THE HINDU EDITORIAL : JULY 25, 2018

 

THE HINDU EDITORIAL – July 25, 2018 is one of the must read for the competitive exams like SBI PO Mains , SBI CLERK Mains Exam, BOB PO Manipal Online Exam. These topics are widely expected to be asked in the reading comprehension , Cloze Test or in Error Detection topics in the forthcoming exams. So gear up your Exam preparation and learn new words daily.


 


a) Cosmetic repair: on inter-creditor agreement

Indian banks trying to sell their troubled assets now have one less hurdle to cross. A group of banks, including public sector, private sector and foreign banks, signed an inter-creditor agreement on Monday to push for the speedy resolution of non-performing loans on their balance sheets. According to the agreement, a majority representing two-thirds of the loans within a consortium of lenders should now be sufficient to override any objection to the resolution process coming from dissenting lenders. Minority lenders who suspect they are being short-changed by other lenders can now either sell their assets at a discount to a willing buyer or buy out loans from other lenders at a premium. The inter-creditor agreement is aimed at the resolution of loan accounts with a size of ₹50 crore and above that are under the control of a group of lenders. It is part of the “Sashakt” plan approved by the government to address the problem of resolving bad loans. Over the last few years, Indian banks have been forced by the Reserve Bank of India to recognise troubled assets on their books, but their resolution has remained a challenge. According to banker Sunil Mehta, who headed a panel that recommended the plan, disagreement between joint lenders is the biggest problem in resolving stressed assets. The government hopes that the holdout problem, where the objections of a few lenders prevent a settlement between the majority lenders, will be solved through the inter-creditor agreement. Such an agreement may persuade banks to embark more quickly on a resolution plan for stressed assets. This is an improvement on the earlier model, which relied solely on the joint lenders’ forum to arrive at a consensus among creditors. It is, in fact, logical for joint lenders who want to avoid a deadlock to agree on the ground rules of debt resolution prior to lending to any borrower. But the obligation on the lead lender to come up with a time-bound resolution plan can have unintended consequences. Banks may be compelled to engage in a quick-fire sale of stressed assets due to arbitrary deadlines on the resolution process. This will work against the interests of lenders looking to get the best price for their stressed assets. Also, it is often in the interest of the majority of creditors to take the time to extract the most out of their assets. Meanwhile, the biggest obstacle to bad loan resolution is the absence of buyers who can purchase stressed assets from banks, and the unwillingness of banks to sell their loans at a deep discount to their face value. Unless the government can solve this problem, the bad loan problem is likely to remain unresolved for some time to come.


b) Özil’s burden: on quitting Germany football team

Mesut Özil’s withdrawal from the German football team on Sunday came as a shock to many. One of the most gifted midfielders of his generation, Özil has been a mainstay of the Die Mannschaft — as the national squad is called — for almost a decade, as his 23 goals and 40 assists from 92 appearances attest. But when he released an explosive statement, with a declaration that he could no longer wear the German shirt with “pride and excitement” because of “racism and disrespect”, it caused many a football fan to shudder. The turn of events has its roots in Özil and fellow footballer İlkay Gündoğan meeting Turkish President Recep Erdoğan in London and presenting him with shirts just before the World Cup. Both Özil and Gündoğan are Germany-born players of Turkish origin and their act was perceived as an endorsement of the Turkish leader, who is widely derided for leading his country down the path of autocracy with rampant human rights violations. Germany’s surprise first-round exit from the 2018 World Cup in Russia produced a convenient brickbat to target Özil with, and it was compounded by the vitriol directed at him. From DFB (German Football Association) president Reinhard Grindel to the legendary skipper Lothar Matthäus to sections of the media, the Arsenal playmaker spared no one as he alleged they had “disrespected his Turkish roots” and “selfishly turned [him] into political propaganda.” The episode has unravelled at a time when Germany is at a crossroads — over whether to move forward and forge a more cosmopolitan, open society or retreat into its nationalistic past. Özil, apart from his immigrant background, is a practising Muslim, and when Germany won the 2014 World Cup he was the poster boy of the DFB’s efforts to make football inclusive. That one international failure — which could be explained purely in footballing terms — can lead to such a vile debate clearly indicates the fault lines. “I am German when we win, but an immigrant when we lose,” lamented the 29-year-old. To have his loyalty questioned even after he gave up his Turkish passport in order to play for Germany must have been distressing. However, Özil has unwittingly walked into an unnecessary controversy over a sensitive issue. Meeting President Erdoğan may have been “about respecting the highest office of his family’s country”, but he should have been mindful of the fact that Germany and Turkey shared a tenuous relationship, with the Turkish President having accused Angela Merkel’s government of being stuck in Germany’s Nazi past. And when a minister in the Turkish Cabinet termed Özil’s move to quit as the “most beautiful goal against the virus of fascism”, it hit Germany where it hurt the most. When Özil said he had “two hearts, one German, one Turkish,” he was attempting a delicate balancing act, favouring integration — a cherished modern-day value — over assimilation. Little did he expect that it would be so rough a ride.


