PARAGRAPH, WORDS AND MEANING
PARAGRAPH OF THE DAY –
The Left doesn’t need the Congress –
It’s hardly a week since the nation was subjected to a flurry of gleeful obituaries by self-proclaimed liberals eager to perform the last rites for the Left in India. What was that metaphor again — about the sunset being red, and the sunrise being saffron?
Well, last weekend, 30,000 farmers in Maharashtra marched from sunrise to sunset for days on end with a singular objective — to brandish their red flags in India’s commercial capital and demand their rights from a ruling elite that has shown scant regard for the people who produce the contents of their refrigerators.
So, isn’t the Left about to die? Wasn’t the defeat of the Communist Party of India (Marxist), or CPI(M), in the recent Tripura polls a body blow to the Left? What if it loses power in Kerala, too, in the next Assembly election? As per the currently popular political wisdom, the Left is on life support and its survival depends on its answer to an old dilemma: Should it ally with the Congress or not?
Of course, the loss of the CPI(M) in Tripura was a major setback. It would be delusional to believe otherwise. But it would be tragic if the loss becomes an excuse for it to ally with the Congress.
Two arguments are advanced in favour of such an alliance: the Left’s increasing marginalisation, which has rendered it too weak to mount an effective electoral campaign on its own; and the need for all the secular parties to join hands to prevent socially divisive Hindutva forces from returning to power in 2019.
Both may have merit from a short-term electoral perspective. Over the long-term, however, allying with the Congress could be a strategic blunder that would not only shrink the already dwindling space for progressive politics but also strengthen the purveyors of ultra-nationalist hate politics.
WORDS AND MEANING –
1) Flurry
Meaning: A sudden short period of activity or excitement.
Example: “There was a brief flurry of activity in the hall”
Synonyms: Burst, Outbreak
2) Gleeful
Meaning: Exuberantly or triumphantly joyful.
Example: “She gave a gleeful chuckle”
Synonyms: Delighted, Pleased
Antonyms: Gloomy
3) Obituaries
Meaning: A notice of a death, especially in a newspaper, typically including a brief biography of the deceased person.
Example: “His obituary of Samuel Beckett”
Synonyms: Death notice, Eulogy
4) Metaphor
Meaning: A thing regarded as representative or symbolic of something else.
Example: “The amounts of money being lost by the company were enough to make it a metaphor for an industry that was teetering”
5) Marched
Meaning: Walk quickly and with determination.
Example: “Without a word she marched from the room”
Synonyms: Stalk, Strut
6) Brandish
Meaning: Wave or flourish (something, especially a weapon) as a threat or in anger or excitement.
Example: “A man leaped out brandishing a knife”
Synonyms: Flourish, Wave
7) Elite
Meaning: A select group that is superior in terms of ability or qualities to the rest of a group or society.
Example: “The elite of Britain’s armed forces”
Synonyms: Best, Pick
Antonyms: Dregs
8) Scant
Meaning: Barely sufficient or adequate.
Example: “Companies with scant regard for the safety of future generations”
Synonyms: Little, Little or no
Antonyms: Abundant, Ample
9) Polls
Meaning: The process of voting in an election.
Example: “The country went to the polls on March 10”
Synonyms: Vote, Ballot
10) Dilemma
Meaning: A situation in which a difficult choice has to be made between two or more alternatives, especially ones that are equally undesirable.
Example: “He wants to make money, but he also disapproves of it: Den’s dilemma in a nutshell”
Synonyms: Quandary, Predicament
11) Delusional
Meaning: Characterized by or holding idiosyncratic beliefs or impressions that are contradicted by reality or rational argument, typically as a symptom of mental disorder.
Example: “Hospitalization for schizophrenia and delusional paranoia”
12) Alliance
Meaning: A union or association formed for mutual benefit, especially between countries or organizations.
Example: “A defensive alliance between Australia and New Zealand”
Synonyms: Association, Union
13) Marginalisation
Meaning: Treatment of a person, group, or concept as insignificant or peripheral.
Example: “He worked hard to eliminate social and economic marginalization”
14) Rendered
Meaning: Provide or give (a service, help, etc.).
Example: “Money serves as a reward for services rendered”
Synonyms: Give, Provide
15) Divisive
Meaning: Tending to cause disagreement or hostility between people.
Example: “The highly divisive issue of abortion”
Synonyms: Alienating, Estranging
Antonyms: Unifying
16) Perspective
Meaning: A particular attitude towards or way of regarding something; a point of view.
Example: “Most guidebook history is written from the editor’s perspective”
Synonyms: Outlook, View
17) Dwindling
Meaning: Diminish gradually in size, amount, or strength.
Example: “Traffic has dwindled to a trickle”
Synonyms: Diminish, Decrease
Antonyms: Increase, Flourish
18) Purveyors
Meaning: A person who sells or deals in particular goods.
Example: “A purveyor of large luxury vehicles”
Synonyms: Seller, Vendor
