Digi Yatra project

The Bengaluru and Hyderabad airports are only ones in India now which have started the paperless self-boarding process, which does not necessitate travellers to show any travel documents through every passenger touch-point. This is part of the Centre’s Digi Yatra project: a fully biometric-based self-boarding solution for a faultless flow from registration to boarding. This project should be implemented in all airports in India. Passengers need to merely enrol their ID and biometric data, combined with their flight details, before entering the terminal.

Raichur, Karnataka

This refers to ‘Sovereign bonds aren’t a great funding option’ (July 24). The article has clearly articulated the flip side of floating sovereign bonds. As of now the rupee is not fully convertible in the capital account. Going for sovereign bonds designated in foreign currency will expose the Indian currency to exchange rate risks. If regulatory controls aren’t put in place, this move may result in the rupee becoming increasingly volatile, leading to devaluation and a spurt in inflation. One of the reasons attributed for going in for sovereign debt is that India’s external debt is the least among other Asian economies. But what should not be forgotten is that in case a financial crisis erupts at the global level, the local currency will come under severe pressure, leading to an increase in borrowing costs. Instead of scouting for capital through sovereign bonds, steps such as dipping into RBI’s reserves and framing policies that will induce domestic savings should be attempted.

Chennai

The raging controversy over reports that Prime Minister Modi himself sought US intervention in resolving the Indo-Pakistan conflict over Kashmir has been blown out of proportion. This despite Foreign Minister S Jaishankar categorically denying in Parliament of any such request by the Prime Minister. It most unlikely that the Prime Minister would have sought Trump’s help since India has all along been ruling out any third-party intervention on such a key issue. The opposition parties should not, therefore, precipitate the issue.

New Delhi

The fall of the coalition government in Karnataka, led by Janata Dal (Secular) and the Congress, wasn’t surprising. Its days were numbered ever since more than ten of its legislators put in their papers and efforts to persuade them to take back their resignations failed. The sordid political drama that had been played out in the open by the key players — the Congress, the JD(U) and the BJP — is nothing but a big dampener on our vibrant democracy. The shifting of political loyalties for pecuniary gains with no regard for people’s mandate has been gaining traction with an alarming frequency, and this a major cause for concern.

An appropriate change in the tenth schedule of the Constitution so as to make it an effective deterrent for legislators who switch loyalties by subverting the mandate of the people brooks no delay.

Sholavandan, Tamil Nadu

At a time when the agricultural sector has been facing perpetual distress owing to issues such as skewed and delayed implementation of policies, unreliable weather, jeopardised rural development, migration of labour and high input costs, the proposal to free domestic markets for major milk-producing countries like New Zealand and Australia does not sound well for the native farming community, for whom the dairy sector is the major lifeline today.

Instead, the Centre must further augment the allocation to the dairy processing and infra development fund set up under NABARD during 2018-19, so that the Indian dairy farmer gets an opportunity to modernise existing capabilities and meet the challenges and demands of modern consumer so that he becomes globally competitive, especially in terms of quality.

Sakaleshpur, Karnataka

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR Send your letters by email to bleditor@thehindu.co.in or by post to ‘Letters to the Editor’, The Hindu Business Line, Kasturi Buildings, 859-860, Anna Salai, Chennai 600002.

COMMENT NOW