WORDS/VOCABULARY

1) Consortium

Meaning: An organization of several businesses or banks joining together as a group for a shared purpose.

Example: A consortium of textile manufacturers.

2) Override

Meaning: Use one’s authority to reject or cancel (a decision, view, etc.).

Example: “the courts will ultimately override any objections”

Synonyms: Disallow, Overrule

Antonyms: Allow, Accept

3) Dissenting

Meaning: Hold or express opinions that are at variance with those commonly or officially held.

Example: “two members dissented from the majority”

Synonyms: Diverge, Differ

Antonyms: Assent, Agree

4) Buy out

Meaning: To buy a part of a company or building from someone else so that you own all of it.

Example: Allied Chemicals have been trying to buy out their competitor’s share in the target company.

5) Recognise

Meaning: Identify from knowledge of appearance or character.Acknowledge the existence, validity, or legality of.

Example: “the defence is recognized in British law”

Synonyms: Identify, Admit

Antonyms: Forget, Overlook

6) Holdout

Meaning: An act of resisting something or refusing to accept what is offered.

Example: “a defiant holdout against a commercial culture”

7) Persuade

Meaning: (of a situation or event) provide a sound reason for (someone) to do something.

Example: “the cost of the manor’s restoration persuaded them to take in guests”

Synonyms: Cause, Move

8) Embark

Meaning: Begin (a course of action).

Example: “she embarked on a new career”

Synonyms: Begin, Start

9) Relied

Meaning: Depend on with full trust or confidence.

Example: “I know I can rely on your discretion”

Synonyms: Depend, Count

Antonyms: Distrust

10) Solely

Meaning: Not involving anyone or anything else; only.

Example: “he is solely responsible for any debts the company may incur”

Synonyms: Simply, Uniquely

11) Consensus

Meaning: A general agreement.

Example: “there is a growing consensus that the current regime has failed”

Synonyms: Agreement, Concord

Antonyms: Disagreement

12) Deadlock

Meaning: A situation, typically one involving opposing parties, in which no progress can be made.

Example: “an attempt to break the deadlock”

Synonyms: Stalemate, Impasse

13) Obligation

Meaning: The condition of being morally or legally bound to do something.

Example: “they are under no obligation to stick to the scheme”

Synonyms: Duty, Agreement

14) Come up with

Meaning: Produce (something), especially when pressured or challenged.

Example: “he keeps coming up with all kinds of lame excuses”

Synonyms: Produce, Propose

15) Unintended

Meaning: Not planned or meant.

Example: “the unintended consequences of people’s actions”

16) Compelled

Meaning: Force or oblige (someone) to do something.

Example: “a sense of duty compelled Harry to answer her questions”

Synonyms: Force, Pressure

17) Arbitrary

Meaning: Based on random choice or personal whim, rather than any reason or system.

