1.3: The Call of the Soil

A Scent of Rice

WORD MEANINGS:

1) Lush: thick growth of plants

2) Damp: slightly wet.

3) Dew: moisten with drops of liquid.

4) gingerly: very or careful

5) foliage: the tree or a plant

6) Pods: an elongated seed vessel of a plant

7) light fuzz: light and fine fibres

8) Harvest: the process or period of gathering in crops.

9) Exhilarated: very happy and full of excitement

10) Towering: very high or tall

11) Fence: a barrier, railing

12) Get familiar: having some knowledge about (something)

13) At once: at the same time; simultaneously

14) Sow: plant (seed) by scattering it on or in the earth.

15) Adjacent: next to

16) Plough: a large farming implement with one or more blades fixed in a frame, drawn over soil to turn it over and cut furrows in preparation for the planting of seeds.

17) Overjoyed: extremely happy

18) Thrill: a sudden feeling of excitement and pleasure

19) Bloom: to be producing flowers

20) Pesticide: a substance used for destroying insects or other organisms harmful to cultivated plants or to animals.

21) Claimed: formally request or demand

22)Yield: produce or provide

23) hara-kiri : a formal way of killing yourself by cutting open your stomach with a sword.

24) Convincing: capable of causing someone to believe that something is true or real.

25) Contrary: opposite in nature, direction, or meaning

26) Bribes: money given to get work done

27) Awful: a very large amount

28) To resort: to do something because you have no choice

29) Resisted pests: an insect that destroys plant

30) Enlightening: give greater knowledge and understanding

31) For a ride: they have been deceived or cheated

32) Rattled: talk rapidly and at length receded

33) Charpoy: a light bedsheet

34) Pleasantries: a mild joke, friendly remarks

35) Drifted into past: thinking of past, get into that situation

36) Alluring: attractive, facinating

37) Heady aroma: strong smell

38) Insipid: tasteless

39) Advent: arrival

40) Ensured: make certain of obtaining or providing (something).

41) Take up: become intrested

42) To fall in line: conform with others

43) lamented : a passionate expression of grief

44) insatiable: impossible to satisfy

45) reminiscing: remembering a story about a past event

46) ramshackle: in a state of severe disrepair

47) Flash floods: a sudden local flood,due to heavy rain

48) Stood its ground: not retreat or lose one's advantage in the face of opposition.

49) Hamlet: a small village

50) receded: cleared, withdrawn

51) Rued: regret

52) Dialect: a particular form of language

53) Streams: a small, narrow river

54) Ditches: a narrow channel dug at the side of a road or field,to hold or carry away water

55) Scrambling: to move or climb quickly but with difficulty

56) Gravel: small piece of rock

57) Disrepair: bad condition

58) Curiosity: desire to know

59) Approached: come near

60) Muttered: say something in very low voice

61) interpretation: the action of explaining something

62) Elusive: difficult to find, catch or achieve

63) Keep a straight face: serious facial expression

64) Scowled: contracted brows in displeasure

65) Broke into smile: suddenly smiles

66) Fading: gradually grow faint and disappear

67) Nestling: a brid that is too young to leave its nest

68) Hustle and bustle: activity, noisy surrounding

Summary

Table of Contents

Introduction

The narration is about the story “Call of Soil” which is written about the engineer Venkatesh Iyer. He wanted to plant organic food through organic farming. He met a farmer named Mugra who suggested he buy a plot in Surat. He planted the crops there with his hand. Then Mugra suggested he apply the pesticides. The scientist denied saying he wants to grow organic food. He learned about the Kasbi rice which is less pesticide, so he grew it.

Characters

Writer: Venkatesh Iyer who wants to grow rice without using any chemicals.
Moru Dada: The writer’s uncle who insists and helps him in growing moong in his land.
Baban: the one who traveled with the writer in search of Kasbai rice.
Devu Handa: The ex- sarpanch.
Jeevan: Translator who helped the writer communicate with the old lady who gave them Kasbai rice.

The writer’s first crop

In April 2004 the writer stood in the middle of the dense green field of moong. The writer’s feet got muddy because the ground was damp. The field was surrounded by chikoo trees and the moong plants were almost two feet tall and had green pods hanging out. The writer was happy that the pods were almost ripe and there was still time for harvest. It was the writer’s first crop as a farmer and owner of the land.

