The one rule that governs everything here
Ornament loses marks. Precision wins them. Examiners reward clarity and economy and penalise decoration. Wordcraft never teaches a word so you can sound impressive. It teaches the word that is exactly right, the pair you must never swap, the verb a noun takes, and the fifteen words you can delete.
Glossary from the edition
13 words, each quoted in the sentence where it appeared in the 3 October 2026 edition. Meaning first, then the sentence, then where it came from.
(formal) The responsibility for something (Oxford); in law, the burden of proof.
हिंदी: दायित्व; (सिद्ध करने का) भार
The enumeration puts the onus on electors to prove eligibility, the editorial says, so many are deleted first and checked later.
From Obstacle Race: SIR and Universal Adult Franchise · The phrase to learn is the onus is on somebody (to do or prove something), or the onus shifts to them. In law the onus of proof usually lies on the person who asserts a fact. In the SIR debate the question is exactly this: should the elector prove eligibility, or the state prove ineligibility?
To move apart and go away in different directions; to spread over a wide area (Oxford).
हिंदी: तितर-बितर होना; फैल जाना
If Phibsoo or Manas offer more prey or fewer disturbances, the released tigers may disperse.
From Rescue Act: Buxa Tiger Reintroduction and Its Limits · In ecology dispersal is the movement of young or released animals away from their birth or release site, usually to find territory. It is why corridors matter: a tiger that disperses from Buxa needs safe passage to Phibsoo in Bhutan or Manas in Assam. Police also disperse a crowd, the everyday sense.
(Latin, 'to stand by things decided') The doctrine that courts adhere to precedent in making their decisions (Cornell LII).
हिंदी: पूर्व निर्णयों का पालन करने का सिद्धांत
The CJI could create one now, but its composition needs transparent, pre-set, bright-line rules, and Benches must honour stare decisis.
From A Court Divided by Its Own Architecture: Article 145(3) · In India the doctrine works through Article 141: law declared by the Supreme Court binds all courts. Within the Court, a smaller Bench is bound by a larger one; a Bench that doubts a ruling of an equal Bench refers the question to a larger Bench rather than overruling it.
A claim made in reply to another claim and different from it (Oxford).
हिंदी: प्रतिदावा
The Uzbekistan treaty’s counterclaim provision shows how to bind investors.
From India's Model BIT a Decade Later: MFN, ISDS, Counterclaims · In investment arbitration only the investor can usually start a case. A counterclaim clause lets the host State answer within the same proceeding, for example over environmental damage or breach of local law. That is how investor obligations become enforceable, the point of the op-ed.
(from imperil, formal) Put in danger (Oxford: imperil, to put something or somebody in danger).
हिंदी: संकटग्रस्त; ख़तरे में डाला गया
Micro-monitoring can find both the imperilled and the resilient.
From El Niño Calls for Wider Monitoring of Ecological Stress · British and Indian English double the l (imperilled, imperilling); American English writes imperiled. It is a formal word, good in an essay; in a GS answer at risk or threatened is plainer. Used as a noun here, the imperilled means the ecosystems in danger.
(formal) Agreement; also an example of two or more things happening at the same time (Oxford).
हिंदी: सहमति
Require the Opposition’s concurrence or recorded reasons, with a time limit and a fallback, and publish criteria and shortlists.
From For Constituting Poll Body, a Lesson From the UN: CEC Selection · In constitutional writing concurrence means a required agreement, stronger than consultation: a decision needs another authority to agree. The Concurrent List shares the root (to run together) but means subjects on which both Parliament and the States may legislate. A judge who agrees with the outcome but writes separately delivers a concurring opinion.
As a verb, to use your authority to reject somebody’s decision, or to interrupt the action of a device that usually works by itself in order to control it yourself (Oxford); as a noun, a device or power that does this.
हिंदी: (स्वचालित प्रणाली या निर्णय को) निरस्त कर नियंत्रण लेना
Dilemma: a ground override creates a new attack surface.
From Rethinking Cockpit Safety After Flydubai: Two in the Cockpit · Both senses meet in governance. Parliament can override an assented State law under the proviso to Article 254(2); a manual override lets a pilot or an operator take over from automation. Stress the first syllable for the noun and the last for the verb (oh-vər-RYD).
(formal) The act of freeing somebody, especially from legal, political or social controls that limit what they can do (Oxford).
हिंदी: मुक्ति; बंधनों से छुटकारा
The writer proposes a threefold response: peaceful action for media accountability without curbing free speech, a public discourse of human emancipation, and self-introspection by campaigners.
From Gandhi as Democracy's Guide: Institutions, Media, Voters · A GS1 word: the emancipation of women, of Dalits, of bonded labour. It implies freedom from a structure of control, not just help. The verb is emancipate. In history, the US Emancipation Proclamation (1863) is the best-known use.
An agreement between enemies or opponents to stop fighting for an agreed period of time; the period of time that this lasts (Oxford).
हिंदी: युद्धविराम; अस्थायी संघर्ष-विराम समझौता
An SoO is a truce, not a settlement.
From Manipur SoO Pact With Kuki-Zo Groups Lapses: Insurgency Tools · Grade the words. A truce pauses fighting for a period; a ceasefire stops it, often as a first step; an armistice is a formal agreement ending active war; a peace accord or settlement resolves the dispute. Using them precisely is a quick way to show command of a security answer.
