HBSE Class 9 English Question Paper 2025 Answer Key

Haryana Board (HBSE) Class 9 English Question Paper 2025 with a fully solved answer key. Students can use this HBSE Class 9 English Solved Paper to match their responses and understand the question pattern. This BSEH English Answer Key 2025 is based on the latest syllabus and exam format to support accurate preparation and revision for the board exams.

HBSE Class 9 English Question Paper 2025 Answer Key

SECTION – A (Unseen Comprehension)

1. Read the passage given below and answer the questions that follow :
For millions of people in India, river Ganga is the most sacred river. It is considered as mother and goddess. It is also a lifeline to millions of Indians who live on the banks of its course and depend on it for their daily needs. River Ganga is the third largest river in the world by the amount of water that flows through it. It is the longest river in India. The river water of Ganga is used for irrigation, transportation and fishing. The Gangetic plain formed by river Ganga is one of the most fertile lands on earth. This is why almost 10% of the world population lives here and earns its livelihood.
The Ganga, in India is the most worshipped body of water. The irony here is that in spite of being the most worshipped river, it is also the dirtiest one. It carries metals thrown out by tanneries, waste produced by industries and urban waste from different cities. All this has made river Ganga the fifth most polluted river in the world.
Another major reason that adds to the Ganga river pollution is the coal based power plants on its banks which burn tons of coal every year and produce a lot of fly ash. This ash mixed with domestic waste water is released in the river. This bad situation calls for an urgent need to make efforts to reduce pollution and revive river Ganga. To achieve these objectives, the Government of India has started a programme named “Namami Gange Programme”. The main pillars of this programme are sewage treatment, river surface cleaning, afforestation, river front development and public awareness. The importance of the success of “Namami Gange Programme” can be seen through publically.
Questions :
(i) …………….. is a lifeline for millions of Indians.
(a) Krishna
(b) Ganga
(c) Narmada
(d) Yamuna
Answer – (b) Ganga

(ii) …………….. of world population lives near river Ganga.
(a) 30%
(b) 15%
(c) 10%
(d) 20%
Answer – (c) 10%

(iii) Ganga is the …………… most polluted river in the world.
(a) Fifth
(b) First
(c) Second
(d) Third
Answer – (a) Fifth

(iv) Ganga is the …………… largest river in the world by the amount of water that flows through it.
(a) First
(b) Second
(c) Fourth
(d) Third
Answer – (d) Third

(v) Most people in India consider the Ganga as ……………
Answer – Mother and Goddess

(vi) The government of India has started a programme named …………… to clean the Ganga.
Answer – Namami Gange Programme

(vii) What are the main pillars of “Namami Gange Programme”?
Answer – The main pillars of this programme are sewage treatment, river surface cleaning, afforestation, river front development and public awareness.

(viii) For what purposes is the Ganga water used?
Answer – The water of the Ganga is used for irrigation, transportation, and fishing..

(ix) Name two pollutants that make river Ganga very dirty.
Answer – Industrial effluents and urban waste, including metals discharged from tanneries, are major pollutants that make the river Ganga very dirty.

(x) Which two purposes will be served by the programme “Namami Gange”?
Answer – Reduction of pollution and revival of the river Ganga are the two purposes that will be served by the programme.

2. Read the passage given below and answer the questions that follow :
The Aravali Range is affected by human activities like stone crushing, cutting trees in the forest area of Aravali, construction on large scale, mining, dispense and dumping waste. Such activities affect the atmosphere of Aravali and its surrounding areas environment. Some of the famous lakes like Backhaul Lake, Dhauj Jheel, Surajkund Lake, Damdama Lake on the Aravali range have gone dry in last five years because of illegal mining and change of pattern in the natural drainage system. These lakes are dumped with waste material which affect ground water flow. Drying of these lakes also indicates that in future ground water will not be available in this area if the relevant steps for recovery are not taken.
The mindless mining in one of the oldest hills in the world has devastated the range. In several places, the mines have gone so deep the water level has been exposed, forming lakes amidst the blasted ranges. The Rajasamand lake in Udaipur which always had water has dried up recently. In May, 2009, after four months of media and public protests, along with several environmental groups, the Supreme Court banned mining in an area of 448 square km, across Faridabad, Gurgaon and Mewat districts in Haryana that was once supposed to be set aside for a national park. This comes after SC’s earlier judgment in 1994 that allowed limited mining on the basis of the sustainable development principle and under strict guidelines, which were violated by local miners as the court ruled.
The Supreme Court on February 20, 2010 directed cancellation of 157 mining leases operating in Rajasthan’s eco-sensitive Aravali Hills and asked the Forest Survey of India to carry out satellite imagery of the entire 50,000 sq km range spread across 15 districts of the state to assess the extent of ecological damage. Giving four months time to the FSI to complete the task, the Special Bench of Chief Justice K. G. Balakrishnan, Justices S. H. Kapadia and Aftab Alam directed all miners in the area to stop operation till then.
Questions :
(i) When was mining banned across Faridabad, Gurgaon and Mewat districts in Haryana?
(a) June, 2009
(b) April, 2010
(c) May, 2009
(d) May, 2010
Answer – (c) May, 2009

