Question

Write about the whole summary about the prose water the elixir of life.

Answer 1

Hint: The context of the above question is given in the essay‘ Water the Elixir of Life’. It is written by C.V Raman. C.V. Raman is famous for his discovery of the ‘scattering of light’. His discovery is also known as the Raman effect.

Complete answer:
Prose means some literary work written in ordinary form and not in the form of a poem. Elixir means a potion that can prolong the life period of any living being. In Hindi it is also referred to as ‘amrita’.

In the prose, Water the Elixir of Life, C.V. Raman labels ‘water’ as the ‘rea’l elixir of life is water. He calls it ‘Real elixir’ because humans across generations have been curious to find an elixir which can prolong their life indefinitely. But they don’t understand that ‘water is their elixir’ and that no life can exist without water. He refers to water as ‘Amrita’.

He finds water magical by pointing out the example of the line of river Nile. The river line separates the Libyan Desert from the valley of the Nile in Egypt such that on one side of the river there is a vast area covered with sand and on the other side there is one of the greatest, most fertile and densely populated regions.

He finds water to be the most precious and powerful thing in this world. He warns against taking it for granted. It is important for agricultural purposes, growth of vegetation and directly or indirectly for the prosperity of a country. In fact, it has played an important role in the evolution of life on the Earth.

C.V. Ramana also tells about the destructive effects of water such as heavy rainfall or soil erosion due to continuous exposure of the topmost layer of the soil. He finds it of utmost importance for scientific research because of its magical properties. He finds water conservation of high importance to India because of the high level of agricultural activities.

Note: In this chapter C.V. Raman has not only highlighted the importance of water but also suggested measures for soil and its conservation. Constructing bunds, planting soil appropriate trees and contour cultivation can be used for checking soil erosion while systematic tree plantation can prevent wastage of water.