The act of accepting somebody into an institution or organization; the right to enter a place; also a statement admitting that something is true (Oxford).
हिंदी: प्रवेश की अनुमति
The husband’s admission did not show that the two were similarly placed, because the adverse inputs concerned only her.
From Visa No Right to Enter India, Delhi HC: Foreigners and Article 21 · Read the sentence carefully: the husband’s admission means his being allowed into India, not anything he confessed. The verb is admit (admitted at the border); the opposite is refused entry. In a sentence that could be read either way, write entry instead.
(law) The state of being intestate, or of dying without having made a valid will (Wiktionary); intestate: not having made a will (Oxford).
हिंदी: बिना वसीयत के मृत्यु की स्थिति
On intestacy, Class-1 heirs (spouse, children and parents) succeed together and share equally.
From Gujarat UCC Gets President's Assent: Article 44, Article 254 · Succession law has two halves: testamentary succession (by a will) and intestate succession (by rules, when there is no will). Codes such as the Hindu Succession Act, 1956 and Gujarat’s new code list classes of heirs for intestacy. The person who makes a will is the testator.
(law) That can be appealed to, especially of a court or body that hears appeals against decisions of a lower one (Wiktionary).
हिंदी: अपीलीय
The Union Law Ministry has issued rules that let the new National Tribunals Commission (NTC) select chairpersons and members of 16 tribunals and appellate bodies.
From Current Affairs Today 3 October 2026: UPSC News Roundup · An appellate tribunal hears appeals from a regulator or a lower tribunal: the NCLAT from the NCLT, the Securities Appellate Tribunal from SEBI. A court’s original jurisdiction is where a case starts; its appellate jurisdiction is where it comes on appeal. The person who appeals is the appellant.
The practice of helping large areas of land to return to their natural state (Oxford); also, releasing captive-bred animals to live in the wild.
हिंदी: (भूमि को) प्राकृतिक अवस्था में लौटाना; वन्य पुनर्स्थापन
The rewilding phase of Project GIB is set to begin with the release of two male chicks, four to six months old, into enclosures in the Desert National Park (DNP), Jaisalmer, in an event expected on 4 October 2026, The Indian Express reported.
From Current Affairs Today 3 October 2026: UPSC News Roundup · Oxford’s sense is about land; conservation projects also use it for the step after captive breeding, when animals are prepared for and released into the wild, as with the Great Indian Bustard. A soft release uses an enclosure first; a hard release frees animals directly.
The seven lessons
One entry of each type, every day: a system, not a word list.
1 · Word roots
logos · -logy
Greek: word, speech; reason, account; in compounds, the study of
Today’s editorials keep reaching for one Greek word. The Hindu’s SIR editorial reports a new exclusion criterion called "logical discrepancies"; the cockpit column says pilot screening is a psychological assessment at hiring, that the medical checks physiology, and that psychometrics screen for instability, not ideology; the El Niño editorial wants ecological monitoring; and the Gandhi column asks the state to answer protest with dialogue. All of them go back to Greek logos, which the Online Etymology Dictionary glosses as word, speech, discourse, and also reason and account.
| Word | Formed from | Literal sense | From the edition, or from the root |
|---|---|---|---|
| dialogue | dia, across + legein, to speak | speech between people | edition: the state to proportionality and dialogue |
| logical | logikos, from logos, reason | of reasoning | edition: "logical discrepancies" in the SIR |
| ecological | oikos, house + -logia | study of the household of nature | edition: ecological stress |
| psychological | psykhe, breath, soul + -logia | study of the mind | edition: a psychological assessment at hiring |
| physiology | physis, nature + -logia | study of nature, now of how the body works | edition: the medical checks physiology |
| ideology | French ideologie, coined by Destutt de Tracy in 1796 | science of ideas | edition: not ideology or intent |
| apology | apo, away + logos | a speech in defence | root |
| catalogue | kata, down, completely + legein | a reckoning up, a list | root |
Two senses to keep apart. As a word on its own, logos is speech or reason: dialogue, logic, apology. As the suffix -logy, it means the study of something: ecology, psychology, physiology, chronology. Knowing the suffix lets you read a new discipline at sight.
Apology was a defence. In classical Greek an apologia was a reasoned reply to an accusation, as in Socrates' defence. The old sense survives in apologist, a person who defends a cause.
The impostors. Logistics comes from French logis, lodging, the art of quartering troops. Slogan comes from Gaelic sluagh-ghairm, a clan’s battle cry. Neither has anything to do with logos.
From The Hindu’s SIR editorial (logical discrepancies), the cockpit column (psychological, physiology, ideology), the El Niño editorial (ecological) and the Gandhi column (dialogue).
