TOPIC-1:Referendum
gamble for Britain.
British Prime Minister David Cameron
wants London to stay in and out of the European Union (EU) all at the same
time, and his counterparts would let it be. Regardless of the result in the
June 23 in-out referendum on the question
of the U.K.’s EU membership, the difficult and delicate deal stitched together among the leaders of the
28-member bloc carries immense diplomatic
significance and value for its near future. The slogan of ever-closer
integration in Europe may have carried some romantic appeal in a world
recovering from the ravages of the two
great wars. It may not be so compelling
any longer. The enlargement of the original bloc of six countries into what is
today a gigantic transnational entity of
28 is forcing the leaders of as many sovereign
states to confront, from their individual
perspectives, the cumulative and complex realities of competing
nationalisms. As for Britain, the question whether it should stay or leave the
EU has overshadowed the better part of the forty-plus years of its membership
since 1973. Now, in the midst of the influx of
immigrants in their millions from North
Africa and West Asia, the U.K. feels the urgency to define its equation with
the rest of the bloc in more precise
terms. “Live and let live,” Mr. Cameron told his counterparts in Brussels, as
he secured safeguards for the minority of non-eurozone states, significant in
view of London’s large financial services industry.
Also read: Cameron begins campaign to keep Britain in EU
For their part, EU leaders, while
increasingly wary of the U.K.’s persistent and shrill eurosceptic stance, would not easily reconcile to the idea of
the exit of one of the continent’s biggest economies, one with immense
international clout and a permanent UN
Security Council seat. There was implicit, if unspoken, appreciation in Berlin,
Paris and Brussels in recent months that the prospect of a Brexit would not
bode well politically for the bloc, as much as a Grexit
would severely dent the project of the
single currency, now nearing completion of two decades. That Britain is in a
minority of countries that neither share the euro nor participate in the
Schengen border-free zone does not diminish its weight and importance in the
larger EU framework. Conversely, the exemption of Britain from ever-closer
integration in the Union — a founding principle — promised in the latest
agreement, represents an important, if symbolic, selling point for Mr. Cameron.
Several Conservative euro-sceptics, both within and outside the Cabinet, are to
campaign for an outright exit in the coming referendum.
In a compromise, Mr. Cameron had to concede the retention, with some
modifications, of benefit payments to immigrant workers and their children from
within the EU. On both, the original unrealistic position favoured an outright
ban. The Leave Campaign will undoubtedly view these changes as carrying little
substance against their decided position. Despite the uncertainty over the
outcome of the June vote, it is hard to imagine the British public being
excited into exit mode, notwithstanding a frenzied media campaign.
vocabulary:
1.referendum : a legislative act is referred for final approval to a popular vote by the
electorate.
2.stitched : make,
mend, or join (something) with stitches.
3.immense :extremely
large or great, especially in scale or degree.
4.compelling :
evoking interest, attention, or admiration in a powerfully irresistible way.
5.gigantic : of
very great size or extent; huge or enormous.
6.sovereign : a supreme ruler, especially a monarch.
7.confront
: come face to face with
(someone) with hostile or argumentative intent.
8.perspectives :
the art of representing three-dimensional objects on a two-dimensional surface
so as to give the right impression of their height, width, depth, and position
in relation to each other.
9.cumulative :
increasing or increased in quantity, degree, or force by successive additions.
10.influx : an
arrival or entry of large numbers of people or things.
11.immigrants : a
person who comes to live permanently in a foreign country.
12.precise :
marked by exactness and accuracy of expression or detail.
13.stance : the
way in which someone stands, especially when deliberately adopted (as in
cricket, golf, and other sports); a person's posture.
14.clout : a heavy
blow with the hand or a hard object.
15.Grexit : refers to Greece's potential withdrawal from the eurozone, after which
it would most likely revert to using the drachma.
16.dent: a
slight hollow in a hard even surface made by a blow or pressure.
17.referendum : a
general vote by the electorate on a single political question which has been
referred to them for a direct decision.
TOPIC-2:Stark
reminder in Jammu & Kashmir.
The gunfight between militants and
the security forces in Pampore, near Srinagar, that went on for three days
since Saturday is a stark reminder that in Jammu and Kashmir embers can flare up any moment, and that with summer approaching there
needs to be greater political determination in dealing with law and order. The
stand-off started when a group of heavily armed militants opened fire on a convoy, targeting especially a Central Reserve
Police Force bus. The CRPF lost head constable driver R.K. Rana, who was
driving the bus, and head constable Bhola Singh, while several other jawans
were injured. The militants then ran into the compound of the Entrepreneurship
Development Institute, along the Srinagar-Jammu national highway. The gun
battle has already resulted in grave and unacceptably high casualties — three Army men, two CRPF personnel
and a civilian. What is especially worrying, and must force military planners
and the political top brass in New Delhi to sit up and take note, is the death
of three elite para commandos of the
Army. India cannot afford to keep losing its young men with such dreary frequency.
Also read: Army battling rise in number of casualties in Kashmir
The attack in Pampore follows a new
pattern emerging in Jammu and Kashmir in recent months. Violence had been
steadily dwindling until 2014, when for
various reasons it picked up pace again in the Valley. In part, it was because
the previous United Progressive Alliance government had failed to politically
exploit the opening presented by the ebbing of
militancy in the State. An all-out effort at that point would have helped the
Manmohan Singh government find a possible breakthrough in bringing peace back
to Kashmir. That would have entailed an honourable settlement of grievances of
all sides, and resulted in ending the deployment of almost half a million Indian
soldiers in the State. Unfortunately, the level of violence in Kashmir has been
steadily climbing since the Narendra Modi government came to power, but a
political opportunity presented itself in early 2015 when, in a master stroke,
the Bharatiya Janata Party sewed up a coalition government with the Peoples Democratic
Party. That was seen to be the first step in the peace process, bringing
political determination on the part of New Delhi behind the PDP’s healing touch. However, the initial efforts have floundered, especially since the death of Mufti
Mohammad Sayeed. Violence in the State has also steadily increased in recent
months, with many incidents claiming an unusually high toll of security forces
and civilians. What is most noticeable about the present phase of violence is
that many attacks are carried out by home-grown militants, a new wave of
youngsters from within the Indian borders who have taken to violence, in recent
times. A steady stream of militants infiltrating
from Pakistan keeps the pot boiling. All this is happening during Governor’s
Rule, while political parties allow the situation to drift in order that they
may hammer out a beneficial alliance deal. The Centre and all the stakeholders
must address the challenge of the growing alienation
among Kashmiris.
vocabulary:
1.embers : a small piece of burning or glowing
coal or wood in a dying fire.
2.flare : a sudden brief burst of bright
flame or light.
3.convoy :
a group of ships or vehicles travelling together, typically one accompanied by armed
troops, warships, or other vehicles for protection.
4.casualties : a person killed or injured in a war or accident.
5.elite :a
select group that is superior in terms of ability or qualities to the rest of a
group or society.
6.dreary :
depressingly dull and bleak or repetitive.
7.dwindling : diminish gradually in size, amount, or strength.
8.ebbing :
(of tidewater) move away from the land; recede.
9.sewed :
join, fasten, or repair (something) by making stitches with a needle and thread
or a sewing machine.
10.coalition : a temporary alliance for combined action, especially of political
parties forming a government.
11.floundered : struggle or stagger clumsily in mud or water.
12.healing : the process of making or becoming sound or healthy again.
13.infiltrating : enter or gain access to (an organization, place, etc.) surreptitiously
and gradually, especially in order to acquire secret information.
14.alienation : the transfer of the ownership of property rights.
