The Hindu Editorial (​Bridge too far) – Jul 11, 2025

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The Hindu Editorial (Bridge too far) – Jul 10, 2025:

1. a bridge to far (phrase) – an ambitious plan or action that overreaches its capabilities and is likely to fail due to its scale or complexity; something that is too difficult/extreme to achieve; an overambitious plan which is destined to fail.
2. audit (noun) – examination; inspection; review; verification; scrutiny.
3. infrastructure (noun) – the basic physical or organisational structure or framework that a country or organization needs in order to function properly. For a whole nation, it includes all the physical systems such as buildings, roads & railways networks, utilities, etc.
4. must (noun) – requirement, necessary/mandatory thing, requisite.
5. span (noun) – period, time, duration, interval.
6. cave in (phrasal verb) – collapse, crumble, give way, fall in, fall to pieces, disintegrate.
7. cause (noun) – reason, grounds, motive, basis.
8. allege (verb) – claim, state, contend, indicate, accuse.
9. long-standing (adjective) – enduring, lasting, persistent, prevailing, perennial, long-term, permanent.
10. neglect noun) – indifference, negligence, heedlessness, inattention, lack of attention; inactivity, inaction, passivity, apathy, disregard.
11. authorities (noun) – officials, officialdom, the people in charge, the bureaucracy.
12. due to (phrase) – because of, owing to, on account of, as a result of.
13. hoist (verb) – raise up, lift up, pull up, elevate.
14. hoarding (noun) – billboard; large board for advertisements.
15. result in (verb) – cause, bring on, bring about, lead to, produce, or give rise to. 
16. fatality (noun) – victim, casualty, loss, mortality.
17. girder (noun) – a beam used in construction.
18. toddler (noun) – a young child.
19. catastrophic (adjective) – disastrous, fatal, tragic, terrible, awful, woeful, devastating, destructive.
20. accompany (verb) – occur with, be connected with, be linked with, be associated with.
21. deadly (adjective) – fatal, life-threatening, dangerous, destructive.
22. claim (verb) – cause/result in the loss of; take a life.
23. isolated (adjective) – individual, unrelated, random.
24. ageing (adjective) – relating to the process of becoming worn out/old.
25. peri-urban (adjective) – also called urban space (blend of rural and urban), outskirts; relating to an area immediately next to a city.
26. facility (noun) – place, premises, centre, amenity.
27. progressively (adverb) – increasingly, gradually, little by little, slowly.
28. give way (phrasal verb) – collapse, crumble, cave in, fall in, fall to pieces, disintegrate.
29. upkeep (noun) – the activity of keeping or maintaining something (a building or place) in good condition; maintenance, preservation, conservation.
30. complacent (adjective) – careless, casual, unconcerned, indifferent, slack, lax, apathetic, uninterested; self-satisfied, smug, pleased with oneself, proud of oneself, self-approving, self-admiring, self-regarding
31. yield (verb) – provide, produce, bring in, furnish, contribute.
32. in the public domain/realm (phrase) – if something (e.g. information) is in the public domain, people generally know about it since it is no secret.
33. prompt (verb) – cause, bring about, bring on, produce, call forth, give rise to.
34. given (preposition) – considering, taking into account, bearing in mind.
35. ubiquity (noun) – omnipresence; the state of being everywhere.
36. Urban Infrastructure Development Fund (UIDF) (noun) – It aims to supplement efforts of the State Governments/UTs for urban infrastructure development work implemented through Public/State Agencies, Municipal Corporations, Urban Local Bodies in Tier 2 and Tier 3 cities by providing a stable and predictable source of financing. This fund will be managed by National Housing Bank and has been operationalised with an initial corpus of Rs.10,000 crore.
37. incentive (noun) – impetus, boost, stimulus, fillip.
38. rehabilitative (adjective) – restorative, reconstructive.
39. Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation (AMRUT) (noun) – The Government of India has launched it in June 2015 with the mission to provide basic services (e.g. water supply, sewerage, urban transport) to households and build amenities in cities which will improve the quality of life for all, especially the poor and the disadvantaged.
40. frequency (noun) – regularity, repetition.
41. people (verb) – populate.
42. baseline (noun as modifier) – a starting point (used for comparisons).
43. framework (noun) – system, structure.
44. enforce (verb) – fore, compel, insist on, demand.
45. transparently (adverb) – directly/clearly, straightforwardly, undoubtedly, precisely.
46. trigger (verb) – arouse; prompt; induce; cause; bring about.
47. statutory (adjective) – legitimate, legal, rightful, lawful.
48. statutory body (noun) – an institution that is established by an act of Parliament or state legislatures, deriving its authority from legislation instead of the constitution.
49. mandatory (adjective) – necessary, compulsory, required, obligatory. 
50. endeavour (verb) – try, attempt, aim, try hard, do one’s best.
51. finding (noun) – conclusion, result, decision.

Note : 

1. Click each one of the words above for their definition, more synonyms, pronunciation, example sentences, phrases, derivatives, origin and etc. from http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/.

2. Definitions (elementary level) & Synonyms provided for the words above are my personal work and not that of Oxford University Press. Tentative definitions/meanings are provided for study purposes only and they may vary in a different context.  

3. This word list is for personal use only. Reproduction in any format and/or Commercial use of it is/are strictly prohibited.

The Hindu Editorial (​Bridge too far) – Jul 11, 2025: