THE HINDU Editorial Vocabulary- December 2, 2017- Topic 2
Fragile momentum: India's economic growth
Turning around a large ship is never easy. So it must give policymakers a
measure of satisfaction that the slowdown seen during the last fiscal year and
in the first quarter has been reversed. Data released on Thursday show
that economic growth as measured by the gross domestic product rebounded
to 6.3% in the three months through September, from a three-year low of
5.7% in the preceding quarter.
The reversal in direction apart, what is equally
noteworthy is that this revival was coterminous with the nationwide roll-out of
the goods and services tax from July 1. Interestingly, it was manufacturing that
was in the vanguard of the rebound, with gross value added for the sector
recovering smartly from the first quarter’s anaemic 1.2% growth to post a
healthy 7% expansion. While the GVA data for the sector appear, on the face of
it, to be significantly at variance from the Index of Industrial Production
data that had been reported for the last quarter, the Central Statistics Office
made it clear that the second-quarter IIP manufacturing growth figure of 2.2%
was indeed factored in and used as a proxy for the approximately one-fifth of
manufacturing GVA contributed by the “quasi-corporate and unorganised segment”.
A lion’s share, or more than 70%, of economic activity in the sector was
measured using growth among private listed corporate entities, based on the
numbers reported by them.
Sustaining and building on this reversal of momentum may be more
challenging in the coming months, given other economic data that are a cause
for concern and some external headwinds. Specifically, agriculture remains in a
slump, and this in a ‘normal’ monsoon year — GVA growth in the sector, which
includes forestry and fishing, slowed to 1.7%, from 2.3% in the first quarter,
and was considerably weaker than the 4.1% pace posted in the year-earlier
period. Agriculture is a significant contributor to rural incomes and
consumption demand, and the impact of a protracted agricultural slowdown on the
larger economy cannot be overstated. Worryingly, the foodgrain output in the
kharif season contracted by 2.8%, compared with a 10.7% expansion in the
year-earlier period. This could portend a resurgence of inflationary pressures
on food prices that would limit the room for growth-supportive monetary action
by the Reserve Bank of India. Consumption spending by households also remains
in a stubborn rut: the second-quarter growth at 6.5% was a tad slower than the
6.6% seen in April-June; it was 7.9% a year earlier. With global oil prices
having risen appreciably, and the fiscal headroom for more pump priming by the
government having narrowed drastically — the fiscal deficit at the end of
October has already hit 96.1% of the budget estimate for 2017-18 — the coming
quarters could well test the real mettle of the economic recovery.
Vocabulary
Fragile: easily
broken or damaged.
Example: Tourists also damage the fragile ecosystem by dumping plastic waste and
driving over the grasslands.
Synonyms: breakable, easily
broken, delicate, dainty, fine, flimsy, eggshell
Rebound: bounce
back through the air after hitting a hard surface or object.
Example: His shot hammered into the post and rebounded across the goal
Synonyms: bounce, bounce back, spring
back, ricochet, boomerang, carom
Precede: come
before something in time.
Example: A gun battle had preceded the explosions
Synonyms: go/come before, lead (up) to, pave/prepare the way
for, herald
Noteworthy: interesting, significant, or unusual.
Example: It is noteworthy that no one at the bank has accepted responsibility for
the failure
Synonyms: notable, interesting, significant, important, remarkable, impressive
Coterminous: having the same boundaries or extent in space, time, or meaning.
Example: The southern frontier was coterminous with the French Congo colony
Vanguard: a
group of people leading the way in new developments or ideas.
Example: The experimental spirit of the modernist vanguard
Anaemic: suffering
from anemia.
Example: Does a blood transfusion in anemic patients with acute coronary syndrome
improve survival?
Synonyms: colorless, bloodless, pale, pallid, wan, ashen, gray, sallow
Variance: the
fact or quality of being different, divergent, or inconsistent.
Example: Her light tone was at variance with her sudden trembling
Synonyms: difference, variation, discrepancy, dissimilarity, disagreement
Proxy: the
authority to represent someone else, especially in voting.
Example: They may register to vote by proxy
Synonyms: deputy, representative, substitute, delegate, agent
Momentum: the
impetus gained by a moving object.
Example: The vehicle gained momentum as the road dipped
Slump: a
sudden severe or prolonged fall in the price, value, or amount of something.
Example: A slump in annual profits
Synonyms: steep
fall, drop, tumble, downturn, downswing, slide, decline
Protract: prolong.
Example: He had certainly taken his time, even protracting the process
Synonyms: prolong, lengthen, extend, draw out, drag
out, spin out
Resurgence: an increase or revival after a period of little activity, popularity,
or occurrence.
Example: A resurgence of interest in religion
Synonyms: renewal, revival, recovery, comeback, reawakening, resurrection
Stubborn: having
or showing dogged determination not to change one's attitude or position on
something, especially in spite of good arguments or reasons to do so.
Example: He accused her of being a silly, stubborn old woman
Synonyms: obstinate, headstrong, willful, strong-willed, pigheaded, obdurate
Rut: a long deep track made
by the repeated passage of the wheels of vehicles.
Example: This resulted in deep ruts and heavy vehicle tyre tracks leaving it looking
like a ploughed field.
Synonyms: furrow, groove, trough, ditch, hollow, pothole, crater
Mettle: a
person's ability to cope well with difficulties or to face a demanding situation
in a spirited and resilient way.
Example: The team showed their true mettle in the second half
Synonyms: spirit, fortitude, strength of
character, steel, determination