(ii) How was the ecological damage across 15 districts of Rajasthan to be assessed?.
(a) by stop mining
(b) by the satellite imagery
(c) by ordered people
(d) by asking help from NGO’s
Answer – (b) by the satellite imagery

(iii) Who chaired the Special Bench of the Supreme Court?
(a) K. G. Balakrishnan
(b) S. H. Kapadia
(c) Aftab Alam
(d) None of these
Answer – (a) K. G. Balakrishnan

(iv) Which of the lake in Rajasthan has dried up in May, 2009?
(a) Backhaul Lake
(b) Dhauj Jheel
(c) Damdama Lake
(d) The Rajasamand Lake
Answer – (d) The Rajasamand Lake

(v) How is the Aravali Hills affected?
Answer – The Aravali range is affected by human activities like stone crushing, cutting of trees, large scale construction, mining and dispense and dumping of waste.

(vi) Why have some of the lakes on the Aravali range gone dry?
Answer – Some of the lakes on the Aravali range have gone dry because of the illegal mining and the change of pattern in the natural drainage system.

(vii) What does the dryness of these lakes indicate?
Answer – The dryness of these lakes indicates that in future ground water won’t be available in this area if the relevant steps for recovery are not taken.

(viii) How many mining leases were cancelled by the Supreme Court in Feb., 2010?
Answer – 157 Mining leases

(ix) Find out a word from the passage which means :
Shows that somethings exists
Answer – Indicates

(x) What is the opposite word of ‘Development’?
Answer – Decline / Halt / Lessen / Decrease

SECTION – B (Grammar)

3. Attempt any ten of the following questions :
Fill in the blanks with correct option :
(i) I ……………. the Taj Mahal last year. (visit) (Tense)
(a) visit
(b) had visited
(c) visited
(d) will visit
Answer – (c) Visited

(ii) The patient had died before the doctor …………… . (come) (Tense)
(a) came
(b) comes
(c) had come
(d) would come
Answer – (a) came

(iii) my name is dr suman kumari (Punctuation)
(a) my name is Dr. Suman Kumari?
(b) My name is Dr. Suman Kumari.
(c) My Name is Dr. Suman Kumari.
(d) my name is Dr. Suman Kumari.
Answer – (b) My name is Dr. Suman Kumari.

(iv) Work hard lest you ………….. fail. (Modal)
(a) should
(b) will
(c) would
(d) can
Answer – (a) Should

(v) Change into passive voice :
Ram knows me.
(a) Ram is known by me.
(b) I am known to Ram.
(c) I am known by Ram.
(d) Ram is known to me.
Answer – (b) I am known to Ram.

(vi) Change into Indirect Speech :
The teacher said to me, “honesty is the best policy”.
(a) The teacher said to me that honesty was the best policy.
(b) The teacher said to me that honesty will the best policy.
(c) The teacher said to me whether honesty was the best policy.
(d) The teacher told me that honesty is the best policy.
Answer – (d) The teacher told me that honesty is the best policy.

(vii) He is junior …………. me. (Preposition)
(a) by
(b) to
(c) from
(d) than
Answer – (b) to

(viii) I have ………….. European friend. (Article)
(a) the
(b) a
(c) an
(d) no article
Answer – (b) a

(ix) Will you lend me …………… money? (Determiner)
(a) some
(b) any
(c) many
(d) none of the above
Answer – (a) some

(x) Harris is back from work. He must take rest. (Clause)
(a) Harris is back from work and he must take rest.
(b) Harris is back from work because he must take rest.
(c) Harris is back from work so he must take rest.
(d) Harris is back from work but he must take rest.
Answer – (c) Harris is back from work so he must take rest.

(xi) I am very hungry …………… the fridge is empty. (Conjunction)
(a) if
(b) still
(c) so
(d) but
Answer – (d) but

(xii) My cousins and grandmother ……………. the new Jungle Book film. (Verb Agreement)
(a) like
(b) are liking
(c) likes
(d) will like
Answer – (a) like

SECTION – C (Writing Skills)

4. Attempt any one of the following :
Write an application to the Principal of your school for asking Transfer Certificate.
Answer –

To
The Principal
XYZ School
ABC City

Subject : Need for Transfer Certificate

Respected Sir,
With due respect, I would like to say that I am a student of your school, studying in Class IX at present. I feel extremely sorry to inform you that I shall not be able to continue my studies in your esteemed school as my father has been transferred to Mumbai along with all family members. Therefore, under the above circumstances, I request you to kindly issue me a Transfer Certificate, which will enable me to seek admission in a school in Mumbai.

