Correcting a Hindi Laboratory Notice
Before a practical examination, the lab in-charge asks you to correct a Hindi notice that will be pasted on the laboratory door. The draft reads: “सभी विद्यार्थीयों को सूचित किया जाता है कि प्रयोगशाला में प्रवेश करने से पहले अपने जूते और कोट पहनना अनिवार्य है। कृपया शीशे के बर्तन को सावधानी से रखें। बिना अनुमति रसायन न छुएँ।” You have five minutes; the notice must be short, formal, and clear to first-year students. The notice is for a chemistry laboratory where students handle beakers and test tubes. A senior teacher suggests changing “शीशे” to “काँच” but another says the original is acceptable because both mean glass. You must decide what to correct, what to keep, and how to rewrite the notice without changing its rules.
1. Identify three grammatical or usage problems in the draft and give the corrected forms with reasons.
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Three corrections:
- “विद्यार्थीयों” is wrong; the correct plural is “विद्यार्थियों” (standard plural ending).
- “अपने जूते और कोट पहनना अनिवार्य है” is awkward because one verb governs two different items. Write “जूते पहनना और कोट पहनना अनिवार्य है” or “जूते तथा कोट पहनना अनिवार्य है.”
- “शीशे के बर्तन” is ambiguous: “शीशा” usually means mirror, while laboratory glassware is “काँच.” Write “काँच के बर्तनों को.”
Also, “रसायन न छुएँ” is better as “रसायनों को न छुएँ” in this formal instruction.
2. Rewrite the notice in 40–50 words, keeping the rules but improving clarity and grammar.
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सूचना: सभी विद्यार्थियों को सूचित किया जाता है कि प्रयोगशाला में प्रवेश से पहले जूते और कोट पहनना अनिवार्य है। कृपया काँच के बर्तनों को सावधानी से रखें। अनुमति के बिना रसायनों को न छुएँ।
This keeps the rules, uses the formal heading “सूचना,” avoids the ambiguous “शीशा,” and is short enough for a door notice.
3. Should the word “शीशे” be kept or changed? Explain using the audience and purpose of the notice.
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Change it to “काँच.” A safety notice for first-year students must be unambiguous. “शीशा” can be read as mirror, and “शीशे के बर्तन” may suggest mirror-work rather than beakers and test tubes. “काँच के बर्तनों” clearly refers to glassware and uses the correct plural object form.
Keep “अनिवार्य” for the rule and “कृपया” for the request, because the notice mixes a mandatory instruction with a caution.