PARAGRAPH,WORDS AND MEANINGS

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Uneasy Fields: On Kisan Mukti Morcha

In Order To Address Farmers’ Distress, The Entire Agricultural Chain Needs A Reboot

Last week, tens of thousands of farmers reached Delhi for a two-day Kisan Mukti Morcha and held the country’s attention. They sought a special 21-day Parliament session to discuss the crisis in India’s agrarian economy. Their key demands included an unqualified loan waiver to mitigate indebtedness levels in farm households and better remuneration for their produce instead of promises on paper of high minimum support prices. These broad demands sum up the precarious livelihood of a majority of farmers who work on small, fragmented land holdings. This is certainly not the first distress call from the farm sector to Parliament and policymakers; several such stirs have taken place across States over the past year alone. In March, when around 30,000 farmers and tribals from Maharashtra walked for days to Mumbai, they drew appreciation for their restrained conduct compared to the usually unruly protesters. And, they secured assurances from Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis of tangible action on their demands over the next six months. Finding little movement on those promises, many of those who had marched to Mumbai joined the rally in Delhi, which was by far the biggest such gathering. Galvanised by the All India Kisan Sangharsh Coordination Committee, it reportedly had participation from 200-plus organisations, with farmers from 24 States.

With rural distress palpable, elections for five State Assemblies under way, and the Lok Sabha election just about six months later, farmers’ issues are bound to further dominate politics. Official data released last Friday show that the agriculture sector clocked a growth of just 3.8% (on a gross value added basis) in the second quarter of this fiscal, compared to the 5.3% recorded in the preceding quarter. To put that in perspective, farm sector output was growing strongly in the first three quarters of 2016-17, before imploding in the aftermath of the demonetisation exercise. The latest number suggests that the semblance of recovery seen in the previous two quarters has dimmed too. The government has done an about-turn on its responses to a parliamentary panel that farmers were hit hard by the note ban, and sought to reassure farmers by reiterating its own initiatives for the sector. The Opposition, in turn, is using the farmers’ platform to take jibes at the BJP-led government at the Centre and in many States. Unfortunately, neither has focussed on the big picture strategy needed to reboot India’s hugely state-controlled farm sector. The Centre exhibits an aversion to inconvenient facts. And the Opposition’s attempts to tap into their angst with breezy promises of loan waivers (with both the Congress and the Telangana Rashtra Samithi promising them in State election pitches) that over-simplify the crisis. Farmers are not just vote banks, but also critical economic actors who aspire to live without handouts. Till that is clearly recognised, paying lip service to the humble farmer will continue to distort the discourse.

MEANINGS AND WORDS

1) sought

Meaning : attempt to find (something).(v)

Tamil Meaning : முயன்று

Synonyms : desired

Antonyms : unwanted

Example : “they came here to seek shelter from biting winter winds”

2) agrarian

Meaning : relating to cultivated land or the cultivation of land.(adj)

Tamil Meaning : விவசாய

Synonyms : rural

Antonyms : urban

Example : “Brazil is rapidly diversifying its agrarian economy”

3) waiver

Meaning : an act or instance of waiving a right or claim.

Tamil Meaning : விலக்கு

Synonyms : remission

Antonyms : allowance

Example : “their acquiescence could amount to a waiver”

4) mitigate

Meaning : make (something bad) less severe, serious, or painful(v).

Tamil Meaning : குறைக்க

Synonyms : alleviate

Antonyms : aggravate

Example : “drainage schemes have helped to mitigate this problem”

5) indebtedness

Meaning : the condition of owing money(n).

Tamil Meaning : கடன்பட்ட

Synonyms : liability

Antonyms : asset

Example : “the industry is taking steps to reduce indebtedness and cut costs”

6) remuneration

Meaning : money paid for work or a service(n).

Tamil Meaning : ஊதியம்

Synonyms : compensation

Antonyms : penalize

Example : “they work in excess of their contracted hours for no additional remuneration”

7) precarious

Meaning : not securely held or in position; dangerously likely to fall or collapse(adj).