Thanking you for your cooperation in this regard.

Yours obediently
XYZ
17 January 20XX

OR

Write a letter to M/S J. P. Appliances, B-30 Janakpuri, Delhi, complaining that the Geyser supplied by them has stopped working in less than a week. Sign yourself as Vikas of Sector 42, Gurugram.
Answer –

Sector-42
Gurugram

17 January 20XX

The Manager
M/S J. P. Appliances
B-30 Janakpuri
Delhi

Subject : Complaint about Geyser

Sir,
I purchased an Eskam Geyser from your company vide Cash Memo No. 225 dated 12 January 20XX with a warranty of one year. I regret to inform you that it stopped working after five days. It does not heat water. The green light signal shows that it is on, but it does not give hot water. Please send your mechanic to rectify the fault or replace the geyser with a new one.

Yours sincerely,
Vikas

5. Attempt any one of the following :
You are Vinay / Vineeta, the Sports Secretary of D. A. V. School, Delhi. Draft a notice inviting students to give their names for various events to be organized on the Annual Sports Day of your school.
Answer –

OR

You are Sudhir Kumar, the father of a 14 years old son. Your son is weak in Maths. Draft a classified advertisement seeking a suitable maths tutor.
Answer –

SECTION – D [A : Prose Text (Beehive)]

6. Read the following passage carefully and answer the questions that follow :
I didn’t jump. I didn’t tremble. I didn’t cry out. There was no time to do any such thing. The snake slithered along my shoulder and coiled around my left arm above the elbow. The hood was spread out and its head was hardly three or four inch from my face!
It would not be correct to say merely that I sat there holding my breath. I was turned to stone.
Questions :
(i) Name the chapter and its writer.
Answer – Chapter : The Snake And The Mirror, Writer : Vaikom Mohammad Basheer

(ii) Why did the author not jump, tremble and cry?
Answer – The author did not jump, tremble and cry because a snake had fallen on his shoulders.

(iii) How far was death from him?
Answer – Death was just three or four inches away from him.

(iv) Where was the snake coiled?
Answer – The snake was coiled to the left arm of the writer.

(v) Find a word from the passage which means the same as ‘stretched’.
Answer – Spread

OR

The months rolled on and Bruno had grown many times the size he was when he came. He had equalled the Alsatians in height and had even outgrown them, but was just as sweet, just as mischievous and just as playful. And he was very fond of us all. Above all, he loved my wife and she loved him too! She had changed his name from Bruno to Baba, a Hindustani word signifying small boy’. And he could do a few tricks too. At the command, ‘Baba, Wrestle’, or ‘Baba, box’, he vigorously tackled anyone who came forward for rough and tumble.
Questions :
(i) Name the chapter and its writer.
Answer – Chapter : The Bond of Love, Writer : Kenneth Anderson

(ii) Why did the narrator compare Bruno with the Alsatians?
Answer – Because he was tall, sweet, playful and mischievous like the Alsatians.

(iii) Why did the narrator’s wife change the name of Bruno to Baba?
Answer – She changed the name of Burno to Baba because she loved him like a child.

(iv) Give two qualities of Bruno.
Answer – He was sweet and playful.

(v) Find the word from the passage which means the same as ‘naughty’.
Answer – Mischievous

7. Answer any two questions given below :
(i) What kind of a person was Kezia’s father?
Answer – Kezia’s father was a hard working man but short tempered. He was also a strict disciplinarian. When Kezia’s mother was hospitalized, Kezia realised that her father loved her but did not have the art of expressing his love.

(ii) Why did Margie find the book strange?
Answer – Margie found the book strange because it had yellow and crinkly pages, and the words were standing still and did not move. When they turned back to the pages they had read before, there were the same words on it as when they read it the first time. All these things were strange for Margie.

(iii) What difficulties did Santosh face in her childhood?
Answer – Though Santosh was born in a rich family who could easily send their children to the best school, Santosh was sent to the local village school. She was not provided proper facilities to achieve success.

8. How did Kezia’s negative attitude towards her father change?
Answer – When her mother was hospitalized, Kezia’s grandmother went to stay with her. Kezia had to sleep alone at night. She was so scared that she started shouting in her sleep. She had nightmares and trembled with fear. Then her father came to her room and took her into his arms to comfort her. She felt secure when her father was near her. Then she realised that her father was busy with work and had no time to play with her. She also realized that her father loved her but did not have the art of expressing it. Thus, her attitude towards her father changed from negative to positive.

