It is appalling that a senior Congress leader undermines the national interest and spreads a dangerous message (‘Telangana police encouraging Muslim youth to join ISIS, May 2). Not only are these allegations malicious and baseless, casting aspersions on the Telangana police not only further dents the image of the Congress party but also is a national shame. Political leaders should be careful before making statements that could either flare up communal riots or undermine the national interest.

Jitendra G Kothari

Mumbai

No time for retribution

The mutilation of the bodies of two Indian soldiers by a Pakistani border action team must be unequivocally condemned as a barbaric act unworthy of men in uniform. The anger in India at the savagery is understandable. At the same time, the cry for retribution should not sway decision makers in New Delhi to match the provocation with overreaction. The grief of the families of the slain soldiers should dissuade the leadership from knee-jerk reactions resulting in similar grief for more families.

This is not to deny the Indian army’s capability to inflict more casualties on the Pakistani army. The simple point is that diplomacy is better than war. Humanity is far more important than nationality and religion. Nothing breeds peace like peace. As a stronger nation with inexhaustible moral courage, we have to keep our equanimity in the face of grave provocation. A full-scale war between two nuclear-armed powers spells disaster . The suggestion of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan for a multilateral dialogue to resolve the Kashmir issue has to be seen from this perspective.

G David Milton

Maruthancode, Tamil Nadu

We need determination

This is with reference to the edit, ‘Making payments pay’ (May 2).With 1.5 lakh post offices and dealing with around ₹6 lakh crore in annual savings, India Post caters to crores of people. All of them were brought under the digital platform. That enthusiasm for technological upgrade has lost steam. The training and skill upgrade of staff, vital in digital transactions, lacks both in funding and drive.

To step up to the expectations of banking operations, there ought to be a plan to extensively cover the manning, equipment and empowerment of all POs. The CIF number in an account book has little use as the signature of the customer is yet to be loaded on the central data platform. Thus the account remains captive in one location. The operation of debit cards could remain a dream. The advantage of India Post’s nationwaide coverage is lost. To realise the envisaged potential of POs, much toil and funding are required. Without putting the post bank in mission mode, customer enthusiasm will not take off. Either we abandon the idea of the post bank or determine to carry it through.

R Narayanan

Ghaziabad, Uttar Pradesh

Be a facilitator

This is with reference to ‘NPAs are a mess but not a lost cause’ by Ashima Goyal (May 2). NPAs of banks are backed by adequate security or by the provisions held by banks for the shortfall in securities. Out of the corporates that failed, businesses and assets have realisable values. With the thrust for Start-Up Stand-Up India, new ventures could realise latent potential. Cleaning up the mess and making NPAs workable units will be an attractive proposition.

For banks, proper resolution of NPAs will release substantial provisions which will go to boost the bottom line, besides improving capital adequacy, lending capacity and further business. The notion that all NPAs are irrecoverable and not realisable is wrong. The provisions are not cash outflows, they are held as reserves in the books of banks. NPA realisation need not be only through legal action and closure of businesses. It can be through redefining assets and take-over by potential entrepreneurs since the failed units will have the required statutory licences and infrastructure. This will be a win-win situation for banks and borrowers. Government should act as a facilitator and encourage intermediaries to act as catalysts to match the demand and supply.

S Veeraraghavan

Coimbatore

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