Important English Vocabulary from “The Hindu Editorial”-(Day-93):
Dear Readers, to score good marks in English Section first and for most thing is you need to develop your reading skills, while reading a passage you need to highlight the tough words in it and you should know the correct meaning for those words. This will help you understand the passage clearly and also you can learn more new words, it means also you can develop your vocabulary. To help you in this part we have provided a English Vocabulary passage along with meaning, synonyms and usages of hard words in the passage, make use of it. We also providing Important Vocabulary Quiz based on “THE ECONOMIST” and “THE HINDU”
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The Hindu Editorial – 05.02.2018
Limited succour
Budget 2018 does well to focus on senior citizens, but action must be broad based
Finance Minister Arun Jaitley stressed in his Budget speech last week that “to care for those who cared for us is one of the highest honours”, underscoring the importance the Centre attaches to providing economic support for India’s growing population of senior citizens. He then announced several tax and related incentives to ease the financial burden on people aged 60 and above, all of which are very welcome given that the elderly face steeply escalating health-care costs on declining real interest and pension incomes. From affording a five-fold increase in the exemption limit on interest income from savings, fixed and recurring deposits held with banks and post offices to Rs.50,000, and doing away with the requirement for tax to be deducted at source on such income, the Budget offers much-needed relief. This it does by leaving a little more money in the hands of elderly savers who are heavily dependent on interest income to meet their living expenses. Another useful tax change is the proposal to raise the annual income tax deduction limit for health insurance premium and/or medical reimbursement to Rs.50,000 for all seniors. And a crucially allied step is the move to set the ceiling for deduction in lieu of expenses incurred on certain critical illnesses to Rs.1 lakh, irrespective of the age of the senior citizen. Separately, Mr. Jaitley also proposed extending the Pradhan Mantri Vaya Vandana Yojana by two years, up to March 2020, and doubled the cap on investment in the scheme to Rs.15 lakh. This annuity-cum-insurance scheme entitles the senior citizen policyholder to a guaranteed pension that equates to an annual return of 8% on investment. This pension plan, unlike the entirely
government-funded Indira Gandhi National Old Age Pension Scheme for the elderly who live below the poverty line, is contributory and is run by the Life Insurance Corporation of India. While all these Budget measures are laudable insofar as they recognise that the right to a life with dignity doesn’t retire with the crossing of a chronological threshold, much more needs to be done to address the needs of this rapidly growing demographic cohort. With more than 70% of the 104 million elderly living in the rural hinterland, any serious initiative to improve the lot of senior citizens must incorporate adequate budgetary support for social welfare spending on the relevant programmes. While the Budget provisions Rs.6,565 crore for the pension scheme for the elderly poor, its outlay for the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment’s assistance to voluntary organisations for programmes relating to the ‘aged’ at Rs.60 crore is inadequate. With the number of the elderly in India set to surge by 2050 to almost 300 million, or about a fifth of the population, governments need to make more comprehensive efforts to address the nation’s greying demographic.
Crisis in Male
Fresh elections, with the opposition free to contest, are the best option for the Maldives
Matters are coming to a head in the Maldives, with President Abdulla Yameen’s government pitted against the judiciary, polity and sections of the bureaucracy. Mr. Yameen has ruled since 2013 when he won power in an election, the result of which is still contested. He defeated Mohammad Nasheed, who had been deposed in 2012 and who, in 2015, was sentenced to 13 years in prison on charges of terrorism. Mr.Nasheed is now in exile. In an order on February 1, the Supreme Court cancelled his imprisonment term and that of eight other political leaders, reinstated 12 parliamentarians who had been disqualified last year, and ordered Mr.Yameen to allow the Maldivian parliament, or Majlis, to convene. Mr.Yameen has thus far failed to comply with any of these orders, despite an official statement on February 2 about his government’s “commitment to uphold and abide by the ruling of the Supreme Court”. The most egregious failure is the government’s refusal to cancel the imprisonment of the nine leaders, amongst whom is Mr. Yameen’s former vice president and his former defence minister, members of parliament and leaders of major opposition parties, apart from Mr. Nasheed himself. The President has also refused to allow the Majlis to meet, which has led to the resignation of its Secretary General. In fact, the government sent in the army to stop lawmakers from entering the premises, besides arresting two parliamentarians at the airport. Meanwhile, several officials, including two police chiefs and the prison chief have resigned or been sacked, reportedly for seeking to implement the Supreme Court’s orders. The Attorney General has now announced that only the Constitution matters, not “illegal orders” from the court. In short, the Maldives is in the midst of a constitutional crisis. Calling fresh elections, which are in any case due later this year, may be the best way out. Amidst the turmoil, India has joined the U.S., the European Union and several other countries in calling for Mr.Yameen to carry out the Supreme Court’s order. New Delhi said in a statement that it is monitoring the situation in Male “closely”. But currently, Delhi’s leverage in the Maldives is less than it has ever been. Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s decision to cancel his visit to Male three years ago, has singled Maldives out as the only country in the South Asian and Indian Ocean Region that he hasn’t visited. Given that the Maldives has pulled out of the Commonwealth, and there is little semblance of a SAARC process at present, India’s influence in Male is further limited. It will require concerted action from the international community to persuade Mr.Yameen to steer the Maldives out of this crisis, without taking recourse to coercive means.
1). Escalating (Verb)
Definition: make or become more intense or serious
Synonyms: grow, develop, mushroom, increase, be increased, be stepped up
Usage: The disturbance escalated into a full-scale riot
2). Lieu (Noun)
Definition: instead
Synonyms: rather, alternatively.
Usage: the company issued additional shares to shareholders in lieu of a cash dividend
3). Laudable (Adjective)
Definition: deserving praise and commendation
Synonyms: praiseworthy, commendable, admirable, meritorious, worthy, deserving
Usage: laudable though the aim might be, the results have been criticized
4). Insofar (Adverb)
Definition: to such an extent
Synonyms: because, making allowance for.
Usage: I will do the work insofar as I am able
5). Hinterland (Noun)
Definition: the remote areas of a country away from the coast or the banks of major rivers.
Synonyms: the back of beyond, the middle of nowhere, the backwoods, the wilds
Usage: the hinterland of southern Italy
6). Bureaucracy (Noun)
Definition: excessively complicated administrative procedure
Synonyms: red tape, rules and regulations, etiquette, protocol, officialdom
Usage: the unnecessary bureaucracy in local government
7). Amidst (Noun)
Definition: amongst, between
Synonyms: instead, on behalf of
Usage: variant of amid
8). Semblance (Noun)
Definition: the outward appearance or apparent form of something, especially when the reality is different
Synonyms: appearance, outward appearance, approximation, show, air, guise
Usage: she tried to force her thoughts back into some semblance of order
9). Persuade (Verb)
Definition: (of a situation or event) provide a sound reason for (someone) to do something
Synonyms: cause, lead, move, dispose, incline, motivate, induce
Usage: the cost of the manor’s restoration persuaded them to take in guests
10). Abide (Verb)
Definition: accept or act in accordance with (a rule, decision, or recommendation)
Synonyms: comply with, obey, observe, follow, keep to, hold to, conform to
Usage: I said I would abide by their decision
11). Cohort (Noun)
Definition: a group of people with a shared characteristic
Synonyms: group, grouping, category, categorization, grade
Usage: a cohort of civil servants patiently drafting legislation
12). Coercive (Adjective)
Definition: relating to or using force or threats
Synonyms: force, constraint.
Usage: coercive measures
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