2 · Look-alike words
abrogate · arrogate
to end a law or agreement, or to seize a right you do not have
Today’s Manipur deep dive reports that Meitei and Naga groups "have sought its abrogation", meaning the Suspension of Operations pact, and quotes a Kuki-Zo member: "Not extending the SoO pact does not mean it has been abrogated". The look-alike arrogate differs by one letter and names a different kind of act: not ending something, but taking it.
| abrogate | arrogate | |
|---|---|---|
| Oxford | (formal) to officially end a law, an agreement, etc.; to fail to carry out a responsibility or duty | (formal) to claim or take something that you have no right to |
| Latin | abrogare: ab, away + rogare, to propose a law | arrogare: ad, to + rogare, to ask: claim for oneself |
| Typical objects | a law, a treaty, a pact, a right | a power, a right, a role, often "to itself" |
| Today’s edition | the demand to abrogate the SoO pact | root (not in today’s edition) |
The test. Ask whether something is being ended or taken. A government abrogates a treaty; an executive that seizes a court’s power arrogates it to itself. The adjective arrogant comes from the same Latin verb: someone who claims more than is due.
A second sense of abrogate. Oxford also gives "to fail to carry out a responsibility or duty", as in "abrogate responsibility". It is formal; neglect or abdicate is more common in that sense.
Don’t confuse. Derogate, the third member, is about partial departure. Under Article 4 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, a State may take measures derogating from some obligations in a public emergency: it suspends them in part, it does not end the treaty.
From the Manipur SoO deep dive: "have sought its abrogation" and "does not mean it has been abrogated".
3 · Word partners
issued · admitted · refused entry · registered · removed
what happens to a foreigner at and after the border, in the Immigration and Foreigners Act’s own words
Today’s Delhi High Court deep dive turns on a gap between two verbs: a visa was issued in Ashgabat, but entry was refused in Delhi. The Immigration and Foreigners Act, 2025, which replaced four older laws, has its own vocabulary for each step, and an answer that uses it reads as informed. Every verb below is checked against the Act as printed in the Gazette of India.
| Step | The Act’s wording | Where |
|---|---|---|
| a visa is issued or granted | "visa issuance"; "the authority authorised to grant visa" | Section 2(t) |
| a foreigner is allowed to enter, or found inadmissible | no foreigner "shall be allowed to enter into or stay in India, if he is found inadmissible"; the Immigration Officer’s decision is "final and binding" | Section 3 |
| entry is refused | a foreigner "whose entry has been refused" is handed over to the carrier, which must ensure his removal | Section 17(9) |
| the foreigner registers | foreigners "on arrival in India shall be required to register with the Registration Officer" | Section 6 |
| the Centre prohibits, regulates or restricts | entry, departure, and "presence or continued presence" | Section 7(1) |
| a foreigner remains beyond the visa | "remains in any area in India for a period exceeding the period for which the visa was issued": an offence | Section 23 |
| a foreigner is removed | the Centre "may ... direct the removal of a foreigner from India" | Section 29 |
Removal, not deportation. Oxford gives deport as to force somebody to leave a country, and newspapers use it. The 2025 Act itself speaks of removal. In an answer about the Act, use the Act’s word; in a general answer either is fine.
Admitted, not accepted. At the border a person is admitted or allowed to enter; a visa is issued or granted, not "given" or "passed".
From the Delhi High Court deep dive, checked against the Immigration and Foreigners Act, 2025 (Gazette of India), Sections 2(t), 3, 6, 7, 17(9), 23 and 29.
4 · Today's key term
repugnancy
ri-PUG-nən-see · a conflict between a State law and a central law on a shared subject
Today’s Gujarat deep dive explains why a State code on marriage and succession needed the President: "A State code that changes these rules is repugnant to them", and under Article 254(1) a repugnant State law is void to the extent of repugnancy. In everyday English, Oxford gives repugnant only as "making you feel strong dislike". The constitutional sense is different: opposed, or in conflict (Wiktionary marks it legal).
| Provision or case | What it says about repugnancy |
|---|---|
| Article 254(1) | If a State law on a Concurrent List matter is repugnant to a law Parliament is competent to make, Parliament’s law prevails and the State law is void "to the extent of the repugnancy" |
| Article 254(2) | A State law that has been reserved for the President and received assent prevails in that State |
| Proviso to Article 254(2) | Parliament may later add to, amend, vary or repeal that State law |
| M. Karunanidhi v Union of India (1979) | Repugnancy needs a clear, direct and irreconcilable inconsistency, so that obeying one law means disobeying the other; laws are also repugnant where Parliament meant to occupy the whole field |
Only on shared subjects. Article 254 deals with the Concurrent List. A clash between a State List and a Union List subject is settled differently, under Article 246 and the doctrine of pith and substance: the court asks what the law is really about.
The everyday sense is a trap. In an answer, "the Gujarat code is repugnant" means it conflicts with central law, not that anyone finds it offensive. If the reader might take it the other way, write "inconsistent with" or "in conflict with".
From the Gujarat UCC deep dive: "A State code that changes these rules is repugnant to them" and the Article 254 table.
5 · Cut the padding
the empty quantifier
a number of, a large number of, various, a wide variety of, certain
What padding looks like
Today’s edition is full of exact counts: the tribunal rules cover 16 tribunals and appellate bodies, the 2025 pact relocated seven camps, Transporter-18 carried 130 payloads, three of them Indian. Answers often blur such facts into a quantifier that says only "more than one": "a number of tribunals", "various payloads", "a wide variety of different groups". The phrase takes up words and hides the fact you know.
Why it costs marks
In a 150-word answer, a figure is evidence and a quantifier is not. "A large number of" is four words that tell the examiner less than one number would. Oxford gives various as "several different", so various different says the same thing twice.
Fix it in three steps
- Find the quantifier: a number of, a large number of, various, a wide variety of, several different, certain.
- Replace it with the number or the names from your notes.
- Check that the claim is no wider and no narrower than before. If you do not know the number, use one honest word, many or several, not a padded phrase.
Worked example. Start: "The new rules will apply to a large number of tribunals and appellate bodies." (13 words). Find: a large number of. Replace: "The new rules will apply to 16 tribunals and appellate bodies." (10 words). Check: same rules, same bodies, now with the count.
Before and after
| Padded | Plain | Words saved |
|---|---|---|
| The new rules will apply to a large number of tribunals and appellate bodies. (13) | The new rules will apply to 16 tribunals and appellate bodies. (10) | 3 |
| Under the 2025 ground rules, a number of designated camps were to be relocated. (14) | Under the 2025 ground rules, seven designated camps were to be relocated. (12) | 2 |
| A wide variety of different Indian payloads flew on Transporter-18. (10) | Three Indian payloads flew on Transporter-18. (6) | 4 |
| Various different groups, including Meitei and Naga bodies, want the pact abrogated. (12) | Meitei and Naga bodies want the pact abrogated. (8) | 4 |
| A large number of payloads, of many different kinds, rode on the mission. (13) | The mission carried 130 payloads. (5) | 8 |
When not to cut
Keep a quantifier when the number is unknown or disputed: sources differ on how many groups the SoO covers, so "about two dozen groups" is the honest phrase. Keep several or many when the point is plurality and a long list would bury it. And certain is right where you mean "particular but unnamed" on purpose, as in "certain provisions were struck down" in a summary that names them in the next sentence.
Try it in your answer
Cut this sentence on today’s GIB story: "A large number of bustards, around 98 in all, have been raised at a number of breeding centres in Jaisalmer." The model is in the exercises.
From the roundup (16 tribunals and appellate bodies; 130 payloads, three Indian) and the Manipur deep dive (seven camps), written as they might appear in an answer.
6 · Correct usage
despite, in spite of: never despite of
two correct forms, one common hybrid
Verdict: Error
What people write
"Despite of a valid visa, she was refused entry." "Inspite of the ruling, the pact lapsed." "Despite of being injured, the captain opened the door."
What to write instead
"Despite a valid visa, she was refused entry." "In spite of the ruling, the pact lapsed." "Despite his injuries, the captain opened the door." Today’s cockpit write-up has it right: "captain Smit Machchhar reopened the door despite serious injuries."
Why
Oxford lists despite as a preposition: it takes its object directly. The phrase with of is in spite of, three words, listed under spite. "Despite of" mixes the two and is wrong in British, American and Indian standard English alike. Inspite as one word is also wrong. Despite the fact that is correct but wordy; although does the same work in one word.
A quick test
Count the words: despite stands alone; in spite of always comes as three. If you have of after despite, delete it.
In your answer
"Despite holding a valid visa, the petitioner had no enforceable right to enter India." "In spite of the pact’s lapse, its camps and weapons arrangements remain in place."
From the cockpit write-up, which uses despite correctly ("reopened the door despite serious injuries"), and the way answers on today’s stories are often written.
7 · Idioms in answers
facts on the ground
the situation as it actually stands, often one created before a decision is made
Today’s write-up of the Hindu lead on a divided Supreme Court has a section headed "Delay creates facts on the ground": by the time the challenge to the Election Commission appointments law is decided, "commissioners appointed under the law will have overseen many elections." Wiktionary gives the idiom as the situation in reality as opposed to in the abstract, and notes a narrower use for a presence on the ground that makes a dispute moot. The second sense is the one in the lead: delay lets the law become a settled reality before anyone rules on it.
The family
| Expression | What it means | Plain equivalent | Register |
|---|---|---|---|
| facts on the ground | the situation as it actually is, often created to settle a dispute in practice | the situation as it now stands | neutral; common in diplomacy and journalism |
| fait accompli | something that has already happened or been done and that you cannot change (Oxford) | an accomplished fact | formal, from French |
| a done deal | an agreement finally settled; an established fact that cannot be undone (Wiktionary) | a settled matter | informal |
Where to use it
| Setting | Use it? | How |
|---|---|---|
| GS answer, introduction | No | Open with the fact: the challenge was filed in 2024 and two judges split on 23 September 2026. |
| GS answer, body | With care | Once, after the fact it sums up: "commissioners appointed under the law will oversee several elections first, creating facts on the ground". |
| GS answer, conclusion | With care | Only if the body has shown the delay; otherwise "before the law is tested" is plainer. |
| Essay | Yes | One or two in the essay; it can frame a section on delay and justice if the next sentence explains it. |
| Ethics case study | No | State the action plainly: "I would seek an early hearing before the matter is settled in practice." |
| Interview | Yes | Spoken register: one natural use is fine. |
| Précis and the compulsory English paper | No | None in a précis; in that paper’s essay, as for any essay. |
Model sentences
"The petitioners have been in court since 2024, and commissioners appointed under the 2023 law will oversee several elections before it is tested; delay is creating facts on the ground." The same point in plain words for a GS answer: "By the time the court rules, the law will already have shaped several elections."
Don’t confuse
Ground truth is information gathered by direct observation rather than inference (Wiktionary), as in checking a satellite map in the field; it was the key term on 26 September. And on the ground alone simply means in the place where things are happening: "officials on the ground".
