THE HINDU EDITORIAL : DECEMBER 19, 2018 -

THE HINDU EDITORIAL : DECEMBER 19, 2018

Dear Banking Aspirants,

THE HINDU EDITORIAL – December 19, 2018, is one of the must-read section for the competitive exams like IBPS Clerk 2018, Canara Bank PO – PGDBF 2018 and IBPS SO 2018. These topics are widely expected to be asked in the reading comprehension, Cloze Test or Error Detection in the forthcoming exams. So gear up your Exam preparation and learn new words daily.

A) Bolstering Paris: on the Katowice consensus

The Katowice consensus does not adequately reflect the challenge to limit global warming

The UN Climate Conference held in Katowice, Poland, has moved ahead with the implementation of the Paris Agreement through a rule book, reflecting strong support among citizens of all countries for urgent action to avert dangerous climate change. Public pressure has prevailed over scepticism, although the outcome does not adequately reflect the short window available to make deep greenhouse gas emissions cuts. Yet, the Paris Agreement, endorsed by 195 countries under the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), has a long road ahead before carbon emissions can be pegged at levels flagged by scientists. Recently, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), in a special report, issued a stark warning on man-made emissions. It said that to cap the rise in global average temperature over pre-industrial levels at 1.5°C, a 45% reduction in emissions over 2010 levels must be made by 2030. This is a challenge for all big economies, including India, which is among the top five emitters of carbon dioxide. In the Indian context, it highlights the need for action on several fronts: scaling up solar and wind power in line with the goal of reaching 175 GW of renewable energy by 2022, steadily reducing reliance on coal, shifting substantially to electric mobility and adopting green industrial processes. Taxing luxury emissions and using the dividend to give the poor energy access has to be the policy target, building on international green climate funding linkages.

At Katowice, Indian negotiators put forth legitimate concerns on the likely social impact of the new rules that will operationalise the Paris Agreement in 2020. After all, at an estimated 1.2 tonnes of CO2 per capita, India emits far below the global average of 4.2 tonnes. Yet, cumulative emissions determine the impact on climate, and India’s emissions grew at an estimated 6.3% in 2018. The prospect of increased frequency and intensity of extreme weather events and sea level rise in a warming world affecting small island states allows little room for complacency. The task now is to achieve a paradigm shift that will slow down the addition of new sources of carbon emissions. As a party to the global climate compact, India has to systematically assess its emissions and measure mitigation actions for reporting to the UNFCCC at stock-taking meetings. This is an opportunity to bring major sectors such as energy production, building, agriculture and transport on board, and make changes to regulations that favour environment-friendly alternatives. China has taken the lead in advancing electric mobility, while individual States and cities are ahead of national governments, as in the U.S., in reducing their carbon footprint. A clean-up in India will help meet emissions commitments and remove the blanket of air pollution that is suffocating entire cities.

B) Fatal fires: the need for strict safety norms

Fire safety norms for hospitals need to be strengthened and strictly enforced

The devastating fire at the Andheri hospital of the Employees State Insurance Corporation in Mumbai that killed at least eight people is a shocking reminder of the low priority fire safety gets in India. That a blaze could break out in a relatively new building with such deadly consequences calls into question the precautions taken by the authorities. The Maharashtra government should conduct a thorough probe and examine the claim made by the Fire Department that the hospital had failed an inspection recently and was served a notice. It would be shockingly negligent if the hospital continued to function without adhering to fire safety standards in spite of an adverse report from the statutory authority. Ironically, ESIC is a welfare organisation working to protect the health and well-being of the labour sector, and is expected to set an example through the quality of its facilities. The Andheri horror evokes memories of the AMRI hospital blaze in Kolkata seven years ago, in which 92 people died. It led to an assessment of hospital safety in all States, but evidently the impact has been patchy at best. In fact, the Justice Tapan Mukherjee Commission appointed by the West Bengal government held the directors of AMRI hospital responsible, since they actively reviewed the institution’s administrative measures. This year, critically ill patients had to be carried outside by relatives during a fire at the Calcutta Medical College and Hospital.