Example: “an arbitrary decision”

Synonyms: Random, Chance

Antonyms: Rational, Reasoned

18) Mainstay

Meaning: Someone or something on which something else is based or relies.

Example: “whitefish are the mainstay of the local industry”

Synonyms: Backbone, Anchor

19) Attest

Meaning: Witness or certify formally.

Example: “the witnesses must attest and sign the will in the testator’s presence”

Synonyms: Certify, Confirm

Antonyms: Disprove

20) Explosive

Meaning: Likely to cause an outburst of anger or controversy.

Example: “Marco’s explosive temper”

Synonyms: Fiery, Violent

21) Racism

Meaning: Prejudice, discrimination, or antagonism directed against someone of a different race based on the belief that one’s own race is superior.

Example: “a programme to combat racism”

Synonyms: Intolerance

22) Shudder

Meaning: To shake suddenly and briefly, esp. because of an unpleasant thought or feeling.

Example: I shuddered, remembering the frightening stories I had heard.

23) Perceived

Meaning: Become aware or conscious of (something); come to realize or understand.

Example: “his mouth fell open as he perceived the truth”

Synonyms: Discern, Recognize

24) Endorsement

Meaning: The action of endorsing someone or something.

Example: “the issue of full independence received overwhelming endorsement”

Synonyms: Support, Approval

Antonyms: Opposition

25) Derided

Meaning: Express contempt for; ridicule.

Example: “the decision was derided by environmentalists”

Synonyms: Ridicule, Mock

Antonyms: Respect, Praise

26) Autocracy

Meaning: A system of government by one person with absolute power.

Synonyms: Absolutism, Autarchy

27) Rampant

Meaning: (especially of something unwelcome) flourishing or spreading unchecked.

Example: “political violence was rampant”

Synonyms: Uncontrolled, Unrestrained

28) Brickbat

Meaning: A critical remark or comment.

Example: “the plaudits were beginning to outnumber the brickbats”

29) Vitriol

Meaning: Bitter criticism or malice.

Example: “her mother’s sudden gush of fury and vitriol”

30) Unravelled

Meaning: Become undone.

Example: “part of the crew neck had unravelled”

Synonyms: Fail, Collapse

Antonyms: Succeed

31) Forge

Meaning: To make an illegal copy of something in order to deceive.

Example: A number of forged works of art have been sold as genuine.

32) Cosmopolitan

Meaning: Someone who has experience of many different parts of the world.

Example: Lisa is a real cosmopolitan.

33) Vile

Meaning: Extremely unpleasant.

Example: “he has a vile temper”

Synonyms: Unpleasant, Bad

Antonyms: Pleasant

34) Lamented

Meaning: Express regret or disappointment about something.

Example: “she lamented the lack of shops in the town”

Synonyms: Deplore, Bewail

35) Unwittingly

Meaning: Without being aware; unintentionally.

Example: “many users unwittingly expose their personal details to strangers online”

36) Tenuous

Meaning: Very weak or slight.

Example: “the tenuous link between interest rates and investment”

Synonyms: Weak, Suspect

Antonyms: Strong, Substantial

37) Fascism

Meaning: A political system based on a very powerful leader, state control, and being extremely proud of country and race, and in which political opposition is not allowed.

Example: This year’s history syllabus covers the rise of Fascism in Europe.

38) Delicate

Meaning: Very fine in texture or structure; of intricate workmanship or quality.

Example: “a delicate lace shawl”

Synonyms: Fine, Elegant

Antonyms: Crude, Coarse

39) Cherished

Meaning: Hold (something) dear.

Example: “I cherish the letters she wrote”

Synonyms: Treasure, Prize

Antonyms: Neglect

40) Assimilation

Meaning: The process of taking in and fully understanding information or ideas.

Example: “the assimilation of the knowledge of the Greeks”


THE HINDU EDITORIAL : JULY 24, 2018




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