From the Hindu lead on a divided Court: "Delay creates facts on the ground."
Worksheet
Every exercise from the session, on paper. Answers are folded under each one; the online session marks them for you and keeps your score.
Word roots · logos: word, speech, reason
-
Fill the blank Circle the letter that completes the sentence.
Pilots undergo a ___ assessment at hiring, but it is only a snapshot of their state of mind.
- physiological
- ideological
- psychological
- logistical
Answer
psychological. Psychological concerns the mind; physiological concerns how the body works, ideological concerns beliefs, and logistical concerns supply and movement.
-
Fill the blank Circle the letter that completes the sentence.
The El Niño editorial wants field-level monitoring of ___ stress in forests, wetlands and reefs.
- economical
- ecological
- ideological
- psychological
Answer
ecological. Ecological stress is stress on living systems and their environment. Economical means thrifty, a different word from economic.
-
Find the error Circle it in the sentence below, then write the correction.
Find the word that names the wrong discipline.
A Class 1 medical checks a pilot's ideology, not psychology.
Answer
ideology, → physiology,. The medical checks physiology, how the body works. Ideology is a set of beliefs, which the cockpit column says screening does not test.
-
Match the pairs Write the letter from the right against each number on the left.
Match each word to its literal sense.
- dialogue
- apology
- ecology
- physiology
- a speech in defence
- study of nature
- study of the household of nature
- speech between people
Answer
- dialogue: speech between people
- apology: a speech in defence
- ecology: study of the household of nature
- physiology: study of nature
Online Etymology Dictionary: dia + legein; apo + logos; oikos + -logia; physis + -logia.
-
Choose one Circle the letter of the correct option.
Which of these words does NOT come from Greek logos?
- catalogue
- logistics
- prologue
- chronology
Answer
logistics. Logistics comes from French logis, lodging. Catalogue (kata + legein), prologue (pro + logos) and chronology (chrono- + -logy) all go back to the logos family.
-
Choose one Circle the letter of the correct option.
What does the suffix -logy usually signal in a word such as climatology?
- a fear of the subject named
- a measurement of it in numbers
- a government office for it
- the study of the subject named
Answer
the study of the subject named. -logy, from Greek -logia, means the study of: climatology is the study of climate. A fear is -phobia; a measurement is -metry.
Look-alike words · abrogate / arrogate
-
Fill the blank Circle the letter that completes the sentence.
Meitei and Naga groups want the Centre to ___ the Suspension of Operations pact.
- abrogate
- derogate
- arrogate
- abdicate
Answer
abrogate. To abrogate is to officially end an agreement. Arrogate means to seize a right, derogate means to depart from in part, and abdicate means to give up a throne or a duty.
-
Fill the blank Circle the letter that completes the sentence.
Critics accused the regulator of trying to ___ to itself powers that Parliament had never given it.
- allocate
- arrogate
- aggregate
- abrogate
Answer
arrogate. Arrogate to itself is the fixed pattern for claiming a power without right (Oxford). Abrogate would mean ending the powers, the opposite.
-
Find the error Circle it in the sentence below, then write the correction.
Find the word that says the wrong thing.
The groups want the Centre to arrogate the pact it signed in 2025.
Answer
arrogate → abrogate. Ending an agreement is abrogating it. Arrogating would mean seizing it, which makes no sense for a pact the Centre already signed.
-
Match the pairs Write the letter from the right against each number on the left.
Match each verb to its meaning.
- abrogate
- arrogate
- derogate
- abdicate
- depart from an obligation in part
- give up a position or a duty
- claim a right one does not have
- officially end a law or agreement
Answer
- abrogate: officially end a law or agreement
- arrogate: claim a right one does not have
- derogate: depart from an obligation in part
- abdicate: give up a position or a duty
Oxford senses; derogate as used in Article 4 of the ICCPR.
-
Choose one Circle the letter of the correct option.
Which question settles abrogate or arrogate?
- Is the sentence about law or about politics?
- Is something being ended, or being taken?
- Is the subject a person or a government?
- Is the writer using British or American English?
Answer
Is something being ended, or being taken?. Abrogate ends a law or agreement; arrogate takes a power or right. The subject, the field and the variety of English do not decide it.
-
Choose one Circle the letter of the correct option.
'The minister abrogated his responsibility' uses abrogate in which sense?
- failed to carry out a duty
- claimed a duty without right
- carried out a duty in part
- transferred a duty to an aide
Answer
failed to carry out a duty. Oxford’s second sense of abrogate is to fail to carry out a responsibility or duty. It is formal; neglect or abdicate are commoner.
Word partners · the verbs of the border: issued, admitted, refused entry, registered, removed
-
Fill the blank Circle the letter that completes the sentence.
The business visa had been ___ by the Indian Embassy in Ashgabat.
- removed
- issued
- registered
- admitted
Answer
issued. A visa is issued or granted. A person is admitted or registered, and a person, not a visa, is removed.
-
Fill the blank Circle the letter that completes the sentence.
Under Section 3, no foreigner shall be allowed to enter India if found ___ on grounds such as national security.
- unregistered
- inadmissible
- unlawful
- ineligible to vote
Answer
inadmissible. Inadmissible is the Act’s own word for a person barred from entry. Registration happens after arrival, under Section 6.
