2007年VOA标准英语-Shopkeepers Oppose Wal-Mart Entry Into India

By Anjana Pasricha
New Delhi
11 August 2007

The American retail¹ giant Wal-Mart has announced that it will build wholesale² outlets⁴ in India in collaboration⁵ with an Indian partner.  Anjana Pasricha reports from New Delhi that the arrival of large retailers⁶ like Wal-Mart is being opposed by small shopkeepers, who dominate the country's retail sector⁷.    

activists9 hold anti Wal-mart placards at a protest in New Delhi, India, 22 Feb. 2007 (file photo)" hspace="2" src="/upimg/allimg/070817/1115480.jpg" width="210" vspace="2" border="0" />

Indian activists hold anti Wal-mart placards at a protest in New Delhi, India, 22 Feb. 2007 (file photo)

Sukh Pal¹⁰ and Jagdish Chauhan put up their vegetable stalls on a pavement in a South Delhi residential¹¹ area every evening along with other vendors¹², selling fresh produce to people on their way home from work.

But both men are worried. They say the flow of customers is steadily¹³ diminishing. 

Their customers are heading instead to the city's newly opened supermarkets. People like Neema Eidnani, 45, say they enjoy the convenience of shopping under a single roof for vegetables, groceries and other items.

"The atmosphere is cleaner, there is air-conditioning, and everything is packaged well, and prices are as competitive," she said.

Millions of affluent¹⁴, middle-class customers like Eidnani have prompted the U.S.-based retail giant, Wal-Mart, to try to gain a foothold in the $300 billion Indian retail market.

Wal-Mart announced recently that it would build 15 large wholesale outlets over the next seven years in partnership¹⁵ with the Indian group Bharti Enterprises. The first outlet³ will open next year.

Wal-Mart is entering as a wholesaler¹⁶, because Indian law does not allow multi-brand foreign retailers to sell directly to consumers.

Still, the arrival of retail giants like Wal-Mart is unnerving to the estimated 12 million mom-and-pop stores and the tens of thousands of hawkers who traditionally dominate the retail sector in India. 

Just days after Wal-Mart announced plans, an alliance of left-wing groups, trade unions and small shop owners launched a countrywide protest movement.  The movement's aim is to keep the large multinational¹⁷ retailers out of India.

In a rally held in a bustling¹⁸ New Delhi market recently, hundreds of protesters carried signs such as "Go home Wal-Mart."  They burnt an effigy¹⁹ of a demon²⁰ inscribed²¹ with names of international supermarket groups.

Activist⁸ Vandana Shiva is on the frontline of these protests. She says the multinationals²² threaten the livelihoods²³ of millions of people in India.

"They will do extra damage in India, because we have such a large population involved in retail," she said.  "Forty million people directly, a 100 million people backing them up through loading, cleaning, packing etc.  This is about destroying livelihoods, not creating employment."

Wal-Mart is trying to allay²⁴ such fears. The head of the company in India, Raj Jain, says their cash-and-carry outlets will create more business, as they will sell locally produced goods to Indian retailers.            

"On the supply side, we will source 90 percent of all our products from local manufacturers and farmers, helping²⁵ them improve quality [and] productivity as well as providing direct linkage²⁶ to business customers," he noted²⁷.

But such assurances have not persuaded the hawkers and small-scale retailers.  The protests continue.

India's retail sector is an attractive one.  It is growing at an estimated 20 percent a year, and many Indian companies have already made large investments in order to grab a piece of the expanding business.

1 retail   

v./n.零售；adv.以零售价格

参考例句：

• In this shop they retail tobacco and sweets.这家铺子零售香烟和糖果。
• These shoes retail at 10 yuan a pair.这些鞋子零卖10元一双。

2 wholesale   

n.批发；adv.以批发方式；vt.批发，成批出售

参考例句：

• The retail dealer buys at wholesale and sells at retail.零售商批发购进货物，以零售价卖出。
• Such shoes usually wholesale for much less.这种鞋批发出售通常要便宜得多。

3 outlet   

n.出口/路；销路；批发商店；通风口；发泄

参考例句：

• The outlet of a water pipe was blocked.水管的出水口堵住了。
• Running is a good outlet for his energy.跑步是他发泄过剩精力的好方法。

4 outlets   

n.出口( outlet的名词复数 )；经销店；插座；廉价经销店

参考例句：

• The dumping of foreign cotton blocked outlets for locally grown cotton. 外国棉花的倾销阻滞了当地生产的棉花的销路。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• They must find outlets for their products. 他们必须为自己的产品寻找出路。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

5 collaboration   

n.合作，协作；勾结

参考例句：

• The two companies are working in close collaboration each other.这两家公司密切合作。
• He was shot for collaboration with the enemy.他因通敌而被枪毙了。

6 retailers   

零售商，零售店( retailer的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• High street retailers reported a marked increase in sales before Christmas. 商业街的零售商报告说圣诞节前销售量显著提高。
• Retailers have a statutory duty to provide goods suitable for their purpose. 零售商有为他们提供符合要求的货品的法定义务。

7 sector   

n.部门，部分；防御地段，防区；扇形

参考例句：

• The export sector will aid the economic recovery. 出口产业将促进经济复苏。
• The enemy have attacked the British sector.敌人已进攻英国防区。

