THE HINDU Editorial Vocabulary- October 27, 2016- Topic 1
As proof of its commitment to economic
renewal, the Narendra Modi government had set itself the target of breaking
into the top 50 in the World Bank’s
annual ranking of countries on ease of starting and operating a for-profit
enterprise. That the Bank in its Doing Business 2017 report now ranks India 130
among 190 countries, just one notch higher than last year, is therefore likely
to be taken as a signal of the snail’s pace of economic reform. This too when
competition is hotting up. Seventy-five per cent of the 283 reforms reported
this year were carried out by the developing economies, and the world’s ten
best improvers include Pakistan, Kazakhstan, Serbia, Kenya and Indonesia. The
report notes that the BJP-led government was elected in 2014 “on a platform of increasing
job creation, mostly through encouraging investment in the manufacturing
sector.” While it has left out labour regulations from this year’s index, the
Bank acknowledges India’s gains in simplifying tax payments, trade procedures
and contract enforcement (though it still ranks a low 172 on this front). Most
heartening is that India is now the 26th easiest place to get an electricity
connection, up 25 places from last year. The average time taken to get a
connection has come down from 138 days in 2013-14 to 45 days in 2015-16.
Besides, transformative changes such as the proposed Goods and Services Tax and
insolvency and bankruptcy norms, if implemented by June next year, could propel
India higher in the Bank’s next report.
For its part, the government has argued
that the Bank only focusses on two big cities while reforms are happening
across States. But that, in fact, frames a larger problem because with an eye
on the index officials had focussed on simpler procedures in Mumbai and Delhi.
By May this year, an e-biz platform allowed investors to apply for 20 Central
government services online, along with two services in Delhi and 14 each in
Odisha and Andhra Pradesh. In Maharashtra, a $5-billion investment announced by
Foxconn remains on paper. Other BJP-run States had, in fact, not signed up.
Certainly, investment (and job creation) are not driven by rankings alone. In
his first year in office, the Prime Minister had assured investors that the
government had no business being in business, retrospective taxes would be
relegated to history and land acquisition norms simplified. There is little
movement on the first, and the third has become history. Old retrospective tax
demands linger, while new instances (pertaining to bonus payments and mining
royalties) are being battled in the courts. Losing its credibility with global
capital should be a far bigger worry for the government than a World Bank
endorsement.
Vocabulary
Notch: an indentation or incision on an edge or surface.
Example: There was a notch in the end of the arrow for the bowstring
Synonyms: nick, cut, score, incise, carve, scratch, slit, gouge, groove, furrow
Snail: a mollusk with a single spiral shell into which the whole body can be
withdrawn.
Example: Large or small, landlubbers or seafarers or both, hermit crabs have one
feature in common
Enforcement: the act of compelling observance of or compliance with a law, rule, or
obligation.
Example: The strict enforcement of environmental regulations
Heartening: make more cheerful or confident.
Example: She was heartened to observe that the effect was faintly comic
Synonyms: cheer up, encourage, raise someone's spirits, boost, buoy
up, perk up
Transformative: a thorough or dramatic change in form or appearance.
Example: Its landscape has undergone a radical transformation
Synonyms: change, alteration, mutation, conversion, metamorphosis, transfiguration
Insolvency: the state of being insolvent; inability to pay one's debts.
Example: The club was facing insolvency
Retrospective: looking back on or dealing with past events or situations.
Example: Our survey was retrospective
Synonyms: backdated, retroactive, ex post facto
Relegated: consign or dismiss to an inferior rank or position.
Example: They aim to prevent women from being relegated to a secondary role
Synonyms: downgrade, lower, lower in rank/status, put down, move
down, demote, degrade
Endorsement: an act of giving one's public approval or support to someone or something.
Example: When Litan asks consumers that question, she finds that banks get the
highest endorsement , with support from 47% of the public.
Synonyms: support, backing, approval, agreement, recommendation