Digital payments

The high-level committee set up by the RBI on deepening digital payments has listed timely and well-crafted measures to accelerate the growth of digital transactions and inculcate trust and awareness among village folk. However, it must be noted that women in villages find it difficult to move out as they are tied to doing household chores and taking care of their families. The distance of ATMs from their dwelling places also may be a factor standing in the way of their undertaking digital transactions.

It is important, therefore, that these women are taught how to withdraw, deposit and send money money using their mobile device. Using the neighbourhood kirana shop’s micro ATM is also another way they can go digital, but in this case ensuring secrecy of their accounts is important. Depending on a third person to help them in their transactions may not be advisable. It is important that the message that one need not be tech savvy to use digital devices is conveyed to them. Self-help groups across the country have been helping women gain confidence as far as handling money is concerned. Learning to use digital devices like ATMs and mobiles shouldn’t be difficult for them if trained properly.

Vadodara

The recent Draft Education Policy has proposed a multi-lingual education framework. It is important for children and youth to acquire language proficiency for their own welfare. In addition to our State language/mother tongue, knowledge of Hindi will provide us employment and self-employment opportunities all over the country. English proficiency, in addition, will open up the whole world for us. Shunning English by calling it ‘elitist’ or rejecting Hindi as ‘not our culture’ may not be in our best interest. Engineering, medicine, software education, all call for English knowledge. The services sector (banking, insurance, hospitality, retail), which is among the fastest growing and accounting for the largest share of GDP, is largely English driven. Therefore, people from all classes are seeking English medium education for their kids.

Pune

This is with reference to ‘Abolish cess, surcharge’ (June 6). The taxpayers have been paying cess and surcharge from many years now. Despite repeated appeals to the government, these levies have not been dispensed with. The levies need to be withdrawn for two reasons. One, it is unfair to those who sincerely pay tax as against those who wilfully evade. And, two, it is unfair to the States as cess and surcharge are not shared by the Centre. Instead of taxing the already burdened taxpayer through these levies, efforts must be made to unearth the tax evaders, impose new taxes on businesses that show low profits even though the turnover is high, and tax the agricultural income of rich farmers.

Bheemavaram, AP

Obviously the resurfacing of Nipah in Kerala has become a cause for concern for the people of the State. While a 23-year-old student was found to have been infected with the virus, 314 persons are still under observation. It is a great relief that in six suspected cases the result was negative. Stopping the spread of the disease and not losing any life to the virus are the priorities. The State government has taken swift, coordinated action — epidemiological surveillance, clinical management and awareness campaign — to deal with the return of Nipah virus. It is not exactly true that the virus caught the State napping.

In the Kerala context, the fruit bat is believed or suspected to transmit the virus. Contact with the body fluids of people infected with the virus involves the risk of infection.

Efforts are still on to find out the source of the virus lurking in Kerala. The early detection of cases of infection is crucial not only to quarantining the patients to eliminate the risk of further transmission, but also to extending all possible ‘supporting care’ to them to try and save their lives.

Maruthancode, TN

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