8 activist   

n.活动分子，积极分子

参考例句：

• He's been a trade union activist for many years.多年来他一直是工会的积极分子。
• He is a social activist in our factory.他是我厂的社会活动积极分子。

9 activists   

n.（政治活动的）积极分子，活动家( activist的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• His research work was attacked by animal rights activists . 他的研究受到了动物权益维护者的抨击。
• Party activists with lower middle class pedigrees are numerous. 党的激进分子中有很多出身于中产阶级下层。 来自《简明英汉词典》

10 pal   

n.朋友，伙伴，同志；vi.结为友

参考例句：

• He is a pal of mine.他是我的一个朋友。
• Listen,pal,I don't want you talking to my sister any more.听着，小子，我不让你再和我妹妹说话了。

11 residential   

adj.提供住宿的；居住的；住宅的

参考例句：

• The mayor inspected the residential section of the city.市长视察了该市的住宅区。
• The residential blocks were integrated with the rest of the college.住宿区与学院其他部分结合在了一起。

12 vendors   

n.摊贩( vendor的名词复数 )；小贩；（房屋等的）卖主；卖方

参考例句：

• The vendors were gazundered at the last minute. 卖主在最后一刻被要求降低房价。
• At the same time, interface standards also benefIt'software vendors. 同时，界面标准也有利于软件开发商。 来自About Face 3交互设计精髓

13 steadily   

adv.稳定地；不变地；持续地

参考例句：

• The scope of man's use of natural resources will steadily grow.人类利用自然资源的广度将日益扩大。
• Our educational reform was steadily led onto the correct path.我们的教学改革慢慢上轨道了。

14 affluent   

adj.富裕的，富有的，丰富的，富饶的

参考例句：

• He hails from an affluent background.他出身于一个富有的家庭。
• His parents were very affluent.他的父母很富裕。

15 partnership   

n.合作关系，伙伴关系

参考例句：

• The company has gone into partnership with Swiss Bank Corporation.这家公司已经和瑞士银行公司建立合作关系。
• Martin has taken him into general partnership in his company.马丁已让他成为公司的普通合伙人。

16 wholesaler   

n.批发商

参考例句：

• We're the largest furniture wholesaler in Illinois. 我们是伊利诺伊州最大的家具批发商。 来自辞典例句
• These are used to create profiles for each wholesaler. 这是他日常的工作或通过与批发商的正式会谈。 来自互联网

17 multinational   

adj.多国的，多种国籍的；n.多国籍公司，跨国公司

参考例句：

• The firm was taken over by a multinational consulting firm.这家公司被一个跨国咨询公司收购。
• He analyzed the relationship between multinational corporations and under-developed countries.他分析了跨国公司和不发达国家之间的关系。

18 bustling   

adj.喧闹的

参考例句：

• The market was bustling with life. 市场上生机勃勃。
• This district is getting more and more prosperous and bustling. 这一带越来越繁华了。

19 effigy   

n.肖像

参考例句：

• There the effigy stands,and stares from age to age across the changing ocean.雕像依然耸立在那儿，千秋万载地凝视着那变幻无常的大海。
• The deposed dictator was burned in effigy by the crowd.群众焚烧退位独裁者的模拟像。

20 demon   

n.魔鬼，恶魔

参考例句：

• The demon of greed ruined the miser's happiness.贪得无厌的恶习毁掉了那个守财奴的幸福。
• He has been possessed by the demon of disease for years.他多年来病魔缠身。

21 inscribed   

v.写，刻( inscribe的过去式和过去分词 )；内接

参考例句：

• His name was inscribed on the trophy. 他的名字刻在奖杯上。
• The names of the dead were inscribed on the wall. 死者的名字被刻在墙上。 来自《简明英汉词典》

22 multinationals   

跨国公司( multinational的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• These local companies are only small fry compared with the huge multinationals. 同那些跨国公司比，这些当地的公司不过是小鱼小虾。
• Some people believe that the multinationals have too much power. 有人认为跨国公司的权力太大了。

23 livelihoods   

生计，谋生之道( livelihood的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• First came the earliest individualistic pioneers who depended on hunting and fishing for their livelihoods. 走在最前面的是早期的个人主义先驱者，他们靠狩猎捕鱼为生。 来自英汉非文学 - 政府文件
• With little influence over policies, their traditional livelihoods are threatened. 因为马赛族人对政策的影响力太小，他们的传统生计受到了威胁。

24 allay   

v.消除，减轻(恐惧、怀疑等)

参考例句：

• The police tried to allay her fears but failed.警察力图减轻她的恐惧，但是没有收到什么效果。
• They are trying to allay public fears about the spread of the disease.他们正竭力减轻公众对这种疾病传播的恐惧。

25 helping   

n.食物的一份&adj.帮助人的，辅助的

参考例句：

• The poor children regularly pony up for a second helping of my hamburger. 那些可怜的孩子们总是要求我把我的汉堡包再给他们一份。
• By doing this, they may at times be helping to restore competition. 这样一来, 他在某些时候,有助于竞争的加强。

26 linkage   

n.连接；环节

参考例句：

• In their monographic treatment of linkage,they have emphasized this especially.他们在论连锁的专题文章中特别强调了这点。
• Occasionally,problems with block inheritance or linkage are encountered.有时会遇到区段遗传或连锁问题。

27 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。