The Hindu Editorial (​Culture of risk) – Jul 29, 2025

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The Hindu Editorial (​​Culture of risk) – Jul 29, 2025:

1. notion (noun) – idea, belief, concept, opinion, thought.
2. do away with (phrasal verb) – remove, abolish, quash, eliminate, discontinue, cancel, abandon, drop, stop, scrap, get rid of.
3. pilgrimage (noun) – religious journey, holy expedition, excursion.
4. endure (verb) – undergo, go through, experience, face, encounter, cope with.
5. chaos (noun) – disorder, disarray, turmoil, disorganization, disruption.
6. steep (adjective) – sharp angle; vertical.
7. shrine (noun) – temple, holy place,     
8. snapped (adjective) – (suddenly) broken.
9. live (adjective) – electrified, powered, connected, active, switched on.
10. reportedly (adverb) – supposedly, seemingly, apparently, allegedly, professedly, ostensibly, purportedly. ​
11. overhead (adjective) – suspended.
12. spark (verb) – cause, lead to, bring about, give rise to.
13. trigger (verb) – cause, lead to, bring about, give rise to.
14. electrocution (noun) – the injury/killing caused by electric shock.
15. hazard (noun) – danger, risk, peril, threat, menace, jeopardy, problem, imperilment.
16. makeshift (adjective) – impromptu, unpremeditated, unprepared, unplanned, unarranged, unconsidered, spontaneous, offhand, improvised, ad hoc.
17. drape (verb) – put something loosely/casually on or over something.
18. common sight (noun) – a frequent/normal occurrence.
19. mela (noun) – a religious festival; fair; a gathering of people.
20. power cutoff (noun) – power outage, power failure, loss of power.
21. public-address system (noun) – A public address system (PA system) is an electronic system that includes a microphone, amplifier, speakers, and related equipment.
22. debunk (verb) – prove to be false, invalidate, negate, disprove.
23. misinformation (noun) – disinformation, false information, false rumour, fake news, alternative fact.
24. certainly (adverb) – surely, definitely, clearly, unquestionably, undeniably, obviously, beyond doubt.
25. reiterate (verb) – say something again; say again, repeat, retell, restate, iterate, recapitulate.
26. real-time (noun as modifier) – the actual time in which something happens.
27. incidental (adjective) – accidental, random, by chance, unlooked-for.
28. stampede (noun) – people’s movement rapidly in a mass after panic.
29. in the course of (phrase) – during the particular period or activity.
30. due to (phrase) – because of, owing to, on account of, as a result of.
31. authorities (noun) – officials, officialdom, the people in charge, the bureaucracy.
32. collective (Adjective) – aggregate; common.
33. desensitisation (noun) – the process of making something insensitive or less sensitive.
34. on paper (phrase) – theoretically, in theory, hypothetically.
35. Char Dham (noun) – the four preeminent Hindu pilgrimage sites (Badrinath, Kedarnath, Gangotri, and Yamunotri) in the Himalayas in the State of Uttarakhand.
36. National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) (noun) – The National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA), headed by the Prime Minister of India, is the apex body for Disaster Management in India. Setting up of NDMA and the creation of an enabling environment for institutional mechanisms at the State and District levels is mandated by the Disaster Management Act, 2005.
37. redundant (adjective) – extra, surplus, excess, spare.
38. drill (noun) – rehearsal, training, instruction.
39. double as (verb) – function as.
40. scheduling (noun) – plan.
41. centre on (verb) – focus, concentrate, be based, pivot, revolve around.
42. compensation (noun) – payment, repayment, settlement (for loss/damage). 
43. rather than (phrase) – instead of. 
44. norm (noun) – rule, guideline, standard, criterion.
45. binding (adjective) – obligatory, compulsory, mandatory, required, requisite.
46. consequences (noun) – result, effect, ramification, repercussion, reverberation.
47. enterprise (noun) – firm, company, organization, industry, business.
48. provision (noun) – clause, condition, stipulation, requirement, term.
49. pilgrim (noun) – traveller, worshipper, devotee, visitor to a shrine
50. facility (noun) – amenity, place, centre, location, premises.
51. fall under (phrase) – be included in; be classified as.
52. exemption (noun) – special treatment, privilege, favouritism; immunity, exclusion, exception, indemnity, freedom.
53. footfall (noun) – the number of people entering an area in a given time.
54. bank on (phrasal verb) – rely on, depend on; anticipate, expect.
55. ad hoc (adjective) – impromptu, unpremeditated, unprepared, unplanned, unarranged, unconsidered, spontaneous, offhand, improvised, makeshift.
56. volunteer (noun) – charity worker, unpaid worker.
57. under-trained (adjective) – not having adequate training.
58. guard (noun) – a group of people serving to protect a place; security guard.
59. surge (noun) – sudden increase/rise.
60. mandate (verb) – order, instruct, direct, command, require, prescribe.
61. Disaster Management Act, 2005 (noun) – The stated object and purpose of this act is to manage disasters (e.g. cyclone, earthquake & etc.,), including preparation of mitigation strategies, capacity-building and more.( To address the past epidemic outbreak, the Central government had included the Covid-19 outbreak as “Notified Disaster” as a “critical medical condition or pandemic situation”).
62. held past tense of hold (verb) – organize, arrange, convene, have.
63. earmark (verb) – set aside, lay aside, set apart, reserve, preserve, withhold.
64. 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.
65. eradicate (verb) – remove, do away with, eliminate, get rid of.
66. preset (adjective) – predetermined, planned, preplanned.
67. threshold (noun) – it is an amount, level, or limit of something. Once the threshold is reached, something else happens or changes; lower limit, starting point, point of entry.
68. incident-command structure (ICS) (noun) – It is a standardized, flexible framework used by organizations and governments to manage incidents and emergencies with precision and coordination.
69. come into effect (phrase) – come into force, become effective, become enforceable, or applicable.
70. deploy (verb) – use, utilize, employ, make use of.
71. LiDAR (noun) – an acronym for “light detection and ranging,” is a remote-sensing technology that uses laser beams to measure precise distances and movement in an environment, in real time.
72. crowd density (noun) – the number of people within a unit area, such as per square meter.  
73. throttle (verb) – control, restrain, contain, stop/halt.

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 (​Culture of risk) – Jul 29, 2025: