Why Gurumurthy & RBI are a mismatch
The quality of mercy, we know, is not strained(तनावपूर्ण/विकृत), that is, forced. Can the quality of success be stretched? Does success in one field qualify someone for success in another? The answer is obvious(स्पष्ट/ज़ाहिर): a nifty sprinter might not be good at long-distance running, leave alone playing chess or the piano. But can success in one field disqualify(अयोग्य ठहराना)someone for success in another? Some characteristics(विशेषताओं/विशिष्ट गुण) that make for success would be common, whatever the field of activity: grit(धैर्य/साहस), hard work and innate(जन्मजात /कुदरती) ability. What could make aperson endowed with these qualities a success in one field but a failure in another is the conflict(संघर्ष) between the fields of activity. It is in this light that we hold the appointment of S Gurumurthy as a non-official director of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) to be a bad idea. Gurumurthy’s professional qualification as a chartered accountant and long, intimate acquaintance( परिचित/जान पहचान) with the commercial world should be assets for a director of the central bank. But Gurumurthy is not just a successful CA. He is a man of strong views, good at articulating(साफ़ साफ़ बोलना) them and even edits a journal to propagate(प्रचार/फैलना) them. These qualities have been put to good use to achieve(हासिल करना/पूरा करना) success in two different areas: one, taking one side or the other in corporate battles(लड़ाई) , even when the battle is public and spews rancour(शत्रुता/द्वेष);two, championing a worldview in which economic nationalism is a virtue in itself outweighing the benefits ordinary Indians gain from being enmeshed(जाल में फंसना) in a worldwide division of labour via globalisation. This worldview has made Gurumurthy partisan, not just between different political parties, but also within different wings of the party he openly supports, BJP.
Does it enhance the image of the central bank as an independent regulator of credit and credit institutions to have such a successful partisan on its board? What is the gain to the nation from foisting the smell of partisanship —political, ideological(विचारधारा) and business group-wise — on the central bank, even if the scent is false? In these times of global financial and economic volatility(अस्थिरता) , does not RBI deserve some small mercy?
Important Vocabulary
1.Obvious(स्पष्ट/ज़ाहिर):
Synonyms: accessible, clear, conspicuous, discernible, distinct
Antonyms: ambiguous, concealed, dark, disputable, doubtful
2.Propagate(प्रचार/फैलना)
Synonyms: inseminate, multiply, proliferate, bear, beget
Antonyms: decrease, deplete, destroy, diminish, finish
3.Achieve(हासिल करना/पूरा करना)
Synonyms: accomplish, attain, bring about, carry out, complete
Antonyms: abandon, begin, commence, depart, destroy
4.Enmeshed(जाल में फंसना)
Synonyms:embroil, ensnare, entangle, entrap, implicate
Antonyms: disentangle, exclude, free, let go, liberate
5.Volatility(अस्थिरता)
Synonyms: dryness, vaporization, vaporousness
6.Acquaintance(जान पहचान)
Synonyms: associate, colleague, companion, friend, neighbor
Antonyms: antagonist, detractor, enemy, foe, opponen
