This is with reference to ‘Still too many children are out of school’ by Oommen C Kurian (October 29). Since the introduction of Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan in 2006, the government has committed huge funds to make education available to all. But if the statistics are so dismal, clearly there are defects in the programme or the States are not diligent in implementing it.

Further, coverage cannot be ensured with external assistance alone, it also depends upon people’s attitudes. For instance, sometimes children drop out to assist their parents at home or in some economic activity, girls are forced to support the family, many Muslim families don’t send their children to school. Civil society also must cooperate to bring awareness to members of society about the importance of education. Only if enrolment is 100 per cent can the Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan be successful, otherwise it amounts to splurging funds without fixing a goal.

RK Arya

Faridabad, Haryana

Get creative, India

The editorial, ‘It’s time for Africa’ (October 29) was an interesting analysis. India has tremendous scope to harness commercial and diplomatic connections with African nations, but is found wanting in initiatives. For instance, it was disappointing that South Africa voted against India’s permanent membership in the Security Council. India’s diplomatic skills are yet to be appropriately honed.

India’s business bodies must be incentivised to have one-to-one agreements. India should not worry about the entrenched participation of developed countries. India has to significantly recast its regional and bilateral approaches with periodical reviews to inspire confidence among the African nations.

B Rajasekaran

Bengaluru

Put black money in industry

It is common knowledge that every company has ‘double entry book-keeping’, a euphemism for good accounting practice misused in the Indian context, for black money accounting. Perhaps the best way to put this money to good use would be to offer free use of this unaccounted money only for setting up an industry, with the lowest investment at ₹1 lakh, without any upper limit. If the venture succeeds, employment is generated; if it fails, then at least the money comes into circulation. It is evident that in real estate deals, black money plays an important role, then why not in industry? No incentives need be offered at all.

Gadepalli Subrahmanyam

Vizianagaram, Andhra Pradesh

Shocking statement

This refers to ‘Food security without tears’ by Hemant Shivakumar and Shiva C Sharma (October 29). After the surge in onion prices we have been witnessing sky rocketing prices of pulses, so we will have to resort to importing from South Asian neighbours to cool down the prices. There is no guarantee the same will not happen in future. In this context, it is shocking to find the CEA saying our trade growth with South Asian countries is not a priority. Improving SPS infrastructure should be top priority.

Bal Govind

Noida, Uttar Pradesh  

We need transparency

This refers to ‘Foreign flight’ by MY Khan (October 28). India’s domestic saving is about 30-32 per cent of our GDP with the potential to reach 35-36 per cent. This is enough to meet our investment requirement to achieve 7-8 per cent growth rate given our incremental capital-output ratio 4-4.5. Then why are we so crazy about FIIs, giving them more incentives than they deserve? Our problem is to channelise domestic savings into productive investments by creating a stable, transparent and economical equity market and robust corporate bond market. As far as the equity market is concern, SEBI is going all-out to make it a transparent and reliable investment platform. But to provide a robust corporate bond market, government intervention is required.

Trupti Goyal

Jodhpur, Rajasthan

Stark reality of education

‘Still too many children out of school’ (October 29) by Oommen C Kurian is a sad commentary on the priorities of our education policymakers. A cause analysis together with ABC analysis of such high numbers would be helpful in rectifying the obstacles beyond poverty and access to schools. Is it not worrisome that we do not have a reliable measure of this sad state of our education system, making course correction more difficult?

YG Chouksey

Pune

Get them to volunteer

This refers to ‘Inflation indicator’ by R Srinivasan (From the Viewsroom, October 29). Our education and examination systems are not producing students with holistic abilities. Take the instance of the IIT entrance exams. There is nothing wrong in conducting entrance tests but we need to give equal weightage to the charity time earned by our students. We should stipulate certain hours of volunteer work during their entire schooling for those applying to IIT with, say, 80 per cent in the board and entrance exams. By doing volunteer work from a young age, students will learn to work under a leader, work in a team, learn to communicate effectively, understand the community in which they live, and learn from many real life experiences things that books can’t teach. This will help develop students who will be responsible and productive citizens.

CR Arun

Email

Points to ponder

Arun Shourie’s comments on the NDA ought now to be less on the why of it and more on its import, as scientists too have joined creative intellectuals in voicing apprehensions over the skewed path our national ethos could be taking. Euphoric over its handsome win in 2014, the BJP took to doing things ‘differently’ than doing them better. That has led the party to dabble on the fringes and neglect the core. The cavalcade of elections leaves little time for it either to restructure the core inherited from the Congress or rein in distractors. Should the pattern continue, the bureaucracy, being a reflection of the government of the day, runs the risk of becoming indifferent to even an improved perception of the government later. A vitiated socio-political atmosphere can never be conducive to the growth paradigm, which abhors restrictions to freedom of thought and hence innovation and progress.

R Narayanan

Ghaziabad, Uttar Pradesh

Change or collapse

Secularism in India means equal treatment of all religions by the state. With the 42nd Amendment of the Constitution enacted in 1976, the Preamble to the Constitution asserted that India is a secular nation. However, neither the Constitution nor its laws define the relationship between religion and state. The laws implicitly require the state and its institutions to recognise and accept all religions. Further, the intention behind addition of the word ‘secular’ in the preamble was to underline the much felt necessity that people of India have freedom of religion, and the state treats all individuals as equal citizens regardless of their religion. Unfortunately, we are witnessing the sight of secularism degrading into religious chauvinism and casteism. When religious chauvinism and casteism take the upper hand, it is not good for a democracy and it hampers the stability of a government. The most recent happenings in the country call for an urgent course correction on the part of the concerned.

N Vijayagopalan

Thiruvananthapuram

Share the share

As a retail investor, I feel disappointed and deprived of risk-free earning opportunities present in good performing shares due to their high price. I would be happy if the regulator and companies put together a pricing and ownership formula that allows multiple owners for a share — for instance, if a group of 100 farmers can buy a share worth ₹30,000 by contributing ₹300 each, this will not only help poor people but also increase funding for all the companies.

Vikram Sundaramurthy

Chennai

Let’s talk reservations

The issue of reservations in higher education institutes and courses has put the Supreme Court in a spot many times. Once again the court has reiterated its qualified opposition to reservation based on any criterion in the sector of higher education. The judgment came as the court allowed petitions filed by some MBBS doctors with respect to entrance exams of different States for courses like DM (Doctor of Medicine) and MCh (Master of Surgery/ Magister Chirurgiae ). This observation is definitely going to antagonise people who belong to the ‘reserved’ category.

In a less antagonistic political arrangement, there would be merit in the suggestion for a debate on phasing out the quota system in the highly-specialised courses. But, the current polarised atmosphere makes it a no-go zone. Of course, the power to take that call lies with the legislature, not the judiciary. Reservation is a complex issue, but we need not shy away from a discussion on how to make it an equitable arrangement. It is not necessary to agree with the court but it is beneficial to pay attention to the arguments it articulates.

JS Acharya

Hyderabad

Erratum

The photograph carried with the report ‘Oriental Bank mops up ₹1,000-crore capital’ was not of MD and CEO Animesh Chauhan but of Rajeev Rishi, CMD of Central Bank of India. The error is regretted.

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