The National Stock Exchange (NSE) was founded at the turn of 1990s as the nation’s economy was set to bloom under major economic reforms. Its founders did leverage technology, being the first dematerialised electronic exchange in the country providing a modern, fully automated screen-based electronic trading system that eased the trading process for investors. In terms of number of trades, it is ranked fourth in the world in cash equities.

The ongoing scandal in its mode of governance could be out of personal aberrations of its chief, but the greater concern ought to be over the system’s failure to embed avant-garde internal checks and balances as also the inadequacy in oversight by external regulators. We are overdue for a 30-year cycle of major reforms. The current technical and forensic audit must thus see beyond the endemics of the NSE, to revisit and retune systems in every major financial institution, to be in readiness to absorb the gush of affluence. In the march of technology, the likes of Bitcoin transactions and others will keep invading. Exchange platforms would need to be structured with care and foresight.

R Narayanan

Navi Mumbai

Ukraine crisis

By recognising two separatists regions in Ukraine as independent states, Russian President Vladimir Putin had thrown the gauntlet down to the diplomatic efforts , mostly being spearheaded by French and German Presidents to de-escalate the mounting military tensions between the West and Russia over Ukraine. With US led Western powers likely to impose impose economic sanctions, the spectre of military invasion of Ukraine by Russia appears imminent with its potential debilitating ramifications on global peace and stability.

M Jeyaram

Sholavandan, TN

Customer-friendly officials

The point the Finance Minister made about banks to be more customer-friendly is well taken. However, the problem lies on all sides. When bank officials are held responsible for bad loans and no incentive given when loans are repaid, who would want to take the risk? A borrower is made to go through endless procedures, that makes him wonder how on earth are banks defrauded for thousands of crores when for a loan of some lakhs he has to go through many procedures meant for the safety of the bank loans.

Why limit the question to banks alone. All government offices too should learn to be people-friendly. Digitisation may have helped in making life a little easier, but in most matters citizens are made to feel that they are being done a huge favour for services rendered which the citizen could claim as a matter of right.

Anthony Henriques

Mumbai

Investor awareness

This refers to ‘Sustaining the retail boom in capital markets’ (February 22). Strengthened by IT tools and easy compliance with the market mechanism, retail investors are thronging the market with investments especially in the pandemic-based market. But the herd instinct-boosted retail entry of investors are not backed by knowledge on the market. Once they lose their investment in speculative trades, they may quit the market.

Regular training to investors through symposiums, seminars and workshops will help them understand the market better.

NR Nagarajan

Sivakasi, TN

Education policy

This refers to ‘Budget will help implement National Education Policy’’ (February 22). One of the main problems with our education system is that it encourages rote learning without giving any scope for innovation. A student’s intelligence is judged by the marks he/she obtains in examinations. At the school level itself, children should be segregated on the basis of their interests and trained accordingly. Many students may be bad at academics but good at arts, crafts, etc.

We should develop an education system where leadership qualities, entrepreneurship, and rational thinking should be encouraged at the school level. Teachers shape our future leaders and citizens and hence only those who are well-trained with high integrity and commitment should be appointed as teachers. It is unfortune that India, which in ancient times was considered as the centre of learning, does not have a single university in the top 200 list globally.

Veena Shenoy

Thane

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