Memoirs of a Chota Sahib: AHSEC HS Class 12: Important Short Questions

1. Who is the 'Chota Sahib' in the 'Memoirs of a Chota Sahib'? HS EXAM 2015, 2018

Ans: John Rowntree is the 'Chota Sahib' in the 'Memoirs of a Chota Sahib'. He was the last British Senior Conservator of the Forests of Assam.

2. What position did John Rowntree hold before leaving Shillong a few days after Independence? HS EXAM 2016, 2020

Ans: Before leaving Shillong a few days after Independence, John Rowntree held the position of the Senior Conservator of Forests of Assam.

3. Where did John Rowntree and his family make their first home at Guwahati? HS Exam 2017

Ans: John Rowntree and his family made their first home in a bungalow at Guwahati on the bank of the river Brahmaputra.

4. How did John Rowntree find the weather when he arrived at Guwahati? HS EXAM 2018

Ans: John Rowntree found that the cold weather was getting under way and the climate becoming bearable.

5. Name the book from which 'Memoirs of a Chota Sahib' is taken? HS EXAM 2019, 2022

Ans: 'Memoirs of a Chota Sahib' is taken from 'A Chota Sahib: Memoirs of a Forest Officer'.

6. What creatures did the writer notice on the Peacock Island? HS EXAM 2023

Ans: The writer noticed only monkeys on the Peacock Island.

7. What does Rowntree often talk of in 'Memoirs of a Chota Sahib'? HS EXAM 2014, 2023

Ans: Rowntree often talks of the times he spent in Guwahati and its neighbouring areas on the eve of Independence. His account is not only local specific but also relevant to the present time.

8. Give a brief description of Peacock Island? HS EXAM 2014, 2016

Ans: Peacock Island was situated in the centre of the river Brahmaputra. It had the dome of a Hindu temple just visible through the trees. Although it was called Peacock Island, the author discovered that there were only monkeys and no peacocks on the island.

9. What was the belief about the dividing channel between Peacock Island and the mainland of Guwahati? HS EXAM 2015

Ans: The distance between Peacock Island and the mainland was becoming narrower every year. There was a belief that if this channel ever dried up completely, it would mean the end of the British Raj.

10. What does Rowntree state about the large 'Bheel' close to the bungalow at Rajapara? HS EXAM 2015

Ans: Rowntree states that there was a large bheel close to the bungalow at Rajapara where an earthquake had once lowered the surface and the land became inundated with water. It was an eerie spot where tree skeletons still rose out of the water reminding that it had once been dry land.

11. What does Rowntree say about the river banks in the Manas Sanctuary? HS EXAM 2017

Ans: Rowntree says that the river banks in the Manas Sanctuary were a favourite site for the Governor's Christmas camps and it was his task to build it. Sometimes he also received a polite letter of thanks from the Governor for building the camps.

12. What unusual visitor did Rowntree have in his bungalow one night? HS EXAM 2018

Ans: Rowntree had unusual visitors in his bungalow one night. One of such visitors was a tiger that had, presumably, been washed up by a flood. The footmarks of the tiger were clearly traceable through the compound of his bungalow.

13. What is a marboat and how is it operated? HS EXAM 2019

Ans: A mar or mar boat is a ferry which consists of a plank platform covering two open boats placed alongside one another.

These boats are either paddled across the river or, connected by a running cable to another stretched across the river, and are propelled from one side to the other by the force of the current.

14. Write, in brief, the scene observed by the author from the veranda of his bungalow on the bank of the Brahmaputra. HS EXAM 2020

Ans: The author had a splendid view of the river and its shipping and , beyond, the Himalayas. In the middle of the river, there was Peacock Island, with the dome of a Hindu temple just visible through the trees.

15. Who was John Rowntree? HS EXAM 2022

Ans: John Rowntree was the last British Senior Conservator of Forests of Assam. He left Shillong a few days after Independence and became a journalist and media commentator in England.

He is the Chota Sahib in his 'A Chota Sahib: Memoirs of a Forest Officer'.

16. What character of the North bank of the Brahmaputra did John Rowntree refer to? HS EXAM 2022

Ans: John Rowntree says that the North Bank had a character of its own. It was a vast, remote stretch of flat, ageless land between the sandbanks of the Brahmaputra and the Himalayan foothills. It was a strange place, where the rivers dried up in the hot weather or suddenly disappeared under ground.