OR

What observations does the author make about the Kathmandu Bazaar?
Answer – The Kathmandu Bazaar had narrow and busy streets. The author observed chaos, confusion and disorder everywhere in the bazaar. There were fruit sellers, flute sellers, hawkers selling postcards, and shops selling Western cosmetics, film rolls and chocolates. Copper utensils and Nepalese antiques were also being sold. There was noise of film songs, car horns, cycle bells, stray cows and vendors shouting out their wares. Thus, the author made a very detailed and vivid observation of the Kathmandu Bazaar.

SECTION – D [B : Poetry (Beehive)]

9. Attempt any one from the given stanzas :
Two roads diverged in yellow wood
And sorry I could not travel both
And be one traveller, long I stood
And looked down once as far as I could
To where it bent in the undergrowth;
Questions :
(a) Name the poet of this poem.
Answer – Robert Frost

(b) At which point had the poet reached?
Answer – The poet is standing at a point where two roads diverged in the yellow wood.

(c) Why was the traveller feeling sorry?
Answer – The poet is feeling sorry because he could not travel on both the roads.

(d) Where did the one road lead to?
Answer – The one road led to the dense forest full of plants and animals.

(e) Give the opposite to ‘met at a point’ from the stanza.
Answer – Diverged

OR

The snake trying
To escape the pursuing stick,
With sudden carvings of thin
long body, How beautiful
and graceful are his shapes!
Questions :
(a) Name the poet.
Answer – W. W. E. Ross

(b) What is the snake trying to escape?
Answer – The pursuing stick

(c) How is the shape of the snake described?
Answer – Beautiful and graceful

(d) How is the body of the snake?
Answer – Thin and long

(e) Find a word from the stanza which is opposite to ‘short’.
Answer – Long

10. Answer any two of the following :
(a) Describe the central idea of the poem ‘Wind’.
Answer – This poem inspires us to face the challenges thrown at us with grit and firm determination. It teaches us that we should be strong enough to face all the hardships of life with courage. The wind symbolizes the problems and obstacles that we face and go through at some point in our lives.

(b) How does the earth unite us?
Answer – The earth unites us in many beautiful senses. We eat and drink the things that grow on the earth. It is earth we walk and play on and after our lives come to an end, we all lie hidden inside it according to our destiny.

(c) Who came knocking at the door of the old woman? Why was he there?
Answer – In the Northland, an old lady lived in a cottage. She was baking cakes when St. Peter came knocking at her door. He had become weak due to fasting and travelling. He was looking for food and hence came knocking at the old lady’s door.

SECTION – D [C : Supplementary Reader (Moments)]

11. Attempt any two of the following :
(a) In what way is Iswaran an asset to Mahendra?
Answer – Iswaran was Mahendra’s cook and proved to be an asset to him. He cooked food for him, washed his clothes, and chatted with his master at night. He often narrated stories which were very convincing.

(b) Why did the author’s grandfather decide to buy Toto?
Answer – The author’s grandfather was an animal lover and took pity on Toto as it was kept tied to a feeding trough. Toto looked out of place, so he decided to buy it and bring it to his private zoo.

(c) How did Sergei help Lushkoff to live respectfully?
Answer – Sergei did not believe Lushkoff’s stories and threatened to hand him over to the police. He offered him work chopping wood and later employed him while shifting his belongings to a new house. After that, he sent Lushkoff to one of his friends for work. This made Lushkoff believe in goodness and honest means of livelihood. In this way, Sergei helped Lushkoff to live a respectful life.

12. How was the life of Lushkoff changed?
Answer – Lushkoff’s life changed drastically when he came in contact with Sergei. Sergei taught him the value of self respect. Olga, Sergei’s cook, also helped him change from a spoiled, drunken beggar into a noble person by making him work. Sergei taught him that earning by hard work is better than begging. Lushkoff began to chop wood, shovel snow, put the wood-shed in order, and beat the dust out of rugs and mattresses. For this work, he earned about twenty to forty copecks. Gradually, Lushkoff became a refined person and finally became a notary, earning at least thirty-five roubles a month.

OR

Write the character sketch of Happy Prince.
Answer – The Happy Prince was a beautiful statue. When he was alive, he had no knowledge of sorrow and tears because he was kept away from all suffering and pain. He always saw only happy people in his kingdom and never knew that people could be poor or face hardships.
After his death, he was placed on a tall column. He was covered with golden leaves and had sapphires and a ruby studded on him. Standing on the tall column, the Prince could see the miserable condition of the poor people. With the help of the Swallow, he helped the needy by giving away all his riches. He was generous and soft-hearted, as he felt the pain and suffering of others.