It was Moru Dada who got him the land and insisted on planting moong dal at once even when the writer wasn’t ready and trying to figure out what they could sow. Moru Dada advised him to buy seeds from Surat and thus with Moru Dada’s help, the writer went to Surat rented a tractor to plow the land, and quickly planted moong all over the land.

A few days later, the writer was delighted to see small plants grow just like when as a child he planted a hibiscus plant and saw it grow for the first time at the railway quarters in Vile Parle in Mumbai. The writer was pleased to take Moru Dada’s advice.

Moru Dada Insisted on using pesticides

Moru Dada also wanted him to spray chemicals but the writer was clear that he didn’t want to use any pesticides. It took a lot of convincing to make sure that Moru Dada didn’t use chemicals however they didn’t understand anyway. On the contrary of what everyone had told them, nature did its job and it didn’t need any offerings for successful harvesting. Soon it was harvest time and they managed to gather 300 kilograms. The writer was now sure that the land was fertile and it was possible to grow crops naturally.

In the first year, they were a little late for rice-sowing and thus they decided to start a little early the next day and try to find some good traditional variety of rice to grow. The writer now learned rice did not need high input of fertilizers and were quite strong which resisted pests and thus the writer knew what type of rice to grow now. Previous years’ experience and low yield had taught them a lesson and now they were sure that they would not plant hybrids this year.

The writer learned about Kasbai

In April 2005 they started to look for a good variety of rice where one of the neighbors in the village suggested that they should plant a local scented variety of rice. Most of the farmers preferred hybrids and the young generation thought that the writer was crazy to ask for natural variety. The writer’s regular visits to the villages around searching for a good traditional variety did not turn out to be successful.

The writer decided to give one last try to search and spoke to Baban’s father and some other elders and got familiar with Kasbai which is a variety of rice. It is a traditional long-grained rice variety that has a distinct aroma that is much milder than basmati. It is a long-duration crop most of the older people used to grow it years ago but no one knew where he could find its seeds.

The stories about this traditional seed made the writer more determined to find it anyhow. The writer even visited the agricultural officer for the matter but it turned out that he didn’t even know about it. The officer took several hybrid names and even offered to give some free of cost for trial. The writer found it a waste of time and moved to the next destination.

The writer is hopeful of finding Kasbai

The writer went to the Adivasi Mahamandal at Kasa which buys rice from the tribal villagers on behalf of the government. They did not sell Kasbai but the officer in charge had the knowledge about it and remembered Kasbai being sold to him a few years ago.

When the writer and Baban went to Dhanivari they were searching for Devu Handa and found him as a greying old man wearing a cap sitting outside his house on a charpoy who turned out to be an ex-sarpanch. He had acres of land, a huge house, and a large family. The writer offered him some gifts and talked about Kasbai. The ex-sarpanch told them that once the entire village used to grow Kasbai and everyone in the village cooked the same rice but now everyone shifted to hybrid variety as they were forced to do so.

Farmers were convinced to grow a second crop instead of Kasbai as it took a long time, replaced by hybrids that took a shorter time and could be done earlier. The writer was curious to know the reason why they shifted to hybrid if it made them unhappy. The ex-panchayat explained that since they did not have any fence and once the harvest was over the cattle were released on the fields and Kasbai would become a treat for the cattle.

It is better to go with the community, hybrids need more water fertilizers, and pesticides as if this new variety had innumerable capacity for chemicals. On the other hand, Kasbai could uphold even floods, such as the strength of it.

The writer finally finds the Kasbai rice

The writer revealed the reason for his visit and learned that only the tribals in a hamlet at the foothills of the mountains in the next village called Asarvari grew it. There they asked the sarpanch to help them communicate as they were not very familiar with the local language. They were assisted by Jeevan who took them to a sleepy hamlet (small settlement) of Boripada. There they met an old lady who had the rice they have been searching for all along.

The writer had difficulty having a straight face because he couldn’t keep his happiness inside and wanted to hug her. They bought a basket of rice from her in hundred rupees. While leaving the old women’s place the writer realized that the real people of India lived in the foothills of an unknown mountain away from all the hustle. These were the kind of people who held on to the rich biodiversity of our land that no one cared about. They are not aware of the hybrids and grew their rice and ate what they got. The old lady had probably never left Boripada and her world remained unspoiled and the writer was grateful for that.

Conclusion

The word ‘Scent’ in the subtitle ‘Scent of Rice’ has a deeper meaning than its usual meaning of fragrance or ‘perfume’ in the context of the text and for the author because he was trying to revive the tradition of Kasbai rice which everyone agreed had an alluring aroma. Modern farmers are forgetting conventions and have fallen prey to hybrids.

