Unseen Passage for Class 5 – Festivals and Places

Reading comprehension lesson 18: Festivals and places of India · Set 332 · 12 questions

Reading tip (Facts by place and time): Find the place, the time of year and what people do. Answer from the passage, even if you know more about it. For word meanings, read the sentence around the word.

1. 1.Baisakhi is a harvest festival celebrated mainly in Punjab. It falls on 13 or 14 April every year. By this time, the wheat crop is ripe and ready to be cut. Farmers thank God for a good harvest. For Sikhs, the day is also important because the Khalsa was founded on Baisakhi. People visit gurdwaras and share a free meal called langar. Men and women dance the bhangra and giddha to the beat of the dhol. Fairs with swings and food stalls are held in many villages.
   
   In which month is Baisakhi? (a) August (b) October (c) January (d) April
2. 2.Onam is the harvest festival of Kerala. It falls in August or September, after the monsoon. People believe that the kind King Mahabali visits his people at this time. To welcome him, families make pookalam, a carpet of flower petals, in front of their homes. A grand meal called sadya is served on a banana leaf. It has more than twenty dishes. Snake boat races are held on the rivers. Everyone wears new clothes, and the whole state is full of joy.
   
   What is a pookalam? (a) A boat race (b) A big meal (c) A new dress (d) A carpet of petals
3. 3.The backwaters of Kerala are a network of calm lakes, rivers and canals near the sea. Coconut palms line their banks. Many villages lie along the water, and people use boats to go to school, work and market. Houseboats called kettuvallams carry visitors slowly along the canals. Long ago, these boats carried rice and spices. Ducks swim beside the boats, and fishermen throw their nets. Alappuzha is one of the best places to see the backwaters. The quiet waters make it a peaceful place to visit.
   
   What did these boats carry long ago? (a) Coal (b) Rice and spices (c) Cattle (d) Cars
4. 4.Pongal is a harvest festival of Tamil Nadu. It is celebrated in the middle of January and lasts for four days. Families thank the Sun God for a good harvest. They boil fresh rice with milk and jaggery in a new clay pot. When the pot boils over, people shout, “Pongalo Pongal!” The overflowing pot is a sign of plenty. On the third day, cattle are washed and decorated with paint and bells. Houses are decorated with colourful kolams at the door.
   
   What is boiled with milk and jaggery? (a) Lentils (b) Wheat (c) Bananas (d) Fresh rice
5. 5.Onam is the harvest festival of Kerala. It falls in August or September, after the monsoon. People believe that the kind King Mahabali visits his people at this time. To welcome him, families make pookalam, a carpet of flower petals, in front of their homes. A grand meal called sadya is served on a banana leaf. It has more than twenty dishes. Snake boat races are held on the rivers. Everyone wears new clothes, and the whole state is full of joy.
   
   Where are the snake boat races held? (a) On the roads (b) In school (c) On the rivers (d) In the hills
6. 6.The Rann of Kutch is a huge salt desert in Gujarat. During the monsoon, it is flooded with sea water. When the water dries up in winter, a thick white layer of salt is left behind. On a full-moon night, the white land seems to glow. Every winter, a festival called Rann Utsav is held there. Visitors stay in tents and enjoy folk music and crafts. Flamingos come to the wetlands nearby to breed. Wild asses, found almost nowhere else, also live in this area.
   
   When is Rann Utsav held? (a) Every winter (b) Every summer (c) In the monsoon (d) In spring
7. 7.The Sundarbans is the largest mangrove forest in the world. It lies where the Ganga and Brahmaputra rivers meet the sea, in West Bengal and Bangladesh. Mangrove trees can grow in salty water. Their roots stick up out of the mud to breathe. The forest is home to the Royal Bengal tiger, which can swim well. Crocodiles, deer and many birds also live there. The mangroves protect the land from strong storms from the sea. People travel through the forest by boat.
   
   How do people travel through the forest? (a) By camel (b) By bus (c) By train (d) By boat
8. 8.Holi is the festival of colours, usually celebrated in March. It marks the end of winter and the coming of spring. On the night before Holi, people light a bonfire called Holika Dahan. The bonfire stands for good winning over evil. Next morning, friends throw coloured powder, called gulal, at one another. Children fill water guns, called pichkaris, with coloured water. Many people now use colours made from flowers, which are safe for the skin. Later, everyone washes up and shares sweets like gujiya.
   
   What is gujiya? (a) A colour (b) A sweet (c) A dance (d) A water gun
9. 9.The backwaters of Kerala are a network of calm lakes, rivers and canals near the sea. Coconut palms line their banks. Many villages lie along the water, and people use boats to go to school, work and market. Houseboats called kettuvallams carry visitors slowly along the canals. Long ago, these boats carried rice and spices. Ducks swim beside the boats, and fishermen throw their nets. Alappuzha is one of the best places to see the backwaters. The quiet waters make it a peaceful place to visit.
   
   What are kettuvallams? (a) Fishing nets (b) Coconut trees (c) Rice fields (d) Houseboats
10. 10.The Hornbill Festival is held in Nagaland every year from 1 to 10 December. It is named after the hornbill, a large bird with a big curved beak. The bird is important in the stories and songs of the Naga people. The festival takes place at a heritage village called Kisama, near Kohima. Many tribes of Nagaland come together to show their dances, songs and crafts. Visitors can watch traditional games and taste local food. The festival helps keep old traditions alive.
    
    Where does the festival take place? (a) At Guwahati (b) At Imphal (c) At Shillong (d) At Kisama
11. 11.Onam is the harvest festival of Kerala. It falls in August or September, after the monsoon. People believe that the kind King Mahabali visits his people at this time. To welcome him, families make pookalam, a carpet of flower petals, in front of their homes. A grand meal called sadya is served on a banana leaf. It has more than twenty dishes. Snake boat races are held on the rivers. Everyone wears new clothes, and the whole state is full of joy.
    
    Who do people believe visits during Onam? (a) The Sun God (b) Their teacher (c) King Mahabali (d) A sea king
12. 12.Shimla is a hill station in Himachal Pradesh. It is built on the slopes of green hills covered with pine and deodar trees. In summer, the weather is cool, so many families visit to escape the heat of the plains. In winter, snow often covers the roofs and roads. A small toy train climbs up to Shimla from Kalka. It passes through more than a hundred tunnels. The main street, called the Mall Road, has no cars. People walk there and enjoy the views of the mountains.
    
    Why do families visit Shimla in summer? (a) To see the desert (b) To see the snow (c) To swim in the sea (d) To escape the heat

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