A strong building code with features for reduction of fire hazards is important for all structures, but it is more so for hospitals since they host people who are incapacitated and cannot be evacuated quickly. The National Accreditation Board for Hospitals and Healthcare Providers (NABH) goes by the National Building Code and its specific norms for hospitals, which include minimum requirements for multi-storeyed structures, such as alarms, sprinkler systems, specified-width staircases, smoke barrier enclosures and checks against storage of combustible materials in areas where patients are kept. Going forward, all State governments should require mandatory compliance with such safety features for any institution handling patients or giving care. Certification of facilities through third-party audit should be made compulsory to eliminate conflicts of interest involving official agencies. The institutions should also be insured for the highest levels of public liability. At a broader level, governments must shed their indifference and work to make all spaces safe. The situation today is depressing. In private, public or commercial buildings, official agencies tend to favour tokenism rather than high standards for the safety of occupants and visitors. They are ever-willing to “regularise” deviations in construction over time. It is time to fix responsibility for deadly accidents on a single official agency.

VOCABULARY

1) avert

Meaning : turn away (one’s eyes or thoughts).

Tamil Meaning : தவிர்க்க

Synonyms : avoid

Antonyms : aid

Example : “she averted her eyes while we made stilted conversation”

2) prevailed

Meaning : prove more powerful or superior.

Tamil Meaning : வெற்றி

Synonyms : abound

Antonyms : forfeit

Example : “it is hard for logic to prevail over emotion”

3) endorsed

Meaning : declare one’s public approval or support of(v).

Tamil Meaning : ஒப்புதல்

Synonyms : approved

Antonyms : disapproved

Example : “the report was endorsed by the college”

4) Convention

Meaning : a way in which something is usually done.

Synonyms : show

Antonyms : discord

Example : “to attract the best patrons the movie houses had to ape the conventions and the standards of theatres”

5) peg

Meaning : a short pin or bolt, typically tapered at one end, that is used for securing something in place, hanging things on, or marking a position.

Synonyms : clinch

Antonyms : detach

Example : “she put her mack on a peg in the hall”

6) stark

Meaning : severe or bare in appearance or outline(adj).

Tamil Meaning : முற்றிலும்

Synonyms : blunt

Antonyms : covered

Example : “the ridge formed a stark silhouette against the sky”

7) negotiators

Meaning : a person who conducts negotiations.

Synonyms : delegate

Example : “US trade negotiators”

8) concerns

Meaning : make (someone) anxious or worried.

Tamil Meaning : கவலை

Synonyms : burden

Antonyms : pastime

Example : “the roof of the barn concerns me because eventually it will fall in”

9) impact

Meaning : the action of one object coming forcibly into contact with another(n).

Tamil Meaning : தாக்கம்

Synonyms : brunt

Antonyms : avoidance

Example : “there was the sound of a third impact”

10) cumulative

Meaning : increasing or increased in quantity, degree, or force by successive additions.

Tamil Meaning : ஒட்டுமொத்த

Synonyms : aggregate

Antonyms : decreasing

Example : “the cumulative effect of two years of drought”

11) prospect

Meaning : the possibility or likelihood of some future event occurring(n).

Synonyms : expectation

Antonyms : impossibility

Example : “there was no prospect of a reconciliation”

12) complacency

Meaning : a feeling of smug or uncritical satisfaction with oneself or one’s achievements.

Synonyms : satisfaction

Example : “the figures are better, but there are no grounds for complacency”

13) paradigm

Meaning : a typical example or pattern of something; a pattern or model(n).

Tamil Meaning : முன்னுதாரணம்

Synonyms : criterion

Example : “society’s paradigm of the ‘ideal woman’”

14) compact

Meaning : closely and neatly packed together; dense(adj).

Tamil Meaning : கச்சிதமான

Synonyms : tight

Antonyms : loose

Example : “a compact cluster of houses”

15) mitigation

Meaning : the action of reducing the severity, seriousness, or painfulness of something.

Synonyms : reduction

Antonyms : increase

Example : “the identification and mitigation of pollution”

16) suffocating

Meaning : the action of reducing the severity, seriousness, or painfulness of something(n).

Synonyms : drown

Antonyms : free

Example : “the identification and mitigation of pollution”

17) devastating

Meaning : highly destructive or damaging.

Tamil Meaning : பாழாக்கி

Synonyms : calamitous

Antonyms : blessed

Example : “a devastating cyclone”

18) probe

Meaning : explore or examine (something), especially with the hands or an instrument(v).

