Strong Roots -APJ Abdul Kalam Short Answer Type (Mark 1) 01. What is the full name of APJ Abdul Kalam? Ans: The full name of Abdul Kalam is Avul Pakir Jainulabdeen Abdul Kalam. 2. Why was Rameswaram famous to pilgrims? Ans: Rameswaram was famous to pilgrims for the Shiva temple. 3. What was Kalam's own world concerned with? Ans: Kalam's own world was concerned with science and technology. 4. One of the forebears of Kalam's mother was awarded by the British the title of ____ Ans: Bahadur. 5. What type of text is 'Strong Roots'? Ans: Dr. Kalam's 'Strong roots' is an autobiography. 6. What is the source of 'Strong Roots'? Or, What is the name of the book from which the extract 'Strong Roots' has been taken? Ans: The extract 'Strong Roots' has been taken from Kalam's autobiography 'Wings of Fire'. 7. Where was APJ Abdul Kalam born? Ans: APJ Abdul Kalam was born at island town Rameswaram in Tamilnadu. 8. Who were Kalam's parents? Ans: Jainulabdeen was Kalam's father and Ashiamma was his mother. 9. Where did Kalam study Physics? Ans: Kalam studied Physics at St. Joseph's College, Tiruchirappalli. 10. Where did Dr. Kalam study aerospace engineering? Ans: Dr. Kalam studied aerospace engineering at Madras Institute of technology. 11. Where did Kalam begin his career? Ans: Kalam began his career at Hindustan Aeronautics limited. 12. What is the name of the space Centre established by Kalam? Ans: Abdul Kalam established the Vikram Sarbhai Space Centre when he was working with ISRO. 13. What is 'Strong Roots' all about? Ans: The extract 'Strong Roots' is all about the beginning of Abdul Kalam's life. 14. What type of family Kalam was born into? Ans: Abdul Kalam was born into a middle-class Tamil family. 15. How was Kalam's father? Ans: Kalam's father was neither much educated nor much wealthy but he had great innate wisdom and a true generosity of spirit. 17. Who was ideal helpmate of Kalam's father? Ans: Ashiamma, Kalam's mother was his father's ideal helpmate. 18. What were Abdul Kalam's parents regarded as? Ans: Abdul Kalam's parents were regarded as an ideal couple. 19. Who had a more distinguished lineage among his parents? Ans: Kalam's mother had a more distinguished lineage among his parents. 20. Where was Kalam's ancestral house located? Ans: Abdul Kalam's ancestral house was located on the mosque street in Rameswaram. 21. What type of childhood did Abdul Kalam experience? Ans: Abdul Kalam experienced a materially and emotionally secure life. 22. What was the regular menu of Kalam's meal? Ans: The regular menu of Kalam's meal was rice, sambar, pickle and coconut chutney. 23. Why did people of different religions wait for Kalam's father outside the old mosque? Ans: People of different religions waited for Kalam's father outside the old mosque to get the water touched by him. They took the water to home for invalids. 24. Why people thanked Kalam's' father? Ans: People thanked Kalam's father for being cured. 25. With whom did Kalam eat? Ans: Normally Abdul Kalam ate with his mother. 26. How was the locality where Kalam lived? Ans: Abdul Kalam's locality was Muslim dominated, though a lot of Hindu families also lived there friendly. 27. Who was the high priest of Rameswaram temple? Ans: Pakshi Lakshamana Sastry was the high priest of Rameswaram temple. 28. What kind of matters did Kalam's father and Pakshi Lakshamana Sastry discuss? Ans: Kalam's father and Pakshi Lakshamana Sastry discussed spiritual matters. 29. What did Kalam's father teach him? Ans: Kalam's father taught him the fundamental Truths and values of life. 30. How would Kalam's father start his day? Ans: Kalam's father would start his day at $ am by reading namaz. 31. What was Kalam's childhood belief about prayers? Ans: In childhood Kalam believed that the prayers reached God. 32. What type of life did Kalam's father lead? Ans: Kalam's father lived a very simple life avoiding all types of comforts and luxuries. 33. Where did Kalam's father go for evening prayers? Ans: Kalam's father went to the old mosque in their locality for evening prayers. 34. How was the house of APJ Abdul Kalam? Ans: Abdul Kalam's house was a large pucca house, made of limestone and brick. 35. "I was born into a middle-class Tamil family..." - Who is the speaker here? Ans: APJ Abdul Kalam is the speaker here. 36. What power, according to Abdul Kalam, shapes our life? Ans: According to Abdul Kalam, there exists a divine power that shapes our life. 37. What was the dissimilarity between Kalam and his Parents? Ans: Abdul Kalam was a short boy with undistinguished look while his parents were tall and handsome. 