In what way is Iswaran an asset to Mahendra?

Assets

In the previous example,assuming that the bench on which Mahendra is sitting is frictioless,starting,with zero velocity.What will be Mahendra's velocity after 1s and how will is change with time? Mass of Mahendra (75kg) and force (4.002xx10^-7N)

Why does the author say that Iswaran seemed to more than make up for the absence of a TV in Mahendra’s living quarters?