Tamil Meaning : நிலையற்ற

Synonyms : delicate

Antonyms : certain

Example : “a precarious ladder”

8) distress

Meaning : extreme anxiety, sorrow, or pain(n).

Tamil Meaning : துயரத்தில்

Synonyms : affliction

Antonyms : comfort

Example : “to his distress he saw that she was trembling”

9) stirs

Meaning : a slight physical movement.

Tamil Meaning : தூண்டுவது

Synonyms : uproar

Antonyms : peace

Example : “I stood, straining eyes and ears for the faintest stir”

10) appreciation

Meaning : recognition and enjoyment of the good qualities of someone or something.

Tamil Meaning : பாராட்டு

Synonyms : recognition

Antonyms : criticism

Example : “I smiled in appreciation”

11) restrained

Meaning : characterized by reserve or moderation; unemotional or dispassionate.

Tamil Meaning : கட்டுப்படுத்தும்

Synonyms : discreet

Antonyms : extroverted

Example : “his restrained, gentlemanly voice”

12) Galvanised

Meaning : shock or excite (someone) into taking action(v).

Tamil Meaning : தூண்டியது

Synonyms : astonish

Antonyms : calm

Example : “the urgency of his voice galvanized them into action”

13) palpable

Meaning : able to be touched or felt.

Synonyms : conspicuous

Antonyms : ambiguous

Example : “the palpable bump at the bridge of the nose”

14) perspective

Meaning : a particular attitude towards or way of regarding something; a point of view.

Tamil Meaning : முன்னோக்கு

Synonyms : aspect

Antonyms : perspectiveless

Example : “most guidebook history is written from the editor’s perspective”

15) imploding

Meaning : collapse or cause to collapse violently inwards.

Tamil Meaning : வெடிப்பை

Synonyms : fall down

Antonyms : explode

Example : “both the windows had imploded”

16) dimmed

Meaning : make or become less intense.

Synonyms : tarnish

Antonyms : explain

Example : “the difficulty in sleeping couldn’t dim her happiness”

17) reiterating

Meaning : say something again or a number of times, typically for emphasis or clarity(v).

Synonyms : renew

Antonyms : recant

Example : “she reiterated that the government would remain steadfast in its support”

18) semblance

Meaning : the outward appearance or apparent form of something, especially when the reality is different.

Synonyms : pretense

Antonyms : reality

Example : “she tried to force her thoughts back into some semblance of order”

19) reboot

Meaning : (with reference to a computer system) boot or be booted again.

Tamil Meaning : மறுதொடக்கத்தை

Synonyms : reset

Example : “the new value will not be in force until you reboot the system”

20) aversion

Meaning : a strong dislike or disinclination.

Tamil Meaning : வெறுப்பு

Synonyms : animosity

Antonyms : rapport

Example : “they made plain their aversion to the use of force”

21) angst

Meaning : a feeling of deep anxiety or dread, typically an unfocused one about the human condition or the state of the world in general.

Tamil Meaning : மனக்கவலை

Synonyms : agony

Antonyms : calmness

Example : “the existential angst of the middle classes”

22) aspire

Meaning : direct one’s hopes or ambitions towards achieving something.

Synonyms : pursue

Antonyms : dislike

Example : “we never thought that we might aspire to those heights”

23) recognised

Meaning : acknowledge the existence, validity, or legality of(v).

Tamil Meaning : அங்கீகாரம்

Synonyms : admit

Antonyms : deny

Example : “the defence is recognized in British law”

24) humble

Meaning : having or showing a modest or low estimate of one’s importance(adj).

Tamil Meaning : தாழ்மையான

Synonyms : courteous

Antonyms : brave

Example : “I felt very humble when meeting her”

25) distort

Meaning : pull or twist out of shape(v).

Tamil Meaning : சிதைத்து

Synonyms : alter

Antonyms : preserve

Example : “a grimace distorted her fine mouth”