38. "Then he answered in a low, deep voice..." - What was the impact of the answer upon the writer? Ans: The answer given by his father filled the writer, APJ Abdul Kalam with a strange energy and enthusiasm. Descriptive Type (Marks 6) 1. "Why don't you say this to the people who come to you for help and advice?" - Who says this and to whom? What is referred to by the word 'this'? Why do the people come to the person spoken to? [HS 2015] Ans: The writer of the extract 'Strong Roots', Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam asks this to his father, Jainulabdeen. Here the word 'this' referred to Kalam's father's spiritual concept of man's existence on earth. Kalam's father told him that every human being is a specific element within the whole of the manifest divine Being. So we should not afraid of difficulties, sufferings and problems. We should try to understand the relevance of our sufferings. People come to Kalam's father for help and advice when they were in trouble. People who come to him in distress, he is the mediator in their effort to propitiate demonic forces with prayers and offerings. 2. Give a brief account of Kalam's childhood as presented in 'Strong Roots'. Or, Why does Abdul Kalam feel that he had a secure childhood. Ans: APJ Abdul Kalam was born and brought up in a middle class Tamil family. His father was neither much educated nor much rich. But he had a great wisdom by birth and true generosity of spirits. Kalam's mother Ashiamma was a true helpmate to his father. His parents were regarded as an ideal couple. He was a short boy with undistinguished look but his parents were tall and handsome. Kalam was given everything he needed. All necessities in terms of food, medicine and clothing were provided for Kalam in his childhood. He was brought up in happiness. He had no material or emotional want. So Kalam claims that he had a secure childhood. 3. "Our locality was predominantly Muslim" - Who is the speaker. How does the speaker describe the locality? What picture of communal harmony do you find in this description? [HS 2017] Ans: The writer of the extract 'Strong roots', APJ Abdul Kalam is the speaker. Abdul Kalam has given a description of his locality. He was born in the island town, Rameswaram. It was then a part of Madras State under the British rule. He lived in his ancestral house in Mosque Street. Rameswaram was very famous to pilgrim for the Shiva temple which was near his house. In the locality there was an old mosque where Kalam's father took him for prayers. The locality was predominantly Muslim but a lot of Hindu families lived there too. Abdul Kalam has presented a picture of communal harmony in his locality. The locality was dominated by Muslims but there were a great number of Hindu families. People of both the religions lived there with harmony and peace. There was a famous Shiva temple and a Mosque too. The high priest of Shiva Temple, Pakshi Lakshmana Sastry was a great friend of Kalam's father. People of different religions came to Kalam's father for help and advice. 4. What did Kalam's father tell him about the relevance of prayers? Or, What was Kalam's father's response to his son's query about prayers and spirituality? Ans: When Kalam was a child, he had seen the people chanting prayers at the old mosque. He could not make out the meaning of the prayers in Arabic language, but he was convinced that those prayers reached God. When he was old enough to asked questions, he asked his father about the relevance of the prayers. Kalam's father told him that there was nothing mysterious about the prayers. He told him that the prayers made possible a communion of spirits between people. He also said that when a man prays, he goes beyond his body and becomes a part of the cosmos. The cosmos knows no division of age, wealth, cast or creed. 5. "I was born into a middle-class Tamil family....." - Who is referred to here as 'I'? When and where was he born? Describe what he recollects about his ancestral home and childhood? Ans: Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam is referred to here as 'I'. Abdul Kalam was born in 1931 in a middle class Tamil family in the town of Rameswaram. Abdul Kalam lived in his ancestral house which was made in the middle of 19th century. It was a large pucca house made of limestone and bricks, on the Mosque Street in Rameswaram. His father avoided all unnecessary comforts and luxuries. His mother was an ideal helpmate of his father. His parents were regarded as the most ideal couple. Kalam normally ate with his mother in the kitchen. He feels that his childhood was