-
Put in order Number the lines 1 upward in the correct order.
Arrange the steps in the order the Act sets them out for a foreigner refused at the airport.
- visa issued abroad
- entry refused
- found inadmissible by the Immigration Officer
- handed to the carrier for removal
- arrival at the immigration counter
Answer
- visa issued abroad
- arrival at the immigration counter
- found inadmissible by the Immigration Officer
- entry refused
- handed to the carrier for removal
Issue comes before arrival; the Immigration Officer’s finding leads to refusal; Section 17(9) then makes the carrier responsible for removal.
-
Match the pairs Write the letter from the right against each number on the left.
Match each step to the section of the 2025 Act.
- register on arrival
- prohibit, regulate or restrict entry
- entry refused, carrier removes
- Centre directs removal
- Section 29
- Section 6
- Section 17(9)
- Section 7
Answer
- register on arrival: Section 6
- prohibit, regulate or restrict entry: Section 7
- entry refused, carrier removes: Section 17(9)
- Centre directs removal: Section 29
The Immigration and Foreigners Act, 2025 as printed in the Gazette of India.
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Choose one Circle the letter of the correct option.
Which word does the 2025 Act itself use for making a foreigner leave India?
- extradition
- removal
- repatriation
- deportation
Answer
removal. Section 29 lets the Centre direct the removal of a foreigner. Deport is the everyday word; extradition is surrender to another State for trial, and repatriation is return to one’s own country, often voluntary.
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Find the error Circle it in the sentence below, then write the correction.
Find the word that uses the wrong verb.
Her husband was issued at the airport, but she was refused entry.
Answer
issued → admitted. A person is admitted at the border; a visa is issued. The husband was admitted into India.
Today's key term · repugnancy
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Choose one Circle the letter of the correct option.
In 'the State law is void to the extent of repugnancy', what does repugnancy mean?
- failure to receive the Governor’s assent
- a feeling of strong dislike for the law
- conflict with a central law on the same subject
- a breach of a fundamental right
Answer
conflict with a central law on the same subject. In Article 254 repugnancy is legal conflict. Oxford’s everyday sense, strong dislike, does not apply; assent and fundamental rights are separate questions.
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Fill the blank Circle the letter that completes the sentence.
A State law repugnant to a central law can still prevail in the State if it is reserved for and receives the assent of the ___.
- Election Commission
- Governor
- President
- Chief Justice of India
Answer
President. Article 254(2) requires reservation for the President’s consideration and the President’s assent. The Governor reserves the Bill under Article 200 but cannot give the assent that saves it.
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Choose one Circle the letter of the correct option.
Article 254 applies to conflicts on which subjects?
- those in the Union List only
- any subject in the Seventh Schedule
- those in the Concurrent List
- those in the State List only
Answer
those in the Concurrent List. Article 254 is about laws on Concurrent List matters. Conflicts across the Union and State Lists are settled under Article 246 and pith and substance.
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Match the pairs Write the letter from the right against each number on the left.
Match each provision to its effect.
- Article 254(1)
- Article 254(2)
- proviso to 254(2)
- Article 246
- central law prevails
- distribution of legislative subjects
- assented State law prevails in that State
- Parliament may later repeal it
Answer
- Article 254(1): central law prevails
- Article 254(2): assented State law prevails in that State
- proviso to 254(2): Parliament may later repeal it
- Article 246: distribution of legislative subjects
The Constitution’s text for Articles 246 and 254.
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Find the error Circle it in the sentence below, then write the correction.
Find the word that misstates the rule.
Under Article 254(1), a repugnant State law is void in full.
Answer
full. → part.. Article 254(1) makes the State law void only to the extent of the repugnancy, that is, in part, not in full.
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Choose one Circle the letter of the correct option.
According to Karunanidhi (1979), when are two laws repugnant?
- when one is longer than the other
- when one State objects to the other’s law
- when obeying one means disobeying the other
- when they were passed in different years
Answer
when obeying one means disobeying the other. The test is a clear, direct and irreconcilable conflict, or Parliament occupying the field. Dates, length and objections do not create repugnancy.
Cut the padding · the empty quantifier: a number of, various, a wide variety of
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Say it shorter Rewrite the sentence below within the word limit.
Cut the empty quantifiers in eleven words or fewer.
A large number of bustards, around 98 in all, have been raised at a number of breeding centres in Jaisalmer.
Word limit 11
Model
About 98 bustards have been raised at breeding centres in Jaisalmer. A large number of ... around 98 in all becomes about 98, and a number of centres becomes centres. No fact is added or lost; if your notes name them, two centres, Sam and Ramdevra, is better still.
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Say it shorter Rewrite the sentence below within the word limit.
Cut the doubled quantifier in eight words or fewer.
The rules have been framed for a number of various tribunals.
Word limit 8
Model
The rules have been framed for several tribunals. A number of various stacks two quantifiers; one word, several, carries the same claim. In a real answer, put in the count from your notes: 16.
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Find the error Circle it in the sentence below, then write the correction.
Find the word that says the same thing twice.
Various different groups have sought the pact's abrogation.
Answer
different → Meitei and Naga. Various already means several different (Oxford), so different repeats it. Naming the groups is better still: Various Meitei and Naga groups have sought the pact’s abrogation.
