Question

Read the following passage and do the activities:

A1. Match the levels of education of Column A with institutions given in Column B:     [2]

A	B
Schooling	IIT Bombay
Graduation	Tamil Medium Government school
Master’s in engineering	ST. Hindu college
PhD	IISc

 

The humble son of a farmer from Sarakkalvilai village in Tamil Nadu’s Kanyakumari district, Dr. K.Sivan as Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) chairman was leading the Chandrayaan-2 mission to Moon. Sivan studied at a Tamil medium government school. After graduating from ST Hindu College in Nagercoil, Sivan completed aeronautical engineering from Madras Institute of Technology (MIT) in 1980 and completed a Master’s in engineering from IISc in 1982. In 2006, he received a PhD in aerospace engineering from IIT Bombay. Sivan is the first graduate in his family. His brother and two sisters were unable to complete higher education due to their poverty. “When I was in college, I used to help my father in the field. That was the reason he got me admitted in a college near our house,” Sivan told TOI. “Only when I had completed my BSc (Mathematics) with 100% marks, his mind changed.” Sivan said he had spent his childhood days without a shoe or sandal. “I continued wearing vesti (dhoti) till college. I wore pants for the first time when I entered MIT.” He joined Isro in 1982 and worked on almost all rocket programmes. Before taking charge as Isro chairman in January 2018, he was the director of Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre (VSSC), which develops rockets. He is known as ISRO’s ‘Rocket Man’

A2. Complete the following sentences:     [2]

1. Dr. Sivan is known as ______.
2. Dr. Sivan in his B SC scored 100% in ______.
3. Dr. Sivan was the director of ______.
4. Dr. Sivan is the first person from his family to ______.

A3. Find out the antonyms of the following words from the passage:     [2]

1. far
2. able
3. proud
4. Prosperity

A4. Do as directed:     [2]

1. Sivan is the first graduate in his family.
   (Rewrite as a negative sentence)
2. His brother and two sisters were unable to complete higher education due to their poverty.
   (Rewrite the following sentence using an appropriate Modal Auxiliary)

A5. What inspiration can we draw from Dr. Sivan’s success?     [2]

Answer 1

A1.

A	B
Schooling	Tamil Medium Government school
Graduation	ST. Hindu college
Master’s in engineering	IISc
PhD	IIT Bombay

A2.

1. Dr. Sivan is known as ISRO’s ‘Rocket Man’.
2. Dr. Sivan in his B SC scored 100% in Mathematics.
3. Dr. Sivan was the director of Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre (VSSC).
4. Dr. Sivan is the first person from his family to graduate (or be a graduate).

A3.

1. Near
2. Unable
3. Humble
4. Poverty

A4.

1. There is no other graduate in Sivan’s family before him.
2. His brother and two sisters could not complete higher education due to their poverty.

A5. Dr. Sivan’s journey is profoundly inspiring because it proves that determination and hard work can overcome any socioeconomic barrier. Despite humble beginnings, poverty, and a lack of early resources (like not having shoes or modern clothing), he focused entirely on his education. His story teaches us that background does not dictate destiny; with perseverance, even a child from a village school can rise to lead the most prestigious national missions, like Chandrayaan-2.