9.3 Understanding the Text
Answer each question yourself first, then check the model answer.
A. Reading for details
1. Where is the Valley of Flowers, and what makes it special?
It lies high in the Himalayas in Uttarakhand. During the monsoon months it blooms with hundreds of kinds of flowers in vibrant colours, and it is home to rare animals like the snow leopard and the flying squirrel.
2. Why is Chandipur Beach said to “play hide-and-seek”?
At low tide the sea recedes far out — by several kilometres — so the water seems to disappear, leaving a vast stretch of sand. At high tide it returns. This vanishing and returning is like a game of hide-and-seek.
3. How are the Living Root Bridges of Meghalaya made?
Local people train the roots of rubber fig trees across streams and rivers over many years until the roots grow into strong, living bridges. Because the roots are alive, the bridges grow stronger with time.
4. How was Lonar Crater Lake formed, and why is it rare?
It was formed when a meteorite crashed into basalt rock thousands of years ago, creating a round crater that filled with water. Craters formed in basalt are very rare, which makes Lonar special and of great interest to scientists.
B. Reading between the lines
5. Why might the writer have begun some sections with a question?
Opening questions grab the reader’s attention and create curiosity. They make us want to read on to find the answer, and they help us imagine the wonder more vividly before the facts are given.
6. The Living Root Bridges are described as people working with nature. Explain.
Instead of cutting down trees or building with concrete, the people of Meghalaya gently guide living roots into useful bridges. They cooperate with the growth of nature, and the result lasts longer and grows stronger — a partnership rather than a conquest.
7. What do these four wonders together tell us about nature?
They show that nature is wonderfully varied and surprising — capable of breathtaking beauty (the valley), strange behaviour (the tide), useful partnership with people (the bridges), and connections even to outer space (the crater).
C. Thinking deeper
8. Why is it important to preserve such natural wonders?
These places are rare, beautiful, and often fragile. They support rare wildlife, attract learning and tourism, and are part of our shared heritage. If harmed, they cannot easily be replaced, so they must be protected for future generations.
9. How does descriptive writing make non-fiction enjoyable?
Descriptive writing uses vivid, sensory language so that facts feel alive. Instead of dry information, we get colours, movement, and feeling, which makes the reading enjoyable and the places memorable.