Hindi English Translation || Editorial || Beyond Border-Gavaskar: On India-Australia trade agreement

Beyond Border-Gavaskar: On India-Australia trade agreement

Periodic (सामयिक, नियमित, आवर्तक) reappraisal (पुनर्मूल्यांकन) of the economic gains from the trade pact with Australia is pragmatic (व्यावहारिक, यथार्थवादी, समझदार)

The India-Australia Economic Cooperation and Trade Agreement (ECTA) (व्यापार का समझौता) signed last week is a key step in enhancing (सुधारना, बढ़ाना) bilateral (द्विपक्षीय) economic ties (संबंधों, बंधन) between the two major Indian Ocean littoral (seashore, seaside, coastal) states and reflects (विचार करना, इंगित करना, दिखाना) the growing (बढ़नेवाला, प्रगतिशील) strategic (रणनीति-संबंधी, कूटनीतिक) alignment (संरेखण, समझौता, गठबंधन) between New Delhi and Canberra. While India’s strongest ties with Australia had hitherto (अब तक, पहले) largely (काफी हद तक, ज्यादातर, मुख्य रूप से) centred around (to have something as the most important subject of discussion or interest) their common colonial legacy (something received from a predecessor or from the past) of cricket, best exemplified (उदाहरण देना, स्पष्ट करें, वर्णन करें) in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy, a more contemporary (present-day, current) shared (joint, common) vision has emerged around the mutual need to strengthen (support, make stronger, reinforce, buttress) their strategic and trade engagement (participation, taking part, involvement). This was manifested (display, show, demonstrate, reveal) in the June 2020 virtual (performing a task with the use of computer, especially over a network) summit (meeting, conference, conclave) when Prime Ministers Narendra Modi and Scott Morrison decided to elevate (increase, raise) the relationship to the level of a Comprehensive (all-inclusive, broad-based; all-embracing, complete, thorough) Strategic Partnership (it is a long-term interaction between two countries based on political, economic, social and historical factors). Defence and strategic ties have gained (profit, advantage, benefit, reward, yield, return, proceeds, dividend) significant traction (popularity; acceptance; grip, purchase) and the latest ECTA has been hammered out in just six months since negotiations restarted in end-September. Envisaged (visualize, imagine, envision) as an ‘early-harvest’ agreement, the ECTA covers the gamut (range, extent, scope) of economic and commercial relations including trade in goods and services, rules of origin, technical barriers (blockade, hurdle, obstacle, stumbling block, impediment, hindrance) to trade, dispute settlement and customs ((relating to) the official department that regulates and collects the duties imposed by a government on imported goods) procedures. Targeting a goal of doubling bilateral trade to about $50 billion in five years, from the $27.5 billion logged (register, record, attain, achieve) in 2021, the partners have set about (begin, start, embark on, undertake) dismantling (remove, demolish, take down, destroy (something)) or lowering tariff barriers. While Australia has agreed to eliminate tariffs on more than 96% of Indian exports, including several labour-intensive (relating to the process where a larger portion of total costs is due to labour as compared with the portion for costs incurred in purchase, maintenance, and depreciation of capital equipment) industries, India will allow the duty-free entry of 85% of Australian goods exports by value from day one and within the next 10 years cut tariffs to zero on another 5% of Australian merchandise (goods, commodities, produce, product).

That the negotiators adopted a pragmatic tack (approach, way, method; course of action, policy) is evident in the way contentious (controversial, disputable, debatable) issues such as the dairy (relating to the products made from milk) sector, a politically significant export industry in Australia, were set aside (put aside, reserve, earmark, withhold) for separate resolution (solution, settlement) at later talks (discussions, parleying, deliberation, dialogue). A key area that has been included is the movement of ‘natural persons’, which is inextricably (in a method that is not possible to separate) linked to fostering (encourage, promote, develop) closer people-to-people links and is an imperative (necessary condition, precondition, essential requirement) in efforts to promote bilateral trade in services. The agreement aims to support access for a range of Australian and Indian skilled service providers, investors, and business visitors and also, crucially, seeks (ask for, request, appeal for) to address (tackle, deal with, attend to, try to sort out) an area linked to another major Australian export — education. Canberra has now agreed, on a reciprocal (given in return; mutual, common, shared, corresponding, correlative) basis, to ease (decrease, lessen, diminish, reduce, lower) visa restrictions, enabling (make easy, make possible, assist, help) students at varied levels of higher education to stay on (remain/be somewhere longer than you intended and continue to study/work) for periods ranging from 18 months to four years to pursue (engage in, conduct, take part in, take up (an activity)) work opportunities on a temporary basis. Arguably (possibly, conceivably, maybe, potentially) the best feature of the ECTA though is the incorporation of a compulsory review mechanism (system, arrangement, regime, apparatus) at the end of 15 years. With past FTAs having proved less than beneficial to domestic industry, India’s negotiators have set a meaningful precedent (model, exemplar, example, pattern; previous example/instance, prior instance) in including the feature to periodically (occasionally, now and then) reappraise (review, re-examine, reassess, re-evaluate) the economic gains from such trade pacts (agreement, treaty, deal).