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Choose one Circle the letter of the correct option.
Which is the plainest accurate version?
- A wide variety of payloads, including various Indian ones, flew
- A number of different payloads, a few being Indian, flew
- The mission carried 130 payloads, three of them Indian
- The mission carried a large number of payloads, some Indian
Answer
The mission carried 130 payloads, three of them Indian. The figures carry the facts in fewer words. The others replace two known numbers with quantifiers.
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Match the pairs Write the letter from the right against each number on the left.
Match each padded phrase to its plain replacement.
- a large number of tribunals
- a number of camps
- various different groups
- a wide variety of Indian payloads
- 16 tribunals
- seven camps
- three Indian payloads
- Meitei and Naga groups
Answer
- a large number of tribunals: 16 tribunals
- a number of camps: seven camps
- various different groups: Meitei and Naga groups
- a wide variety of Indian payloads: three Indian payloads
Each quantifier gives way to the count or the names the edition already supplies.
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Choose one Circle the letter of the correct option.
When is a quantifier such as 'about two dozen' the right choice?
- When the answer is under its word limit
- When sources differ on the exact number
- When the number comes from a newspaper
- When the sentence would otherwise start with a figure
Answer
When sources differ on the exact number. An honest approximation is right when the figure is disputed, as with the groups under the SoO. Word limits and sources do not decide it; a sentence that would start with a figure is better reworded.
Correct usage · despite or in spite of, never despite of
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Find the error Circle it in the sentence below, then write the correction.
Find the words that need fixing.
Despite of a valid visa, she was refused entry.
Answer
Despite of → Despite. Despite takes its object directly: Despite a valid visa, she was refused entry.
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Fill the blank Circle the letter that completes the sentence.
___ the Supreme Court’s warning, references to Constitution Benches still wait for years.
- In spite
- Despite of
- Inspite of
- Despite
Answer
Despite. Despite stands alone. In spite needs of, and inspite is never one word.
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Fill the blank Circle the letter that completes the sentence.
In spite ___ the lapse of the pact, the designated camps remain.
- from
- with
- for
- of
Answer
of. In spite of is a fixed three-word phrase.
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Choose one Circle the letter of the correct option.
Which sentence is correct?
- Although the pact lapsed, the camps remain
- Despite of the pact lapsing, the camps remain
- In spite the pact lapsed, the camps remain
- Inspite the pact lapsed, the camps remain
Answer
Although the pact lapsed, the camps remain. Although introduces a clause. Despite of and inspite are errors, and in spite needs of and a noun phrase, not a clause.
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Match the pairs Write the letter from the right against each number on the left.
Match each form to the right use.
- despite
- in spite of
- although
- despite the fact that
- correct but wordy
- conjunction before a clause
- preposition with a direct object
- three-word phrase with an object
Answer
- despite: preposition with a direct object
- in spite of: three-word phrase with an object
- although: conjunction before a clause
- despite the fact that: correct but wordy
Oxford: despite is a preposition; in spite of is listed under spite; although joins a clause.
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Choose one Circle the letter of the correct option.
What is the quick test for 'despite'?
- If of follows despite, delete it
- If the verb is past tense, use in spite
- If the sentence is long, use although
- If the subject is plural, add of
Answer
If of follows despite, delete it. Despite never takes of. Sentence length, number and tense do not change that.
Idioms in answers · facts on the ground
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Choose one Circle the letter of the correct option.
In 'delay creates facts on the ground', what is the writer’s point?
- the judges have visited the places concerned
- the law takes effect in practice before it is judged
- the facts of the case are not disputed
- the court is collecting evidence in the field
Answer
the law takes effect in practice before it is judged. The idiom means a settled situation in reality; here, appointments and elections under the law happen before any ruling. The other options read the phrase literally.
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Fill the blank Circle the letter that completes the sentence.
By the time the review began, the merger was a ___: the two firms had already combined their operations.
- fait accompli
- level playing field
- red herring
- ground truth
Answer
fait accompli. A fait accompli is something already done that cannot be changed (Oxford). Ground truth is observed data; the other two are unrelated idioms.
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Match the pairs Write the letter from the right against each number on the left.
Match each expression to its meaning.
- facts on the ground
- fait accompli
- a done deal
- ground truth
- something done that cannot be changed
- the situation as it actually stands
- a matter already settled
- data from direct observation
Answer
- facts on the ground: the situation as it actually stands
- fait accompli: something done that cannot be changed
- a done deal: a matter already settled
- ground truth: data from direct observation
Oxford for fait accompli; Wiktionary for the others.
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Choose one Circle the letter of the correct option.
Which placement follows the house style for a GS answer?
- In the first sentence, to set the tone
- In the conclusion of every answer
- Once, after the fact it sums up
- Twice, to frame and to close
Answer
Once, after the fact it sums up. At most one idiom in a GS answer, never in the first sentence, and only after the fact it sums up.
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Choose one Circle the letter of the correct option.
Which plain sentence says the same as 'delay is creating facts on the ground'?
- The court has refused to hear the case at all
- The facts of the dispute have been agreed
- The law is shaping events before the court rules on it
- The law has been struck down by two judges
Answer
The law is shaping events before the court rules on it. The idiom points to effects that become settled while the case waits. The others misstate what happened.
