Make it count

This refers to the news item ‘SBI launches first homegrown economic index’ (December 10). The SBI Composite Index is said to be a robust indicator on macroeconomic variables such as credit demand, inflation and exchange rate along with service and manufacturing activities. It would be of interest to merchant bankers and brokerage firms dealing with securities in the capital market but has nothing to do with ordinary investors in India. To be really a robust and reliable index, the SBI needs to make a much greater effort to make it a leading indicator rather than lagging or coincidental to the business (economic) cycle.

S Lakshminarayanan

Cuddalore, Tamil Nadu

Farm loans misused

This is with reference to ‘Hard to spot genuine farm loan seekers”(December 10). Banks disburse around ₹6 lakh crore farm loans every year, a bulk of which is utilised by farmers for the purchase of two- and four-wheelers, construction of houses and meeting marriage expenses rather than the purchase of farm inputs.

If the entire farm loan were utilised on farm production, the contribution of agriculture to GDP would have been more than 40 per cent, not the present level of 17 per cent, and India would have achieved a GDP growth rate of over 12 per cent.

The mis-utilisation and diversification of the loans result in increasing inflation rather than growth in farm production, though it activates other sectors, especially manufacturing. Unless funds are genuinely utilised by the farming community, it will only add to the ever mounting NPAs of banks.

MA Khan

Chennai

Act, don’t over-react

As rightly observed in your editorial, ‘Uber-reaction’ (December 10), the government’s reaction is akin to shooting the messenger and throwing out the baby with the bathwater. If the yardstick applied by the government becomes commonly applicable, it would lead to the closing down of many ventures. Fraud, corruption and offences take place in different establishments and activities. Is closing them all down practicable and feasible?

Strict and undiluted enforcement of rules and regulations and deterrent punishments for their violation seem to be the most acceptable and sensible approach.

CG Kuriakose

Kothamangalam, Kerala

Release nutrients slowly

I agree with the point made about inefficient nutrient management in the soil highlighted in the article, “Reward efficiency in fertiliser production’ by R Mukundan (December 9) and the letter that followed. World over newer technologies for nitrification inhibitors such as DMPP and ENTEC are being used to increase nitrogen use efficiency in soil. NFT is used in advanced countries to recycle nutrients. Even countries like Malaysia have adopted this. But we have been trapped in urea, DAP, and complex applications we learned about in college. A revolution is taking place the world over in slow release technology and crop production. It’s time universities and research institutions took note of this instead of boosting inefficient fertiliser companies.

Unnikrishnan VM

Email

Public nuisance

I endorse what CPM State secretary Pinarayi Vijayan said about the Kiss of Love protest: “It is quite inappropriate to enact what a husband and wife do inside their bedroom in a public place.” With this statement DYFI comrades in Alappuzha are in a perplexed state as they are the sponsors of the next edition of the protest there. The protest is a public annoyance and it is the duty of the police to control it. The protestors equating their action to the Pope kissing a child or Mata Amritanandamayi hugging reveals ignorance.

KA Solaman

Alappuzha, Kerala

Erratum

With reference to the article titled ‘OnMobile declassifies ex-CEO, family members as promoters’ (December 4, 2013), Onmobile has denied that former CEO of OnMobile Global Chandramouli Janakiraman made a statement taking responsibility for weaknesses at the time of resignation as reported. The error is regretted.

Be seen as secular

‘Some patience, please, for acche din’ by Harsh Pati Singhania (December 10) throws light on the meaning of acche din . It is true that the present government has inherited a huge set of problems and systematic deficiencies. The problems are divergent and difficult. To solve these problems and keep the economy on track it will take some time. The need is to see whether the government is moving in its stated direction and is sincere in its objectives.

One important point the BJP has to keep in mind is it should not give the opposition parties the chance to brand them as non-secular party. The high expectations of the public and the present economic situation with moderate control on inflation and slow growth rate are making the government push through reforms. It is important to see that there is no direct or indirect influence of the RSS on government decisions.

TSN Rao

Bhimavaram, Andhra Pradesh

Our duty

The Bhagavad Gita is based on the theory of karma: do your duty without expectations. It is a good guide followed by many people across the world for their peaceful life, as all frustrations in life are due to our expectations. Sushma Swaraj’s suggestion that it be declared a national scripture is not acceptable for the simple reason that it is a question of faith/belief only. Though the Gita is not purely a religious book, it is related to the Hindu religion. India is a secular county. Let religion be kept out of controversial subjects.

M Kumar

New Delhi

Retrogade ban

The Home Ministry’s directive to ban all app-based cab services till they get a licence from the authorities is nothing short of retrograde. The app-based cab services have come as a boon to commuters by offering cheaper rides and banning them is not a solution to check violence against women. Instead the authorities should regulate these taxi services and set a month’s deadline to complete background checks and registration formalities. The voices of dissent emerging from the BJP camp questioning the wisdom of the decision only points to the futility of the move.

NJ Ravi Chander

Bengaluru

What are we doing to protect women in our country? Earlier the newspaper headlines were all about scams, now they are about rapes. We live in fear. We are yet to get independence in India.

Sumeet Mahajan

Hubli, Karnataka

Disconnected BSNL

The sorry state of affairs of BSNL mobile connectivity is causing deep concern to its 96 million odd cellular subscribers, since for every minute of a call there is disruption and erratic operation. The subscriber is unable to talk continuously for a minute because the call gets disconnected on its own. Adding to this, the subscriber has to pay extra for each additional call that drops; this is not the subscriber’s fault. Poor connectivity and signal strength are also issues to be addressed.

Despite lodging several complaints, the BSNL authorities have not taken any steps to resolve the problem. At times it is difficult to even identify the appropriate authority as the buck keeps getting passed.

It is noteworthy that this issue was raised in the Lok Sabha and brought to the notice of the minister concerned. We hope the government will look into it and take immediate steps to rectify the problem.

K Nagarajan

Salem, Tamil Nadu

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