আজকের যায়যায়দিন

8. Summarize the following text.

In the Bengali language there is a modern maxim which can be translated, ‘He who learns to read and write rides in a carriage and pair.’ In English there is a similar proverb, ‘Knowledge is power.’ It is an offer of a prospective bribe to the student, a promise of an ulterior reward which is more important than knowledge itself...

Unfortunately, our very education has been successful in depriving us of our real initiative and our courage of thought. The training we get in our schools has the constant implication in it that it is not for us to produce but to borrow. And we are casting about to borrow our educational plans from European institutions. The trampled plants of Indian corn are dreaming of recouping their harvest from the neighboring wheat fields. To change the figure, we forget that, for proficiency in walking, it is better to train the muscles of our own legs than to strut upon wooden ones of foreign make, although they clatter and cause more surprise at our skill in using them than if they were living and real.

But when we go to borrow help from a foreign neighborhood we overlook the fact. That among the Europeans the living spirit of the University is widely spread in their society, their parliament, their literature, and the numerous activities of their corporate life.

Answer : We cannot discover our real initiative and our courage of thought through our education in our institutions. The education we get only teaches us that we have no ability to produce something. We must borrow from others to survive. We should keep in mind that taking help from others or borrowing from others will not be a problem for us if we can insert the spirit of our culture and tradition and noble thoughts into them.

9. Summarize the following text.

Everyone has the right to education. Education shall be free, at least in the elementary and fundamental stages. Elementary education shall be compulsory. Technical and professional education shall be made generally available and higher education shall be equally accessible to all on the basis of merit.

Education shall be directed to the full development of the human personality and to the strengthening of respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms. It shall promote understanding, tolerance and friendship among all nations, racial or religious groups, and shall further the activities of the United Nations for the maintenance of peace.

Parents have a prior right to choose the kind of education that shall be given to their children.

Answer : Everyone has the right to education. Therefore, we must take the elementary education compulsory for all. Technical and professional education shall be made generally available. Education should aim at the full development of the human personality and to the strengthening of respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms for the maintenance of peace under the United Nations.

10. Summarize the following text.

Cursed or not, we know how important drinking water is in our life. We know we cannot survive without it. In fact two-thirds of our body is made up of water. Not for nothing is it said that the other name of water is life. Is there a crisis in our time with regard to access to clean drinking water? The United Nations in a meeting on the eve of the new millennium identified the drinking water problem as one of the challenges for the future. But do we need to worry about the problem as ours is a land of rivers and we have plenty of rainfall? Besides, we have a sea in our backyard too.

One of the sources of water in our country is the rivers. Rivers are everywhere in our life, literature, economy and culture. But are the rivers in good shape? Unfortunately, they are not. A few are already dead and several are going through the pangs of death. The river Buriganga is an example of a dying river. A report published in the Daily sun describes what has happened to the river Buriganga and why. Its water is polluted and a perpetual stench fills the air around it. But that is not what it was like before.

Answer : Drinking water is very important in our life. Two-thirds of our body is made up of water. We cannot survive without it. The drinking water problem is regarded as one of the challenges for the future by the United Nations. In spite of having a land of rivers, we need to worry about the problem. Our rivers are not in good shape. We are putting them to death by polluting them. n cieZ©x Ask AvMvgx msL¨vq