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Find the error Circle it in the sentence below, then write the correction.
Find the phrase that confuses two expressions.
Surveyors collected facts on the ground to check the satellite map.
Answer
facts on the ground → ground truth. Data gathered in the field to check a map is ground truth. Facts on the ground is an idiom for the situation as it stands.
Reading in the CSAT shape
A passage quoted from A Court Divided by Its Own Architecture: Article 145(3), then inference questions on it.
The Supreme Court was designed as a guardian of the Constitution that would also hear appeals. Article 145(3) assumed constitutional questions would be heard by at least five judges, at a time when the Court had eight sanctioned judges. With 38 judges today, the Court sits largely in Benches of two, mostly hearing special leave petitions.
Three consequences follow. First, inconsistency: when Benches of two or three decide constitutional questions, the Court speaks in many voices, and the doctrine of stare decisis weakens. Second, delay: references to Constitution Benches can wait years, as in Anoop Baranwal, filed in 2015, referred in 2018 and decided in 2023, so that by the time a law is tested it has already shaped events. Third, power over listing: the Chief Justice as Master of the Roster decides which judges hear which case, which can shape outcomes.
The aim is a Court that settles constitutional questions while their answers still matter.
Which of the following can be most validly inferred from the passage?
- Benches of two are barred from deciding constitutional questions
- The Court’s present working differs from what its design assumed
- Most special leave petitions raise constitutional questions
- The Court should reduce its number of judges
Answer
The Court’s present working differs from what its design assumed. The passage contrasts the five-judge assumption of Article 145(3) with today’s two-judge Benches. The second is too extreme (the passage says only that such Benches decide constitutional questions, with costs), the third is not stated, and the fourth goes beyond the passage.
The claim that delay lets a law shape events before it is tested rests on which assumption?
- Larger Benches always decide cases faster than small ones
- A challenged law keeps operating while it awaits a ruling
- Every law challenged before the Court is unconstitutional
- Petitioners usually withdraw cases that are delayed
Answer
A challenged law keeps operating while it awaits a ruling. The argument works only if a challenged law keeps operating in the meantime. The second is too extreme, the third is not claimed, and the fourth is outside the passage.
Which of the following best captures the crux of the passage?
- Special leave petitions should be abolished altogether
- Anoop Baranwal was wrongly decided by the Court
- The Chief Justice should give up the power to list cases
- The Court’s structure weakens timely, consistent constitutional rulings
Answer
The Court’s structure weakens timely, consistent constitutional rulings. The passage moves from the gap between design and practice to three consequences and the aim of timely answers. The second and third are remedies it does not propose, and the fourth judges a case it uses only as an example of delay.
Which reform is most consistent with the passage?
- Raising the number of judges again to hear more appeals
- Letting two-judge Benches overrule five-judge Benches
- Constitution Benches formed by clear rules that decide references quickly
- Moving constitutional questions to the High Courts
Answer
Constitution Benches formed by clear rules that decide references quickly. The passage identifies inconsistency, delay and listing power as the problems; timely Constitution Benches formed by clear rules answer all three. More judges for appeals deepens the drift it describes, overruling larger Benches weakens stare decisis, and the fourth is outside its scope.
What is the main message of the passage?
- Five-judge Benches always produce the correct answer
- The number of judges is the main cause of the Court’s problems
- Constitutional questions must be settled while the answers still matter
- The Supreme Court should stop hearing appeals from lower courts
Answer
Constitutional questions must be settled while the answers still matter. The closing line states the aim. The second is too extreme, the third mistakes one factor for the cause, and the fourth claims more than the passage does.
Writing task · Should a traveller refused entry be told why?
In no more than 100 words, argue whether a foreign national refused entry at an Indian airport should receive written reasons. Use at least one of today’s verbs of the border (issued, admitted, refused, registered, removed or removal), and avoid empty quantifiers (a number of, various) and despite of.
Weekly answer clinic
An accurate electoral roll and an inclusive one can pull in different directions. Examine the safeguards needed so that a revision of the rolls does not disenfranchise eligible voters. (150 words) (150 words; from Obstacle Race: SIR and Universal Adult Franchise). Use at least 5 words from this week’s glossaries. Open with the constitutional base, not the controversy: Article 326 gives every adult citizen the vote, Article 325 forbids exclusion from the roll on grounds of religion, race, caste or sex, and Article 324 puts the rolls under the Election Commission. Then state the tension in one sentence: a roll must drop the dead, the duplicated and the shifted, but every wrongful deletion costs a citizen a vote that cannot be restored after polling day. Give four safeguards, one sentence each. Who bears the onus: the state should verify with its own records before asking the elector to prove eligibility. Notice and a hearing before deletion, with the reason recorded. Easy restoration: a wrongly deleted name should return automatically, not through a fresh Form 6. Collective decision: changes to forms and procedure should follow the rules and be taken by the full Commission. Use one example from the week, such as bulk Form 7 objections or the safeguards the Supreme Court required when it upheld the revision on 27 May 2026. Close on the principle: inclusion is the default, and exclusion must be proved. Avoid two failure modes: reciting deletion figures without a safeguard, and treating any revision as illegitimate.
Companion to Vocab Builder (what a word scores in a GS answer) and Key Terms. Wordcraft is the language itself.
