Class 5 English Santoor Chapter 8 PDF: The Decision of the Panchayat

Chapter 8 of Class 5 English Santoor, The Decision of the Panchayat, narrates a classic story of rural justice where a hardworking farmer buys a well from his cunning neighbour, only for the neighbour to demand extra payment for the water inside the well. The village Panchayat resolves the dispute with a brilliant, fair ruling that turns the trickster’s own argument against him.

What Class 5 English Chapter 8 Covers

The Cunning Bargain Over the Well — A simple, honest farmer purchases a well from his greedy neighbour to irrigate his fields. The next morning, when the farmer comes to draw water, the neighbour blocks him and claims: ‘I sold you the well, not the water inside it!’

Approaching the Village Panchayat — Refusing to be cheated, the farmer brings his grievance before the village Panchayat (council of five elders). All the villagers gather under the banyan tree as both sides present their arguments.

The Wise Ruling of the Sarpanch — The head of the Panchayat listens carefully and declares: ‘Since you claim you sold only the well and that the water still belongs to you, you have no right to keep your water inside the farmer’s well! Either pay daily rent to the farmer for storing your water in his well, or empty all your water out immediately.’ Outsmarted and ashamed, the neighbour apologizes and gives up his trick.

Grammar — Pronouns, Possessives, Reported Speech & Opposite Words — Practices possessive pronouns (mine, yours, his, hers, ours, theirs), antonyms using prefixes (honest/dishonest, fair/unfair, legal/illegal), and turning dialogue into reported sentences.

Exercises in Chapter 8

• Let us Think & Speak: Answer questions on why the farmer bought the well, how the neighbour tried to cheat him, and how the Panchayat solved the problem; enact a mock Panchayat in class.
• Let us Learn & Write: Fill in possessive pronouns and adjectives, form antonyms with dis-, un-, in-, and write a character sketch comparing the honest farmer and the cunning neighbour.

Read Class 5 English Chapter 8 Online

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FAQ

How did the neighbour try to cheat the farmer in ‘The Decision of the Panchayat’?
After selling the well and taking the money, the neighbour stopped the farmer from drawing water, claiming that he had only sold the brick well and not the water inside it.

How did the Panchayat resolve the dispute over the well?
The Panchayat ruled that if the water still belonged to the neighbour, he had no right to store his water inside the farmer’s well without paying rent — so he must either remove all his water at once or pay rent to the farmer. Realizing his defeat, the neighbour apologized.

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