Simplified Laws Guide to Taxation and Legal Concern This is an attempt to compile rare terminologies used in public domain during the previous month. Hope this initiative is interesting to you all.
- Mallikarjun Kharge (leader of opposition, Lok Sabha) said his party will participate in the debate on Land Bill, but “have sent a resolution and we will oppose the bill tooth and nail”
This means try very hard by using every means possible to oppose the bill. The adverbial phrase ‘tooth and nail’ literally means ‘with the use of one’s teeth and nails as weapons, by biting and scratching’ (Is this what Mr. Kharge meant!!!)
- “I beseech you, clear GST” by Arun Jaitley, Finance Minister
When opposition parties were opposing GST constitutional amendment bill, Finance Minister (FM) made this statement. I beseech means ‘earnestly request’ or ask someone urgently and eagerly to do something’. So, the FM was desperately seeking the help of opposition parties to pass the bill.
- Finance Minister, Arun Jaitley, has hit out at the UPA for disrupting the country’s business environment and accused the Manmohan Singh government of crony capitalism and Congress party leaders of becoming “rent seekers and name lenders.”
There are three words to be discussed here. Crony capitalism is to describe governmental decisions favoring cronies (business associates). The companies or industries close to the government will get favorable treatment in terms of policy, regulation, grants, subsidies, etc. So, a corrupt government favors one set of business owners who have close ties to the government over others, thereby denying a level playing field for competition.
Rent seekers or rent seeking is also somewhat similar to crony capitalism. The government encourages lobbyists to influence public policy to benefit their companies and punish their competitors. The rent seekers won’t add value to the society or market place at large. They will benefit at the cost of the society. The rent seeking will enhance the wealth of individuals or companies without creating new wealth or augmenting the wealth at large. The rent seeking people eventually end up in making poor allocation of resources (like coal) and thereby contribute to the decline in national GDP.
Name lending means ‘to make their name available for another’s use’. As a continuation of ‘rent seeking’, FM mentioned that the past government was illicitly favoring people by all means. Today, the new government has stopped those lobbyists to get favorable policies.
- The Telangana government has decided to send an eight-member team, including four MLAs of the ruling TRS with a tag of “progressive farmers”, to attend an agriculture exhibition and field trips in Israel.
We have already heard about ‘farmers’, Indian farmers and poor farmers. Now, we can learn about ‘progressive farmers! Apparently, progressive farmer means those who are easily accessible, less averse to risk, have sufficient resources of land, labour, physical and human capital. The other group may be called as subsistence farmers, who have small or fragmented landholdings, use traditional farming, depend upon natural water sources, etc.
It is those progressive farmers (I mean MLAs) that went on a junket to Israel
Thought for the day
Learning from other’s mistake is wisdom, waiting to learn from your own is ego!
