The Hindu Editorial Vocabulary– Jun 17, 2022; Day 313

Difficult Word/ PhraseContextual Sense
Nod A sign of assent, salutation or command
Festering to become or cause to become bitter, irritated, etc, esp over a long period of time; rankle
Imperative Some duty that is essential and urgent
Drastic Forceful and extreme and rigorous
Coincide Happen simultaneously
Pandemic An epidemic that is geographically widespread
Tackle Accept as a challenge
Concomitant Occurring with or following as a consequence
War footing the condition of being prepared to undertake or maintain war
Chunk A considerable portion
Ameliorative Tending to make something better
Squander Spend thoughtlessly
Reap Get or derive
Belated Delayed

Waiting for jobs: On Centre’s plan to recruit 10 lakh personnel in 18 months

The Centre’s decision to recruit personnel to fill vacancies is a nod (A sign of assent, salutation or command) to the festering (to become or cause to become bitter, irritated, etc, esp over a long period of time; rankle) unemployment issue

For a nation that has had a significant demographic dividend — the working age population is much larger than the non-working age sections — finding productive employment for its youth was to be an imperative (Some duty that is essential and urgent for India. Yet, in the last few years, unemployment has remained a major concern — the leaked Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS) in 2018 revealed that India’s unemployment rate was the highest (6.07%) in four decades. The latest PLFS suggests that the numbers now are not so drastic (Forceful and extreme and rigorous), with the overall unemployment rate at 4.2% in 2020-21 compared to 4.8% in 2019-20 and the labour force participation rate (LFPR) increasing to 41.6%, up from 40.1% in 2019-20. In terms of the more widely used statistic internationally, the current weekly status of unemployment, the figure of 7.5% for all persons in 2020-21 is still worrying. But, the PLFS data will not bring much cheer to the Government despite a decrease in unemployment, according to official data. This is because the decrease, says the PLFS, has also coincided (Happen simultaneously) with the transfer of employment into lower productive and unpaid jobs away from salaried employment. Worryingly, industrial jobs have decreased with more employment in agricultural and farm-related jobs — a trend that accelerated following the lockdown and has not reversed since then. Unemployment rates among the educated (above secondary education — 9.1%) and the youth (age between 15-29 — 12.9%) have only declined marginally.

Wage rates have continued to remain lower for those employed in either salaried jobs or self-employed compared to the pre-pandemic (An epidemic that is geographically widespread) period, with the increases being marginal in the year following lockdown-driven days of the pandemic. It is clear that the Government must tackle (Accept as a challenge) unemployment and, concomitantly (Occurring with or following as a consequence), the quality of employment issue, on a war footing (the condition of being prepared to undertake or maintain war.). In this regard, Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s announcement that the Government will be recruiting 10 lakh personnel within the next 18 months (vacancies in the Railways, the armed forces and GST departments among others) should be seen as a step in the right direction. The latest data showed that there were 8.86 lakh vacant jobs among all central government civilian posts as of March 2020. Mr. Modi’s announcement was not about the creation of a large chunk (A considerable portion) of new jobs; the bulk of the promised employment is to fill up vacancies. But even this measure would be ameliorative (Tending to make something better) in the real economy that continues to remain distressed, a consequence of the BJP-led government’s mismanagement and the effects of the pandemic in the last few years. The country cannot afford to squander (Spend thoughtlessly) more years in its race to reap (Get or derive) the benefits of its demographic dividend, and the push to provide jobs for those seeking to enter the labour force, even if belated (delayed), will help ease matters for the medium term.

Want to improve your vocabulary further? Download the Lists of Word-Meanings of Previous Months here.

Nikunj Barnwal

Recent Posts

RBI Grade B Vs UPSC Civil Services: Which is Better?

RBI Grade B or UPSC Civil Services? Discover the pros and cons of each career…

2 hours ago

SSC CGL Quantitative Aptitude Questions free Practice, Download PYQs

The SSC CGL Quantitative Aptitude Questions, Download PYQs is provided in this blog. Now, candidates…

2 hours ago

Important Quantitative Aptitude Question for SBI Clerk Mains 2025 Exam, Download PDF

In This article we are providing the Important Quantitative Aptitude Question for SBI Clerk Mains…

2 hours ago

SBI PO Prelims Exam Analysis 2025, 16th March 2025, 2nd Shift, Check Difficulty & Good Attempt

In this article, we are providing the SBI PO Exam Analysis 2025, 1st Shift, 16th…

3 hours ago

Cloze Test for SSC CGL Exam, Free Topic-wise Test, Download PDF

In this blog, we have provided the Cloze Test for SSC CGL Exam. Practice free…

23 hours ago

What is Union Bank LBO LPT 2025, Types of Questions Asked in Language Proficiency Test

In this article we are providing the What is Union Bank LBO LPT 2025 and…

1 day ago