University Of Pune Question Paper
I - B.S.L.
GENERAL ENGLISH - I
(2003 Pattern) (New) (Sem. - I) (Theory)
Time : 3 Hours] [Max. Marks : 100
Instructions to the candidates:
1) All questions are compulsory.
2) Figures to the right indicate full marks.
Q1) a) Use the following phrases and idioms in your own sentences so as to
bring out their meaning clearly (Any 10) : [10]
i) Fair use ii) Down to earth
iii) To shift gears iv) Fit the bill
v) To alternate between vi) To laugh out of court
vii) Make a clean sweep viii) One in a million
ix) By word of mouth x) Dabble at
xi) Make History xii) To hit the headlines
b) Explain the following legal terms (Any 5) : [10]
i) Copyright ii) Provocation
iii) Judicial Separation iv) Culpable Homicide
v) Bond vi) Transfer of Property
vii) Warranty
Q2) a) Do as directed (Any 10) : [10]
i) Few things unite India like cricket. (Make it compound)
ii) The world knows that it has to cut emissions of greenhouse gases
fast and drastically if it wants to cap temperature increase... (Make
it simple)
iii) This star refuses to be bound by conventions. (Add a Q. tag)
iv) Do you have a social bent of mind? (Give a short response)
v) It is reported that China may have more English speakers than
India. (Change the degree)
vi) We must do more to support local languages. (Change to negative
without changing the meaning).
vii) The first major step to prevent climate change was taken in Brazil.
(Change to Complex).
viii) Globalisation is impacting everyone irrespective of where he or
she lives. (Make it into Simple).
ix) A leading software company launched a consumer led education
and enforcement initiative to reduce the menace of piracy. (Change
the voice).
x) The next war will destroy humanity. (Change into interrogative).
xi) Software piracy is a problem plaguing the entire economy. (Make
it complex).
xii) Every pair of sunglasses she tried on were/was too dark. (Choose
the correct form).
b) Report the following into indirect speech : [5]
Context: ‘X’ was arrested for carrying contraband forest products
in his truck. X is being prosecuted for poaching under
the Forest Act.
Prosecution: Do you admit any of the charges brought against you?
X : No, I am innocent.
Prosecution: Do you own or drive any truck?
X : Yes, I own a truck. I drive it when I am unable to hire
one.
Prosecution: Where is the truck now?
X : It has been confiscated by the forest guards.
Prosecution: When did the confiscation take place?
X : My truck was confiscated on 10th January from the
National Highway which passes through the Gir forest.
Prosecution: What were you carrying in the truck?
X : I was carrying some steel containers which contained
certain delicate materials made of glass.
Prosecution: Did you check the containers before loading?
X : Yes, I did.
c) Correct the following sentences (Any 5) : [5]
i) Who are you going to write about?
ii) He stood besides me.
iii) She performs many charities.
iv) I simply forwarded the mail to my boss.
v) She had so much of work to do that she forgot to call her mother.
vi) The judge ruled that this company was a validly registered and
an existing company.
vii) Where are you working?
Q3) a) Read the following passage carefully and answer the questions given
below: [10]
One of the questions people keep asking is what we can do about
corruption. Corruption is a national malaise and a social ill, not just
one that a “concerned authority” can solve. We are all complicit - those
who demand bribes and those who give them. But one of the things
that intrigues us is the extent to which corruption is a middle-class
preoccupation, when in fact the biggest victims of corruption in our
country are in fact the poor. For the affluent, corruption is at worst a
nuisance; for the salaried middle-class, it can be an indignity and a
burden; but for the poor, it is often a tragedy.
The saddest corruption stories heard are those where corruption
literally transforms lives for the worse. There are stories about the
pregnant woman turned away from a government hospital because
she couldn’t bribe her way to a bed; the labourer denied an allotment
of land that was his due because someone else bribed the authorities to
change the land records; the pensioner denied the rightful fruits of
decades of toil because he couldn’t or wouldn’t bribe the petty clerk to
process his paperwork; the wretchedly poor unable to procure the BPL
[“Below Poverty Line”] cards that certify their entitlement to various
government schemes and subsidies because they couldn’t afford to
bribe the issuing officer; the poor widow cheated of an insurance
settlement because she couldn’t grease the right palms... the examples
are endless. Each of these represents not just an injustice, but a crime,
and yet the officials responsible get away with their exactions all the
time. And all their victims are people living at or near a poverty line
that’s been drawn just this side of the funeral pyre. No one seems to be
able to do anything about it.
i) What is it that is intriguing about corruption? State reasons.
ii) Do you agree with the author that the poor are worst affected?