The natural ‘scent’, that is ‘flavor’ of Kasbai had drawn the writer towards real India, unspoiled by progress. The ‘scent’ was largely responsible for his quest. The writer wants to highlight the importance of organic and why it is important to be preserved and it is the tribals that help in preserving even when others do not consider it as an important duty.

Brainstorming

Passage 1

From line 1 to 57

On page no. 26 n 27

" The First Crop................major morale booster."

A. Global understanding:

1] Name the following:

I . The broker who got the deal of the land to the author.

Ii. The state which was adjacent to the author's place.

Iii. The place from where the author purchased the seeds.

Iv. The amount of moong harvested by the author.

Ans:

i. Moru dada ii. Gujarat

iii. Surat iv. 300kg

B. Analysis

1] Enlist the words or phrases that define the beauty of nature that the author witnessed at the farm.

Ans: Lush green field of moong, sky turning bright orange, leaves were shining with due, rows of chikoo tree, dense foliage of moong.

C. Reasoning

Give reasons for the following.

i. The writer felt exhilarated because ...

ii. The writer was grateful to have taken Moru Dada's advice because

iii. The writer disagreed with Moru Dada because.

iv. Unlike Moru Dada author wasn't keen on using pesticides on plants because

Ans:

1. He was witnessing his first crop and couldn't believe that he owned such a beautiful land.

ii. he was thrilled by his organic moong produce.

iii. he did not want to spray pesticide on the plants

iv. author believed in the philosophy that nature doesn't need a bribe to get her work done.

D. Personal Response

1. If you were in the writer's place, what would you have chosen - organic farming for quality produce or conventional farming for quantity? Give reasons.

Ans: If I were in the writer's place, I would also have chosen organic farming over conventional farming like the writer did. In today's fast-paced world, unadulterated food items are scarce. Hence, to maintain a healthy lifestyle, I would have definitely taken up organic farming than any other.

E. Vocabulary

1. The writer says he grew 'an awful lot of moong'. Explain the word 'awful' in this sentence.

Ans: The word 'awful' in this context means 'a large amount of '

F. Grammar

ii. The moong plant were not more than two feet tall.

(Change into Affirmative)

Ans: The moong plants were only two feet tall.

iii. Moru Dada rented his tractor to plough the land.

(Rewrite the sentence into Past Continuous Tense)

Ans: Moru Dada was renting his tractor to plough the land.

iv. It was possible to grow crops without chemicals.

(Rewrite as a negative sentence)

Ans: It wasn't impossible to grow crops without chemicals.

Passage 2

Lines from 58 to 104

On page no. 27, 28, n 29

"The Scent of Rice............the next destination."

A. Global understanding:

1] Name the following.

The person who recommended the variety of short-term rice.

ii. Varieties of rice mentioned in the passage

Ans:

i. agricultural officers at Kosbad

il. GR4, Kasbai and Basmati

B. Analysis:

1] List ways in which the government officer cooperated with the author.

i. _____

Ii._____

Iii.______

Ans:

I. He informed the writer that he was being misguided by villagers.

ii. He rattled off the names of a number of latest hybrids

iii. He offered some hybrid seeds free of cost for a trial

C. Reasoning:

1]. Give reasons for the following.

i. The writer wanted to grow the traditional

variety of rice because____

ii. The writer almost gave up hope of finding the desi variety of rice because____

iii. The author decided to do away with hybrid

seeds because____

iv. The seeds of Kasbai disappeared because____

Ans:

I. they did not require very high inputs of fertilizers and were quite strong and resisted pests.

ii. most of the farmers had switched to hybrids and regular visits to villages also didn't yield any results

iii. The experience of low crop yield taught him a lesson.

iv. It was replaced by short term hybrids long time ago.

D. Personal Response

1] Hope is what makes a man pursue what his heart desires. Would you have given up if you were in the place of the writer; visiting places after places without any result?

Ans:

As they say, where there is a will, there is a way. We lose when choose to give up. If I were to pursue something that my heart desired; I would be determined enough to do exactly that. I would not stop until I achieve what I want, just like the writer.

E. Vocabulary

1] Write the antonyms for the following from the extract.

i. criticized. ii vague

ans:

i. recommended. ii. distinct

F. Grammar

1] Rewrite as a Compound sentence.

i. These varieties were quite strong. These varieties also resisted pests.

ii. I spoke to Baban's father. I spoke to some other elders too.

