery before. Then the soft green paddy fields gave way to tea bushes. It was a magnificent view. Against the backdrop of densely wooded hills a sea of tea bushes stretched as far as the eye could see. Dwarfing the tiny tea plants were tall, sturdy, shade-trees and amidst the orderly rows of bushes busily moved doll-like figures.
Generated by claude-sonnet-4-6 · 2026-06-15 07:19 · grounding stimulus+chapter
Model Answer
(i) Rajvir was curious and observant by nature. Even though he loved detective stories, his excitement about the new surroundings shows he was more interested in experiencing the real world than in fiction at that moment.
(ii) False. Rajvir did not read the detective book because he was eager to look at the beautiful scenery outside, not because the book was uninteresting. He himself was an ardent fan of detective stories.
(iii) Rajvir, who had come from a city, had "never seen so much greenery before." The magnificent view of endless tea bushes against densely wooded hills clearly fascinated him, suggesting that city-dwellers, unused to such natural abundance, are easily captivated by open green landscapes.
(iv) The phrase that correctly substitutes 'doll-like figures' is tiny/small human figures — workers who appeared very small in comparison to the tall, sturdy shade-trees towering over the tea bushes.
Source: Glimpses of India – Tea from Assam
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Explanation
- (i) Inference questions require you to read between the lines — here, Rajvir's preference for scenery over a beloved hobby shows curiosity and wonder.
- (ii) The extract gives no evidence the book was dull; the reason is his keenness for the scenery. Always base True/False on the text only.
- (iii) Link the statement to the extract — use "never seen so much greenery" as your textual evidence. ~40 words required.
- (iv) 'Doll-like figures' refers to the tea workers who looked tiny from a distance. Examiners accept any phrase conveying smallness of human figures.