Letters to the editor dated August 5, 2020

Apropos ‘A repo rate cut should be considered’ (August 5). Indeed, the Monetary Policy Committee has aptly responded to the pandemic condition with rate cuts. Advocating for further easing is inadvisable, given the grim atmosphere because of the pandemic.Though the inflation rate is softening, there is no positive signal from the market for enthusiastic borrowings on high leverage. Banks continue their strategy of cautious lending and show little interest in absorbing the benefits of the repo rate cut. The government, too, is likely to focus on higher borrowing through G-Sec auctions and cares little for the repo rate.

Sivakasi

This refers to ‘Pitfalls of ‘innovative’ courses’ (August 5). Granting more flexibility and elbow room to students in choosing subjects at the senior secondary level is akin to getting them dressed up with nowhere to go. What is the point of such a change if aspirants cannot clear entrance exams for the engineering and medical fields? The country has a handful of institutions which provide quality education, others are just commercial entities minting money. The NEP can be successful, provided it is implementable on ground. Further, any education policy should increase the employability quotient of the youth, not provide them with patchwork learning.

Chennai

This has reference to ‘Return of the big spender’ (August 5). The Chinese strategy of boosting public spending to kick-start the economy also applies to India. But instead of only concentrating on buildings, the government can explore other avenues also. The country needs a number of dams to conserve water resources and the inter-linking of rivers, which is talked about often, is overdue. The coronavirus problem has brought to light how India lacks adequate hospitals in rural areas, and small facilities can be constructed where needed with government aid. Railway constructions, desalination plants, construction of colonies for migrant labour and BOT projects for roads are some other areas that deserve immediate attention and can absorb capital immediately

Mumbai

Prime Minister Narendra Modi performed the bhoomi pujan for the construction of a Ram temple at Ayodhya on the banks of the river Sarayu, blurring the distinction between a Hindu nationalist acting as the Prime Minister and the Prime Minister acting as a Hindu nationalist. India is a secular democracy, and for any party or leader to bring religion into statecraft or lend the polity a religious hue in inappropriate. Ours is a deeply religious country in which religion and culture are inextricably intertwined. But this does not sanction or justify the encroachment of religion into politics or the tapping of religious identity for political ends.

That the Ram temple will transform Ayodhya into a popular tourist destination and boost the economy is only a footnote. It is more important for India to stay secular, pluralist and humanistic.

Maruthancode, Tamil Nadu

Despite the coronavirus pandemic reaching the second in India, results of the serological survey in the capital regions suggest that the number of asymptomatic carriers could be alarmingly high. The government must share the very basis of its false confidence, which it showed while anticipating an early peak and unlocking the country in the middle of a pandemic to mitigate the economic fallout. Pointless/meaningless tall claims ranging from a high foreign fund influx during the lock-down to an early vaccine launch are rampant everywhere.

The serological survey is neither a proof of herd immunity nor a cause for cheer. Rather, it is a reflection of the cluelessness, carelessness and impracticality of the leaders. It is not a coincidence that the country has been reporting close to 50,000 cases every day, only a few weeks after we decided to unlock.

Delhi

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