Read the given passage and answer the questions that follow.
The Green Blazer stood out prominently under the bright sun and blue sky. In all that jostling crowd one could not help noticing it. Villagers in shirts and turbans, townsmen in coats and caps, beggars bare-bodied, and women in multi-coloured saris were thronging the narrow passage between the stalls, and moving in great confused masses, but still the Green Blazer could not be missed. The jabber and babble of the market place was there, as people harangued, disputed prices, haggled, or greeted each other; over it all boomed the voice of a Bible-preacher and, when he paused for breath, from another corner the loudspeaker of a health van amplified on malaria and tuberculosis. Over and above it all the Green Blazer seemed to cry out an invitation. Raju could not ignore it. It was not in his nature to ignore such a persistent invitation. He kept himself half-aloof from the crowd: he could not afford to remain completely aloof nor keep himself in it too conspicuously. Wherever he might be he was harrowed by the fear of being spotted by a policeman; today he wore a loin-cloth and was bare-bodied, and had wound an enormous turban over his head, which over-shadowed his face completely, and he hoped that he would be taken for a peasant from a village.
He sat on a stack of cast-off banana stalks beside a shop awning and watched the crowd. When he watched a crowd he did it with concentration. It was his professional occupation. Constitutionally he was an idler and had just the amount of energy to watch in a crowd and put his hand into another person’s pocket. It was a gamble, of course. Sometimes he got nothing out of a venture, counting himself lucky if he came out with his fingers intact.
What do you think is Raju's profession?
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 2
The correct answer is Option (2) → a pickpocketer
A pickpocket (printed here as "pickpocketer") is a thief who steals from people's pockets, usually in crowds. The passage says watching a crowd was Raju's professional occupation and that he had just enough energy to put his hand into another person's pocket. So his profession is picking pockets.
Why the Other Options are Incorrect?
Option 1: an idler — Incorrect. Wrong focus: an idler is a lazy person who avoids work. The passage says Raju was an idler "constitutionally", that is, by nature; it describes his character, not his profession.
Example: The idler spent the whole day lying under a tree.
Option 3: a gambler — Incorrect. Misread: a gambler bets money on games or chance. "It was a gamble" means each theft was a risk; Raju does not bet.
Example: The gambler lost all his savings at the races.
Option 4: an artist — Incorrect. Not mentioned: nothing in the passage connects Raju with painting, music or any art.