Courtesy: The Hindu

Important Word List With Meaning

1.beyond (preposition)

Hindi Meaning - के अतिरिक्त, के बाहर, के बाद
English Meaning - greater than, more than, over and above; apart from, except, other than.

2.periodic (adjective)

Hindi Meaning - सामयिक, नियमित, आवर्तक
English Meaning - regular, recurrent, recurring, repeated, cyclical, at fixed intervals.

3.reappraisal (noun)

Hindi Meaning - पुनर्मूल्यांकन
English Meaning - review, re-examination, reassessment, re-evaluation.

4.trade agreement/trade pact (noun)

Hindi Meaning - व्यापार का समझौता
English Meaning - A trade agreement is a contract/agreement/pact between two or more nations (countries/states) that illustrates how they will cooperate to guarantee mutual benefit in the field of trade and investment. They decide the tariffs and duties that nations/countries impose on imports and exports.

5.pragmatic (adjective)

Hindi Meaning - व्यावहारिक, यथार्थवादी, समझदार
English Meaning - practical, realistic, sensible, rational, reasonable.

6.enhance (verb)

Hindi Meaning - सुधारना, बढ़ाना
English Meaning - increase, raise, augment, boost.

7.bilateral (adjective)

Hindi Meaning - द्विपक्षीय
English Meaning - involving two groups or countries.

8.ties (noun)

Hindi Meaning - संबंधों, बंधन
English Meaning - association, relationship, bond, connection.

9.reflect (verb)

Hindi Meaning - विचार करना, इंगित करना, दिखाना
English Meaning - indicate, show, display, demonstrate.

10.growing (adjective)

Hindi Meaning - बढ़नेवाला, प्रगतिशील
English Meaning - increasing.

11.strategic (adjective)

Hindi Meaning - रणनीति-संबंधी, कूटनीतिक
English Meaning - relating to achieving long-term or overall goals.

12.alignment (noun)

Hindi Meaning - संरेखण, समझौता, गठबंधन
English Meaning - agreement, alliance, partnership, affiliation.

13.hitherto (adverb)

Hindi Meaning - अब तक, पहले
English Meaning - previously, earlier, so far/thus far, until now.

14.largely (adverb)

Hindi Meaning - काफी हद तक, ज्यादातर, मुख्य रूप से
English Meaning - mostly, mainly, generally.

15.exemplify (verb)

Hindi Meaning - उदाहरण देना, स्पष्ट करें, वर्णन करें
English Meaning - clarify, represent, illustrate (as an example).

16.littoral (adjective)

English Meaning - seashore, seaside, coastal.

17.gain (noun)

English Meaning - profit, advantage, benefit, reward, yield, return, proceeds, dividend.

18.Economic Cooperation and Trade Agreement (ECTA) (noun)

English Meaning - it is a trade agreement that provides for an institutional mechanism to improve trade between the two countries (parties). The objectives of this Agreement are to a) establish a framework for strengthening and enhancing the economic, trade and investment relationship between the Parties; b) liberalise and promote trade in goods; c) liberalise and promote trade in services; d) improve the efficiency and competitiveness of their manufacturing and services sectors and to expand trade and investment between the Parties; and e) facilitate, enhance and explore new areas of economic cooperation and develop appropriate measures for closer economic cooperation between the Parties.

19.India-Australia Economic Cooperation and Trade Agreement (IndAus ECTA) (noun)

English Meaning - On April 2, 2022 India and Australia signed an Economic Cooperation and Trade Agreement (ECTA). The landmark bilateral trade pact is the second trade agreement India has signed this year after inking a similar deal with the United Arab Emirates in February. The ECTA is expected to increase trade between the two sides to $45-50 billion over five years, from the current estimate of $27 billion. The IndAus ECTA, encompassing trade in goods and services, is a balanced and equitable trade agreement, which will further cement the already deep, close and strategic relations between the two countries and will significantly enhance the bilateral trade in goods and services, create new employment opportunities, raise living standards and improve the general welfare of the peoples of the two countries.

