TOPIC OF THE DAY:-“In The Neighbourhood”
China has progressed a great deal in military jointmanship, and Pakistan is doing a lot better than India. In India, talk of appointing a Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) has all but died down. Leave alone appointing a CDS, even the key post of military adviser in the National Security Council Secretariat (NSCS) remains vacant. And the government seems to mistakenly think that by having the NSA chair, the SPG and DPC will take care of the fundamental problems in the country’s higher defence sector.
Recall also that the post of the NSA is not a legally-mandated one. So one might rightly wonder how an unelected and retired official with no parliamentary accountability has come to occupy such a crucial position in the country’s national security decision making, and whether this is healthy in a parliamentary democracy.
The NSC, which replicates the membership of the Cabinet Committee on Security, almost never meets under the new regime, and the National Security Advisory Board, initially set up by the Vajpayee government, to seek ‘outside expertise’ on strategic matters, is today a space for retired officials. As a result, there is little fresh thinking within the government or perspective planning on the country’s national security or defence.
All that the SPG and DPC would achieve is to further bureaucratise the national security decision making and centralise all national security powers under the PMO. While I concede that this might provide a little more coordination in decision making, let’s be clear that these committees are hardly sufficient to get the country’s national security system back on track. To expect the NSA to chair all these committees and then action their recommendations while at the same time running the country’s national security affairs on a day-to-day basis is unrealistic, and would end up producing sub-optimal outcomes. Top-heavy systems hardly work well unless supported by a well-oiled institutional mechanism.
There is some hope that these committees would take a close, hard look at the state of modernisation and domestic defence industry in the country, both of which are in a sorry state. Under the present system, where the ratio of revenue to capital expenditure in defence is roughly 65:35%, any serious attempt at modernisation would be impossible. While the committees would be cognisant of this, there is precious little they could do now, just months before the government faces a crucial election.
MEANINGS AND WORDS
1) Fortunes
Meaning: a large amount of money or assets.
Tamil Meaning: செல்வ வளம்
Synonyms: Wealth, riches, substance, property
Antonyms: Debt, Poverty, Hardship
Example: “He inherited a substantial fortune”
2) Fluctuating
Meaning: Rise and fall irregularly in number or amount.
Tamil Meaning: மாறிக்கொண்டே
Synonyms: vary, differ, shift, change
Antonyms: Remain, Stay, Continue
Example: “Trade with other countries tends to fluctuate from year to year”
3) Prominent
Meaning: Important; famous.
Tamil Meaning: முக்கிய
Synonyms: Important, well known, leading
Antonyms: Inconspicuous
Example: “She was a prominent member of the city council”
4) Aid
Meaning: Financial or material help given to a country or area in need.
Tamil Meaning: உதவி
Synonyms: Assistance, support
Antonyms: Harm, Hindrance, Disfavor
Example: “700,000 tons of food aid”
5) Recovery
Meaning: The action or process of regaining possession or control of something stolen or lost.
Tamil Meaning: மீட்பு
Synonyms: Recuperation, convalescence
Antonyms: Relapse, deterioration
Example: “A team of salvage experts to ensure the recovery of family possessions”
6) Ease
Meaning: Make (something unpleasant or intense) less serious or severe.
Tamil Meaning: எளிதாக்க
Synonyms: Relieve, alleviate, mitigate
Antonyms: Aggravate
Example: “A huge road-building programme to ease congestion”
7) Commit
Meaning: Pledge or bind (a person or an organization) to a certain course or policy.
Tamil Meaning: உறுதியளித்து
Synonyms: Carry out, do, perform, perpetrate
Antonyms: apathetic
Example: “They were reluctant to commit themselves to an opinion”
8) Midst
Meaning: In the middle of.
Tamil Meaning: நடுவில்
Synonyms: Middle, centre, midpoint
Antonyms: Exterior, Outside
Example: The left his flat in the midst of a rainstorm”
9) Headwinds
Meaning: A wind blowing from directly in front, opposing forward motion.
Example: The runners had to battle against a stiff/strong headwind.
10) Deficit
Meaning: The amount by which something, especially a sum of money, is too small.
Tamil Meaning: பற்றாக்குறை
Synonyms: Shortfall, deficiency, shortage
Antonyms: surplus, profit
Example: “An annual operating deficit”
11) Adversely
Meaning: In a way that prevents success or development; harmfully or unfavorably.
Tamil Meaning: மோசமான
Example: “His self-confidence was adversely affected for years to come”
12) Imposed
Meaning: Force (an unwelcome decision or ruling) on someone.
Tamil Meaning: திணிக்கப்பட்ட
Synonyms: Levy, charge, exact
Antonyms: Free
Example: “sanctions imposed on South Africa”
13) Diversifying
Meaning: Make or become more diverse or varied.
Tamil Meaning: பரவலாக
Synonyms: Branch out, vary output, expand
Antonyms: Continue, Remain, Conform
Example: “The company expanded rapidly and diversified into computers”
14) Wean
Meaning: be strongly influenced by (something), especially from an early age.
Tamil Meaning: கவர
Synonyms: Discourage, halt, Remove
Example: “The doctor tried to wean her off the sleeping pills”
15) Inadequacies
Meaning: The state or quality of being inadequate; lack of the quantity or quality required.
Tamil Meaning: போதாத
Synonyms: Insufficiency, deficiency
Antonyms: Abundance, surplus, competence
Example: “The inadequacy of available resources”
