The Hindu Editorial Vocabulary– March 2, 2021

English is one of the major sections to be covered well for all major banking, insurance and government exams. The vocabulary part above all requires consistent preparation that further helps in the Reading Comprehension. We regularly post these vocabulary articles to build your vocabulary by providing you with a set of difficult words along with their meanings. These difficult words are picked up from The Hindu editorials. Read the below set of new words and try to learn and grab as much as you can.

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Difficult Words & their Meanings

Difficult Word/Phrase	Contextual Meaning
Disenchantment	feeling of disappointment
unrelenting	extremely determined
catchment area	the area around a business, school, etc
formidable	strong and powerful
plausible	possibly true
contingent	depending on something else in the future
double-edged sword	something that has both positive and negative effects
potency	strength or effectiveness
partisan	someone who supports a person, principle, or political party
scrupulously	in a very careful manner

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High stakes: On the upcoming Assembly elections

As disenchantment rises, voters will look for viable, alternative governance platforms

Assembly elections in Assam, West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, Kerala and the Union Territory of Puducherry will be taking place in changed circumstances. Polls will begin on March 27, with the results on May 2. Politics in these regions is not the same as it was five years ago. The BJP’s unrelenting (extremely determined) pursuit of influence has unsettled conventional calculations in all these areas that are outside the core of the party’s traditional catchment area (the area around a business, school, etc). In 2016, of the 824 seats in the fray, the BJP had won only 64 but it emerged as the ruling party in Assam. It hopes to retain power in Assam and win West Bengal, besides expanding its influence in Tamil Nadu and Kerala. In 2016, the BJP had won only three seats in West Bengal, but its rise was dramatic in the 2019 Lok Sabha election when it won 18 of the 42 seats and 40.64% of votes. The BJP’s performance in West Bengal will be the most eagerly watched aspect in these elections. The significant strength of Muslim voters in West Bengal is often cited as a demographic barrier for the Hindu nationalist party, but communal politics works best in areas where minorities mobilise in significant proportions. Assam and Kerala too have minority populations that are formidable (strong and powerful) in elections, and there are plausible (possibly true) combinations that could work to the BJP’s advantage. In Assam, the BJP’s twin agenda of the CAA and the NRC is a double-edged sword (something that has both positive and negative effects), and their electoral potency (strength or effectiveness) will be on test. What will matter most is the level of disenchantment (feeling of disappointment) with the ruling parties, and the alternative governance platform on offer.

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The underperformance of the Congress in the DMK-led alliance contributed to a consecutive victory for the AIADMK in 2016, a rarity in Tamil Nadu. With the passing of Jayalalithaa and M. Karunanidhi, Dravidian politics is at the crossroads and the BJP is looking for an opening. In Kerala, the LDF is hoping to retain power for a second consecutive term, contingent on a slide of the Congress. Such a scenario would also mean significant gains for the BJP. Across these places, regional parties are in general on the back foot. In Assam, the AGP is reduced to irrelevance and new outfits with a narrow focus have emerged. As the BJP raises its stakes, concerns that the Centre might play a partisan (someone who supports a person, principle, or political party) role in these elections are already high. West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee has termed the phasing out of polls in the State into eight segments a conspiracy to unseat her. The Election Commission must scrupulously (in a very careful manner) play its role as an impartial umpire. There are also disturbing signs that communal polarisation could be higher, particularly in Assam and West Bengal. There could be some defining trends emerging from this round of elections, with long-term implications for politics in the country.

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This is all from us for today’s Hindu Vocabulary article. Make sure that you keep learning and revising these on a daily basis so as to perform well in the English section of the major upcoming exams.