A voice of peace silenced

This refers to ‘Top journalists shot dead in Srinagar’ (June 15). Ever since ceasefire operations were called by the government during Ramazan period in the Valley, there were debates on whether it was a right move considering that there are continuous ceasefire violation by Pakistan-sponsored terrorists. Now, with the gunning down of Kashmiri journalist Shujaat Bukhari and the abduction and killing of an Army jawan, the government should not even think about extending the ceasefire beyond Eid. With Bukhari’s death, Kashmir and India have lost a great voice who always advocated peaceful resolution of the Kashmir issue and was instrumental in bringing people from both sides of the border to have meaningful dialogue through various conferences he organised. If terrorists have sent us a signal then the government and the Army must reciprocate in their own way.

Noida

It’s not surprising that the article, ‘The intriguing picture of investment’ (June 15), finds the household, and not corporate, sector responsible for the decline in investment rate. We enjoy a demographic dividend, unlike say Japan or China, where consumption overtakes the capacity to save. The government has has been misled in reducing small savings rates to depress lending rates for big industry, which is forever looking to reduce its cost of capital. Similar zeal was shown in 2004, when savings rates were linked to the yields of government securities. The common man was hurt. The funds got diverted from small savings schemes to public sector banks who, unfortunately, were unable to leverage lending and are now saddled with ₹11-lakh crore in non-performing assets. The savings of corporate and government sectors are inadequate to meet the country’s investment needs. In some years, household savings had made up as much as 67 per cent of total savings. In neglecting savings we have run into twin deficits — fiscal and current account. Desperate to locate the growth highway, the government is clearly struggling with an erratic compass.

The Indian Institute of Science (IISc) developing an artificial leaf that absorbs carbon dioxide in the atmosphere to generate fuel and release oxygen in the process through photosynthesis is a commendable achievement. The general impression is greeneries absorb carbon dioxide in the atmosphere and give out clean air in return. Trees are being mercilessly felled for infrastructure development, unmindful of the deleterious effect on the health of the people. One hopes scientists come out with new inventions that will benefit the masses.

Bengaluru

This refers to the article on water crisis as highlighted by Niti Aayog. This is not something new, all this was covered in 1995 when the government first thought of private sector participation in the water and sewage sectors. Several meetings were held and tenders were issued for privatisation of water supply in Hyderabad and Bengaluru. Nothing came out of this and most of the foreign companies who had come in soon left. Some of the more critical issues that need to be addressed are: use of potable water for flushing toilets, washing cars and watering the gardens. We simply cannot flush away potable water in our toilets. Cities along the coast must move to using filtered seawater for toilet flushing, and cities inland must ask home owners to have bore-wells and use that water for these activities. This alone will reduce the per capita requirement of water from the present 120-200 litres per person per day to less than 30 litres. All high-rise buildings must install piping systems to collect water from showers and wash basins, which can then be treated and used for flushing before entering the sewage system. The only motivator for this would be pricing. Domestic water charges are absurdly low for the middle-class and high net worth segment. A simple 10-fold increase in water charges is fully justified.

Mumbai

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