[archbishop]

The GM foods divide

Summary:
· The DSB ( disputes settlement Body) of the WTO has supported complaints made by the U.S. & other nations on the banning of GM foods in EU.
· The body however does recognize that GM foods should be evaluated differently than conventional foods.
· The EU’s defence was a protocol under the UN mandate concerning Bio hazards

Difficult words:

· Vindicate: 1 clear of blame or suspicion. 2 establish the existence, merits, or justice of (something disputed etc.). 3 justify by evidence or argument.


One thing I have gained from this forum is the realization that politics and judiciary are among the topics at which I am very weak.

So my endeavor for future postings will be to cover these two topics extensively!

[archbishop]

Privatisation: come hell or high water

Summary:

· The topic of discussion of this passage is similar the one I posted sometime back regarding failure of privatisation of water in Latin America.
· It talks about the double standards of the WB & the IMF towards LDC’s.
· Privatisation of a basic necessity like water spells doom for the por population in India.
· This was quite eveident from the defeat of two eminent politicians who proposed such ‘reforms’ in their respective states.
· Yet the WB lauds their political acumen for bringing in such reforms.
· The fact remains that such changes have resulted in failures in similar atmospheres ( eg latin America)
· The writer goes on to cite various examples wherein the population has had to shell out half of their minimum wages to just get three pails of water.
· A law in Maharashtra states that the families who have more than two kids would have to shell out more than the others for water.
· Such ill executed laws are not only outrageous but almost impossible to implement.


My opinion:

· This was definitely a good read since it offered conflicting opinions.
· Privatisation is definitely a grt idea but it definitely can’t be a panacea for all our problems.
· Especially when it comes to privatization of utilities, the problem is even more magnified. The decision becomes even more crucial and the probability of foul play is blown up.
· But it is not prudent to jettison he idea without considering it. For every Enron, we have Reliance Energy.
· Multinationals have been known to indulge in arm twisting tactics. But they have resulted in to success also. In case of China, Wal Mart is a huge success but in India political parties are skeptical. It wont do us good to ape the Chinese model. What works in China wont work in India. But the bottomline is that things should move ahead through fruitful political debate.

[siddhesh_j]

Fuelling a needless controversy?

R. Ramachandran It makes little logical or diplomatic sense to get Russian fuel for Tarapur bypassing the Indo-U.S. nuclear agreement and violating Nuclear Suppliers Group Guidelines.

expeditiously - efficiently
non-proliferation-The prevention of something increasing or spreading (especially the prevention of an increase in the number of countries possessing nuclear weapons)
imminent- likely
plenary - comprehensive

This article covers in full details the details of Indo - Russian fuel deal reg Tarapur N-plantand its implications with the recently concluded Indo-US deal.

It shows that all parties are basically trying to secure their own interests ... but in this process , the author claims that India is putting itself in troubled waters needlessly.

Not a compelling , but a good read ... gives in depth details of the deal - just what u need in a gd/pi

[IdiotR]

Originally Posted by siddhesh_j

Fuelling a needless controversy?

R. Ramachandran It makes little logical or diplomatic sense to get Russian fuel for Tarapur bypassing the Indo-U.S. nuclear agreement and violating Nuclear Suppliers Group Guidelines.

plenary - comprehensive

...
.....
.....

to secure their own interests ... but in this process , the author claims that India is putting itself in troubled waters needlessly.

Not a compelling , but a good read ... gives in depth details of the deal - just what u need in a gd/pi

siddesh boss,i beg to differ on the meaning of plenary in the contxt.
Accr. to you
plenary - comprehensive
now another meaning of plenary is
Fully attended by all qualified members: a plenary session of the council(ref:dictionary.com)
plenary here means this.
Here the usg
At the December 2000 inter-session NSG Plenary, called to discuss Russia's shipment of fuel for Tarapur, the U.S. held that the term "exceptional cases" meant cases of "imminent" — as against "potential" — radiological hazards.

[jai_tiwari]

Hi Siddhesh,

In the context of this article I think

expeditiously -- done with speed
imminent -- going to happen very soon

are much more appropriate.

Here are usage --
"the U.S. will encourage its partners to also consider this request expeditiously."

New fuel, the U.S. said, did not alleviate an imminent radiological hazard and, therefore, supplying fuel was not justified under the safety exemption.

[vkris81]

Originally Posted by siddhesh_j

Fuelling a needless controversy?

