THE HINDU Editorial Vocabulary-December 21, 2016- Topic 1
In November, the Governor of the Reserve
Bank of India, Urjit Patel, said there was a ‘confluence of thought’ in the government
and the central bank to deal with black money by removing existing Rs.500 and
Rs.1,000 notes as legal tender. Now, just about ten days before the deadline to
deposit these bank notes into accounts, a similar confluence of ideas has led
to a stunning decision to make it harder for people to do so. The new caveats, announced on Monday, restricting deposits
over Rs.5,000 (roughly $70) are not just difficult to fathom but also
constitute an unfair change in the rules of the game. Those opting to disclose
unaccounted income under the new amnesty scheme, the Pradhan Mantri Garib
Kalyan Yojana, face no restriction on depositing old notes. But anyone
depositing Rs.5,000 or more into a bank account will have to satisfactorily
explain to two bank officials why this was not done earlier. However, the
Finance Minister has suggested that such explanations will not be required for
anyone making a deposit for the first time. Apart from the human tendency to
act only when a deadline nears, there could be genuine reasons for people not
to have queued up at banks till now — including their faith in the Prime
Minister, as well as the Finance
Minister’s statements that they had till December 30 to do so.
Overstretched bankers may somehow cope
with this latest diktat. But implementation is likely to be arbitrary as each
bank branch may come up with its own ground rules, just as they are doing in
the case of cash withdrawal limits. Nevertheless, tasking them to record and
flag for audit purposes deposits amounting to just 1.66 per cent of the
personal income tax threshold is tantamount to outsourcing the taxman’s job to
the banker for no ostensible revenue pay-off. Initially, the Centre said
deposits up to Rs.2.5 lakh would not be questioned, but later held that all
deposits could be scrutinised — even though the Income Tax Department will
struggle to complete scrutiny of lakhs of accounts within the legally
stipulated two-year deadline. The Prime Minister had said exchange limits for
old notes would be enhanced from November 25; instead, the exchange facility
was stopped altogether.
By December 10, Rs.12.44 lakh crore, or 80 per cent of the old notes, was back in the system, and by December 30 most, if not
all, could well return. Perhaps spooked by that prospect, the Finance Ministry suggested that double counting may have skewed the
numbers, but bankers have dismissed
that possibility. The latest flip-flop to make deposits difficult appears to
suggest that the government is itself in panic mode over its bold gambit.
Vocabulary
Confluence: the junction of two rivers,
especially rivers of approximately equal width.
Example: Here at the confluence of the Laramie and North Platte Rivers
Synonyms: convergence, meeting, junction
Tender: showing gentleness and concern or sympathy.
Example: He was being so kind and tender
Synonyms: caring, kind, kindly, kindhearted, softhearted, tenderhearted
Stun: extremely impressive or attractive.
Example: She looked stunning
Synonyms: remarkable, extraordinary, staggering, incredible, outstanding
Caveat: a warning or proviso of specific stipulations,
conditions, or limitations.
Example: But it is also liberally sprinkled with caveats and warnings as to the
difficulties in turning up more evidence.
Synonyms: warning, caution, admonition, proviso, condition, stipulation, provision
Fathom: understand a difficult problem or an enigmatic person
after much thought.
Example: He could scarcely fathom the idea that people actually lived in Las Vegas
Synonyms: understand, comprehend, work out, make sense of, grasp, divine
Amnesty: an official pardon for people who have been convicted of
political offenses.
Example: An amnesty for political prisoners
Synonyms: pardon, pardoning, reprieve, grace, release
Tendency: an inclination toward a particular characteristic or type
of behavior.
Example: For students, there is a tendency to socialize in the evenings
Synonyms: propensity, proclivity, proneness, aptness, likelihood, inclination
Overstretched: stretch too much.
Example: The aches and pains of overstretched muscles
Arbitrary: based on random choice or personal whim, rather than any
reason or system.
Example: His mealtimes were entirely arbitrary
Synonyms: capricious, whimsical, random, chance, unpredictable, casual
Tantamount: equivalent in seriousness to;
virtually the same as.
Example: The resignations were tantamount to an admission of guilt
Synonyms: equivalent to, equal to, as good as, more or less, much
the same as
Ostensible: stated or appearing to be
true, but not necessarily so.
Example: The delay may have a deeper cause than the ostensible reason
Synonyms: apparent, outward, superficial, professed, supposed
Spooked: frighten; unnerve.
Example: They spooked a couple of grizzly bears