Elaborate.
iii) How would you define corruption in your own words?
iv) What is your stand on corruption---Honestly would you bribe
someone if you want your work to be done quickly or choose
not to.
b) Read the following passage carefully and make notes on it. [10]
Indian civilisational heritage is built on universal spirit. India has
always stood for friendship and extends warm hands to the whole
world. We have made significant achievements in the last 50 years in
food production, health sector, higher education, media and mass
communication, industrial infrastructure, information technology,
science and technology and defence. Our nation is endowed with natural
resources, vibrant people and traditional value system. In spite of these
resources, a number of our people are below the poverty line,
undernourished and lack primary education itself. Our aim is to
empower them to be poverty free, healthy and literate. The important
elements that constitute a nation are: being disease free; wealth; high
productivity, harmonious living and strong defence. All our efforts
should be focused towards building these five elements at various levels
in a coherent and in an integrated manner. Today our country is facing
challenges such as cross-border terrorism, certain internal conflicts and
unemployment. To face these challenges, there must be a vision to
ensure focused action of one billion citizens of this great country with
varied capabilities.
What can be that vision? It can be none other than transforming
India into a developed nation. Can the government alone achieve this vision?
Now, we need a movement in the country. This is the time to ignite the
minds of the people for this movement. We will work for it. We cannot
emerge as a developed nation if we do not learn to transact with speed.
Q4) a) Write a cohesive paragraph on Any One of the following. [10]
i) A legal luminary you admire.
ii) Social networking
iii) A good friend is ----
b) As the cultural secretary of the college write a letter to a company
seeking sponsorship for the annual event. [10]
OR
Write a letter of complaint to the bank manager complaining about the
poor services in the bank.
Q5) a) Write a précis of the following passage. [10]
Every system of education must have an aim. Without aim,
education is meaningless. The aim of education is directly related with
the aim of life and the aim of life is always dependent on the philosophy
that prevails. It is philosophy which determines whether the aim of
education should be moral perfection or intellectual development,
whether education should be vocational or liberal. In no other sphere
is this dependence of education on philosophy more marked, than in
that of the curriculum. Determination of curriculum needs the services
of philosophy in its entirety. It is just like an academic guide for the
student. Even in choice of text books, we are guided by philosophical
considerations. Text book markedly affects methods and the rising
standards of scholarship. There is a close relation between educational
method and philosophy. Philosophy influences and determines the
methods of teaching as well. Some methods advocate the intervention
of teachers; others advocate their non-intervention in the process of
education. Like curriculum, text books and methods, discipline too, is
determined by the philosophy of life accepted at a particular time. The
teacher has a very important role to play in education. The idealist
holds that the teacher is indispensable for the education of the child.
Unless there is a teacher, there can be no education. The teacher is
simply to guide the child in various learning activities. We can conclude
by saying that philosophy is the basis of education.
OR
Translate the following passage into Marathi/Hindi:
The Constitution of India lays down the framework defining
fundamental political principles, establishing the structure, procedures,
powers and duties, of the government and spells out the fundamental
rights, directive principles and duties of citizens. Passed by the
Constituent Assembly on November 26, 1949, it came into effect on
January 26, 1950. The date 26 January was chosen to commemorate
the declaration of independence of 1930. It declares the Union of India
to be a sovereign, democratic republic, assuring its citizens of justice,
equality, and liberty and to promote among them all fraternity. The
words “socialist”, “secular” and “integrity” and to promote among them
all “Fraternity”; were added to the definition in 1976 by a constitutional
amendment. India celebrates the adoption of the constitution on January
26 each year as Republic Day. It is the longest written constitution of
any sovereign country in the world, containing 395 articles in 22 parts,
12 schedules and 94 amendments Besides the English version, there is
an official Hindi translation. After coming into effect, the Constitution
replaced the Government of India Act 1935 as the governing document
of India. Being the supreme law of the country, every law enacted by
the government must conform to the constitution.
b ) Summarise the following passage : [10]
This vision of a developed nation needs to be achieved with
Parliamentary democracy, which is the core of our governance system.
The basic structure of our Constitution has stood the test of time.. The
first and foremost task is to respect and uphold the Constitutional
processes, in the best interest of our people and our nation, without
fear or favour and with fairness and firmness.
India is a Union of States based on the framework of co-operative
federalism. Within the co-operative framework, there is also a
requirement to develop competitive strengths for the States so that
they can excel at the national level and the global level.
Competitiveness helps in ensuring economic and managerial
efficiency and to be creative to meet new challenges. These are essential
to survive and prosper in a fast changing world of today. In addition,
in order to strengthen democratic processes and institution, we should
all truly strive for substantive decentralisation.
Along with speedy development aimed at elimination of poverty
and unemployment, national security has to be recognised by every
Indian as a national priority. Indeed, making India strong and self
reliant economically, socially and militarily — is our foremost duty to
our motherland and to ourselves and to our future generations.
When the child is empowered by the parents, at various phases of
growth, the child transforms into a responsible citizen. When the teacher
is empowered with knowledge and experience, good young human
beings with value systems take shape. When individual or a team is
empowered with technology, transformation to higher potential for
achievement is assured. When the leader of any institution empowers
his or her people, leaders are born who can change the nation in multiple
areas. When the women are empowered, society with stability gets
assured. When the political leaders of the nation empower the people
through visionary policies, the prosperity of the nation is certain. The
medium for transformation to developed India is the empowerment at
various levels with power of knowledge.
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