R. Ramachandran It makes little logical or diplomatic sense to get Russian fuel for Tarapur bypassing the Indo-U.S. nuclear agreement and violating Nuclear Suppliers Group Guidelines.

expeditiously - efficiently
non-proliferation-The prevention of something increasing or spreading (especially the prevention of an increase in the number of countries possessing nuclear weapons)
imminent- likely
plenary - comprehensive

This article covers in full details the details of Indo - Russian fuel deal reg Tarapur N-plantand its implications with the recently concluded Indo-US deal.

It shows that all parties are basically trying to secure their own interests ... but in this process , the author claims that India is putting itself in troubled waters needlessly.

Not a compelling , but a good read ... gives in depth details of the deal - just what u need in a gd/pi

I guess the article was intended to make people aware of how our ministers and people with power make decisions. Most of the times we never know why the government is adapting certain policies or taking some steps and articles like this bring the argument into light.

E.g. yesterday there was a new about how food-grains are being imported from other nations when we have surplus, and more importantly at a very higher rate. Which makes us think, on what grounds are these decisions made and if they do have a sound logic to back their decisions then why dont they come out and defend themselves by adapting the same media like newspapers and articles.

Most of the time we end up hearing only one side of the story, which makes us percieve cnotions about thing which may effect our decision making process in these matters...

[siddhesh_j]

Originally Posted by jai_tiwari

Hi Siddhesh,

In the context of this article I think

expeditiously -- done with speed
imminent -- going to happen very soon

are much more appropriate.

Here are usage --
"the U.S. will encourage its partners to also consider this request expeditiously."

New fuel, the U.S. said, did not alleviate an imminent radiological hazard and, therefore, supplying fuel was not justified under the safety exemption.

OK OK my interpretation of the meanings have got a lotta criticism , Sorry folks ... kya karu gre just diya tha , had mugged up all those meanings ... any ways good tht u pointed out the subtle changes of meaning !cmon now post some other articles too na !

[jai_tiwari]

Turning outrage into applause

In this article I got two words that are regularly used in political jargon --

1. Promulgate -- Govt announcement to bring in new laws
2. Prorogue -- to discintinue a session

In this article editor has talked about the shrwed way Sonia Gandhi used to transform adversity into an advantageous situation and later on talked about the problems with article 102 that deals with various office of prfit.

New American moves in Asia

good words --

1. Entrech -- encroach/infringe
Ref -- AS ACTIVISTS rallied in Sydney on March 18 to protest against the entrenched occupation of Iraq by the United States,

2. Meticulous -- extremely cautious/careful
Ref -- It can, therefore, be argued that the Sydney forum has acknowledged India's unique position as a meticulous practitioner

Here writer talked of Sydney Forum ( group of developed democracies -- US, Japan and Australia). This group is conceived by the US state department to contain the growth of China's dominance in Asia-Pacific.It suggests India to tread independent path vis-s-vis China.

3. A terrorist organisation rises again

Nom de guerre -- pseudoym/fictitious name (French word)

[siddhesh_j]

http://www.hinduonnet.com/thehindu/t.../03/25/&prd=th&

Development with dignity

C. Rammanohar Reddy In the monograph,Development with Dignity: A Case for Full Employment,Amit Bhaduri forces us to acknowledge the centrality of employment in our politics and economics.

monograph - detailed treatise.
dichotomy - duality - contrast in this case.

These are exactly the kinda articles that I hate. All these articles do is to point out the instability and how only a few ppl are getting benefits od development et al.The author does not understand that Development is a gradual process, Its not like snip of a finger and 100crore ppl get employed.

Another point that I deeply resent is employment guarantee. WTH ? Why shud any institution give guarantee of employment to ppl who it fels are nothing but a liability. I believe all these socialists shud understand that Employment is not a right/prerogative of man , a man should make himself worthy of it first.What I mean is that only when there is sustained progress , can one feel the impact of it.We are a fast developing nation , and development is a gradual process.

However , there is a high probability of exactly such articles coming in paper... so ppl make it a point to read it , coz its more important to make oneself used to reading subjects on hates rather than the subjects one loves.

[jai_tiwari]

Development with dignity

I have found few more words in that article --

1. Shibboleth -- A idea followed by one group but not by others
2. Fulsome -- in excess
3. Straitjacket -- sth that confines
4. Twilight -- A period that follows a success.

Siddesh, I would beg to differ from your views on employment for all.I think that rural and poor people are not so learned that they can get job in thriving industries such as IT or bio-tech.So it becomes the responsibility of the Govt to provide them level playing ground.Poor should be provided job so that they can send their chidren to school.
This is not good for them only. A thriving rural economy along with modern industry can only provide sustaining growth.
Difference between Urban and rural development can catapult to same level as are in north-east and J&K.
These differences will only debilitate our country and this article points towards that.