Ans:

i. These varieties were quite strong and resisted pests.

ii. I spoke to Baban's father and some other elders.

Passage 3

From line 105 to 165

On page no. 29 n 30

"This time it was...............seeds of Kasbai."

A. Global understanding:

1] Fill in the blanks with appropriate words from the extract.

i. Baban and the writer went to meet ____

ii. Such was the alluring ____of Kasbai.

iii.Kasbai was replaced by shorter duration_____

iv. "Hybrids need more___” said Devu Handa.

Ans:

i. Devu Handa

ii.aroma

iii.hybrids

iv. water, fertilizers and pesticides

B. Analysis:

1] Write who said the following sentences to whom.

i. Why had he shifted to hybrids if that made him so unhappy.

ii. If my field alone has Kasbai it will be a treat for the cattle.

Ans:

i. The writer to Devu Handa

ii. Devu Handa to the writer

C. Reasoning:

1].Give reasons for the following.

i. Devu Handa had to force himself to eat the new variety rice.

ii. Farmers switched to hybrids.

Ans:

i. Devu Handa had to eat the new variety rice because everyone in the village had stopped growing Kasbai.

ii. With the advent of irrigation, farmers were tempted to grow more crops than one and hence; they switched to hybrids as they yielded results in short duration.

D. Personal Response

1.] Do you look back and miss eating something as majorly as Devu Handa misses his Kasbai?

Ans:

Yes, Ido miss eating naturally ripened mangoes that fell from the trees during summer. It was fun to pick them up and enjoy its sweetness during the summer heat. Nowadays, application of artificial colour on the fruits and vegetables and making them ripen artificially make them tasteless and unhealthy. Mangoes these days lack in taste and are not even ripened properly before reaching the market.

E. Vocabulary

1] Find at least two synonyms for 'insipid'.

Ans: tasteless, flavourless, unappetizing

F. Grammar

1] Identify the clauses.

i. He fondly remembered the way the rice was still standing.

ii. We bid farewell to Devu Handa who lovingly blessed us.

Ans:

i. He fondly remembered - Main Clause

the way the 'rice was still standing -Subordinate Noun Clause

ii. We bid farewell to Devu Handa -Main Clause

who lovingly blessed us - Subordinate Noun Clause

Passage 4

From line 166 to 205

On page no. 30 n 31

"In Asarvari village.................grateful for that."

A. Global understanding:

1] Arrange the following events in the chronological order.

i. Went into the hills with Jeevan.

ii. Met the sarpanch.

iii. Walked back against the fading sunset.

iv. Found the elusive Kasbai.

Ans:

ii.Met the sarpanch.

i. Went into the hills with Jeevan.

iv. Found the elusive Kasbai.

iii. Walked back against the fading sunset.

B. Analysis:

1]Name the following.

i. The sleepy hamlet

ii. The one with the Kasbai seeds residing at the foothills of an unknown mountain

Ans:

i. Boripada

ii. a wrinkled old lady

C. Reasoning

1] Give reasons for the following.

i. The old lady muttered and scowled at Jeevan and the writer when they asked for Kasbai.

Ans:

The old lady muttered and scowled at Jeevan and the writer when they asked for Kasbai because she did not know anything about the writer's whereabouts and neither did she have a weighing machine to weigh the rice.

D. Personal Response

1] 'Reverse migration' refers to the movement of people from cities to their native places or villages.

What do you think is the main cause of it?

Ans:

People migrate to cities to avail the basic and advanced amenities. Their aspiration to have better health facilities, employment, education, safety etc. make them leave their native places. But on the flip side increasing population impacts the environment of cities as people end up over utilizing or exhausting resources.

Overcrowding and pollution and the monotony of city life are the main causes which make people opt for reverse migration.

E. vocabulary

1] Give meanings of the following words and use them in your own sentences.

i. crucial

ii. scowled

Ans:

i. important

Planting tress is a crucial step towards protecting our environment.

Ii. frown

The monkey scowled at me when I tried to click his picture.

F. Grammar

1] Rewrite as a simple sentence.

i. We were from Peth nearby and we needed the seeds to grow it.

ii. They just grew their rice and ate what they got.

Ans:

i. We were from Peth nearby. We needed the seeds to grow it.

ii . They just grew their rice. They ate what they got.