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The sight of the.................. made Madhurima happy.

Question Nos. 121-127: Read the passage given 122. From the passage, we understand that below and answer the questions that follow: Madhurima looked down from her balcony. It was early, much earlier than she had ever been up before. The springtime sun had come streaming between the curtains in her bedroom and headed straight for her face, like a warm feather duster tickling her nose, like a golden voice humming in her ear. And what was it humming? That a new fresh day was ready to start. And the sooner she got up, the sooner it would begin. Out on the balcony, the railing was wet with dew. The tiles under her bare feet were cold. The air was still chilly from the night. Madhurima pulled her dressing gown snug around her. Twelve storeys below, the street was empty. A bird twittered. Its voice was clear and pure. It warbled, stopped, and warbled again, as if it were so early that not even the birds were sure whether they should start singing yet. Madhurima listened. The chilly air made her skin tingle, and the chirping song of the birds made her smile, and the empty street made her happy, because everything she could see from her balcony, the whole city, was hers, and there wasn't anyone else to share it with.

Aempty street

Bchirping birds

Cthe springtime chill

Dthe wet railing

Answer:

A. empty street

Read Explanation:

The sight of the "empty street" made Madhurima happy. The passage mentions that the empty street, along with the quietness of the morning, brought her joy. It suggests that she finds peace and contentment in the solitude, perhaps because it makes the city feel more personal and hers to enjoy in that moment. The emptiness contrasts with the usual bustle of city life, allowing her to appreciate the stillness and beauty of the morning.


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From a broader viewpoint, what claim does the author make about hard work and smart work?

Read the following passage and answer the questions based on the passage:

In the tireless pursuit of achievement, the contrast between hard work and smart work appears not simply as a preference but as a subtle interplay within human productivity. Hard work-linked with sustained effort, unwavering perseverance, and sheer diligence-has long been praised as the foundation of accomplishment. Stories and biographies often glorify the individual who relies on grit and time to reach goals. Yet in a world shaped by precision tools, automation, and mental efficiency, these older assumptions are increasingly questioned. By contrast, smart work emphasizes strategic deployment of effort-using reflection, optimal resource use, and careful situational judgment. It attempts to reduce waste in labour while boosting returns on both thought and action. Smart workers examine systems, identify bottlenecks, and exploit tools-digital platforms or networks-to accelerate results. They step off the treadmill of one-direction exertion by embedding intelligence into execution.

Still, praising smart work alone creates its own weakness. Intelligence without discipline often ends in shallowness-a surface-level capability that collapses under prolonged pressure. In the same way, relentless hard work without strategic course-correction can cause exhaustion and low effectiveness. Thus, modern success demands a blend: the wise worker mixes determination with strategy, working not only harder but better. The contrast is therefore not an either-or divide but a complementary relationship. Treating either extreme as ideal ignores the complex realities of performance. In today's demanding landscape, the combined force of persistence and precision makes outcomes sustainable and impact stronger. Success, ultimately, is not produced by blind toil or cleverness alone, but by intelligent perseverance.