20.centre around (phrasal verb)

English Meaning - to have something as the most important subject of discussion or interest.

21.legacy (noun)

English Meaning - something received from a predecessor or from the past.

22.contemporary (adjective)

English Meaning - present-day, current.

23.shared (adjective)

English Meaning - joint, common.

24.mutual (adjective)

English Meaning - common, joint, shared; reciprocal

25.strengthen (verb)

English Meaning - support, make stronger, reinforce, buttress.

26.engagement (noun)

English Meaning - participation, taking part, involvement.

27.manifest (verb)

English Meaning - display, show, demonstrate, reveal.

28.virtual (adjective)

English Meaning - performing a task with the use of computer, especially over a network.

29.summit (noun)

English Meaning - meeting, conference, conclave.

30.virtual submit/meeting (noun)

English Meaning - (interactive) online summit/meeting.

31.elevate (verb)

English Meaning - increase, raise.

32.comprehensive (adjective)

English Meaning - all-inclusive, broad-based; all-embracing, complete, thorough.

33.strategic partnership (noun)

English Meaning - it is a long-term interaction between two countries based on political, economic, social and historical factors.

34.traction (noun)

English Meaning - popularity; acceptance; grip, purchase.

35.hammer out (phrasal verb)

English Meaning - produce, bring about, forge, develop (a plan/agreement) after a lot of work.

36.envisage (verb)

English Meaning - visualize, imagine, envision.

37.harvest (noun)

English Meaning - return, result, yield; effect, consequence, output.

38.gamut (noun)

English Meaning - range, extent, scope.

39.barrier (noun)

English Meaning - blockade, hurdle, obstacle, stumbling block, impediment, hindrance.

40.customs (noun as modifier)

English Meaning - (relating to) the official department that regulates and collects the duties imposed by a government on imported goods.

41.log (verb)

English Meaning - register, record, attain, achieve.

42.set about (phrasal verb)

English Meaning - begin, start, embark on, undertake.

43.dismantle (verb)

English Meaning - remove, demolish, take down, destroy (something).

44.labour-intensive (adjective)

English Meaning - relating to the process where a larger portion of total costs is due to labour as compared with the portion for costs incurred in purchase, maintenance, and depreciation of capital equipment.

45.merchandise (noun)

English Meaning - goods, commodities, produce, product.

46.tack (noun)

English Meaning - approach, way, method; course of action, policy.

47.contentious (adjective)

English Meaning - controversial, disputable, debatable.

48.dairy (adjective)

English Meaning - relating to the products made from milk.

49.set aside (phrasal verb)

English Meaning - put aside, reserve, earmark, withhold.

50.resolution (noun)

English Meaning - solution, settlement.

51.talks (noun)

English Meaning - discussions, parleying, deliberation, dialogue.

52.inextricably (adverb)

English Meaning - in a method that is not possible to separate.

53.foster (verb)

English Meaning - encourage, promote, develop.

54.imperative (noun)

English Meaning - necessary condition, precondition, essential requirement.

55.seek (verb)

English Meaning - ask for, request, appeal for.

56.address (verb)

English Meaning - tackle, deal with, attend to, try to sort out.

57.reciprocal (adjective)

English Meaning - given in return; mutual, common, shared, corresponding, correlative.

58.ease (verb)

English Meaning - decrease, lessen, diminish, reduce, lower.

59.enable (verb)

English Meaning - make easy, make possible, assist, help.

60.stay on (phrasal verb)

English Meaning - remain/be somewhere longer than you intended and continue to study/work.

61.pursue (verb)

English Meaning - engage in, conduct, take part in, take up (an activity).

62.arguably (adverb)

English Meaning - possibly, conceivably, maybe, potentially.

63.mechanism (noun)

English Meaning - system, arrangement, regime, apparatus.

64.free trade agreement (FTA) (noun)

English Meaning - an agreement between two or more countries designed to reduce or eliminate certain barriers to trade and investment, and to facilitate stronger trade and commercial ties between participating countries.

65.precedent (noun)

English Meaning - model, exemplar, example, pattern; previous example/instance, prior instance.

66.periodically (adverb)

English Meaning - occasionally, now and then.

67.reappraise (verb)

English Meaning - review, re-examine, reassess, re-evaluate.

68.pact (noun)

English Meaning - agreement, treaty, deal.