Tamil Meaning : ஆய்வு

Synonyms : exploration

Example : “hands probed his body from top to bottom”

19) claim

Meaning : state or assert that something is the case, typically without providing evidence or proof.(v)

Tamil Meaning : கூற்றை

Synonyms : assertion

Antonyms : denial

Example : “the Prime Minister claimed that he was concerned about Third World debt”

20) negligent

Meaning : failing to take proper care over something.(adj)

Tamil Meaning : அலட்சியமாகவும்

Synonyms : inadvertent

Antonyms : attentive

Example : “the council had been negligent in its supervision of the children in care”

21) adhering

Meaning : believe in and follow the practices of.(v)

Tamil Meaning : கடைப்பிடிக்கின்றது

Synonyms : comply

Antonyms : disobey

Example : “I do not adhere to any organized religion”

22) adverse

Meaning : believe in and follow the practices of.

Tamil Meaning : பாதகமான

Synonyms : conflicting

Antonyms : assisting

Example : “I do not adhere to any organized religion”

23) statutory

Meaning : required, permitted, or enacted by statute.

Synonyms : legal

Antonyms : illegal

Example : “statutory controls over prices”

24) evokes

Meaning : bring or recall (a feeling, memory, or image) to the conscious mind(v).

Synonyms : conjure

Antonyms : decrease

Example : “the sight evoked pleasant memories of his childhood”

25) blaze

Meaning : a very large or fiercely burning fire.

Synonyms : flame

Example : “twenty firemen fought the blaze”

26) assessment

Meaning : the action of assessing someone or something.

Tamil Meaning : மதிப்பீடு

Synonyms : estimate

Example : “the assessment of educational needs”

27) patchy

Meaning : existing or happening in small, isolated areas.(adj)

Tamil Meaning : அசாதரணமான

Synonyms : erratic

Antonyms : regular

Example : “patchy fog”

28) evacuated

Meaning : remove (someone) from a place of danger to a safer place.

Synonyms : depart

Antonyms : allow

Example : “several families were evacuated from their homes”

29) sprinkler

Meaning : a device that sprays water.

Synonyms : sprayer

Example : “a self-activating sprinkler system”

30) enclosures

Meaning : an area that is surrounded by a barrier.(n)

Tamil Meaning : இணைப்புகள்

Synonyms : courtyard

Antonyms : open

Example : “a deer enclosure”

31) combustible

Meaning : able to catch fire and burn easily.

Synonyms : flammable

Antonyms : nonexplosive

Example : “a combustible gas”

32) conflicts

Meaning : be incompatible or at variance; clash(v).

Tamil Meaning : மோதல்கள்

Synonyms : battle

Antonyms : truce

Example : “parents’ and children’s interests sometimes conflict”

33) shed

Meaning : a simple roofed structure used for garden storage, to shelter animals, or as a workshop.

Synonyms : discard

Antonyms : keep

Example : “a bicycle shed”

34) depressing

Meaning : causing or resulting in a feeling of miserable dejection(adj).

Synonyms : bleak

Antonyms : bright

Example : “that thought is too depressing for words”

35) tend

Meaning : regularly or frequently behave in a particular way or have a certain characteristic.

Tamil Meaning : முனைகின்றன

Synonyms : contribute

Antonyms : dislike

Example : “written language tends to be formal”

36) compliance

Meaning : the action or fact of complying with a wish or command.(n)

Tamil Meaning : இணக்கம்

Synonyms : consent

Antonyms : refusal

Example : “the ways in which the state maintains order and compliance”

37) eliminate

Meaning : completely remove or get rid of (something)(v).

Tamil Meaning : அகற்ற

Synonyms : defeat

Antonyms : allow

Example : “a policy that would eliminate inflation”

38) consequences

Meaning : a result or effect, typically one that is unwelcome or unpleasant.

Tamil Meaning : விளைவு

Synonyms : emanation

Antonyms : causes

Example : “abrupt withdrawal of drug treatment can have serious consequences”

39) spite

Meaning : a desire to hurt, annoy, or offend someone.

Tamil Meaning : இருந்தபோதும்

Synonyms : animosity

Antonyms : admiration

Example : “he’d think I was saying it out of spite”

40) substantially

Meaning : to a great or significant extent.

Tamil Meaning : கணிசமாக

Synonyms :

Antonyms :

Example : “profits grew substantially”

THE HINDU EDITORIAL : DECEMBER 18, 2018

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