Page 33 - Letters

Letters: Failing at democracy

Constitutional law experts may enlighten the Indian public as to whether the Supreme Court's order levying a tax (called cess in this case) on diesel vehicle buyers of a certain class is intra vires of the Constitution

Letters: Seeking special treatment

Profit-seeking telecom operators may find it difficult to bid for spectrum because of their self-perceived inability to make revenue projections

Letters: Regulator's duty

The "arbitrary" imposition of penalty on telecom service providers for call drops should have been complemented with satisfactory evidence of lack of investment in network upgrade

Letters: Pitfalls in disguise

It is not that easy to see the GST as the sufficient condition to jack up the GDP growth rate by 1.5% -2% per year

Letters: How did it happen?

The passage of the Constitution amendment Bill in the upper House, where it is outnumbered by the Opposition, is indeed a huge moment for the Narendra Modi government

Letters: Unfair, Sir

The need for such a commitment was felt more imperative in the background of Jaitley earlier presenting the Aadhar Bill as a money Bill

Letters: No interference

The autonomy in regard to the function of the tax officers is in relation to bona fide action and not mala fide action

Letters: Eco-friendly FMCG

The phenomenal rise of swadeshi fast-moving consumer goods company (FMCG) company Patanjali is a matter of pride for all as it is giving it's rivals a good run for their money!

Letters: On-tap bank licences

We had to wait 65 long years after passing of the Banking Regulation Act for Raghuram Rajan to arrive and tell us some ingenuous solutions to handle some of the tricky problems faced by Indian banking sector

Letters: How did it happen?

As rightly mentioned in the editorial, internal democracy is the most critical aspect of any political party

Letters: Tame the root cause

The NGT's latest orders are bound to create some serious "ripples" amongst all the stakeholders

Letters: RBI's independence

Sadly, there have been several attempts by the government in the recent past to "circumvent" the independence of RBI

Letters: Sharmila's decision

She has attained iconic status and her suffering will go down as an inspiring chapter in the annals of Indian history

Letters: Limitations of S4A

Lenders, particularly public sector banks (PSBs) and the Reserve Bank of India have been struggling to recover non-performing assets stacked in various sectors

Letters: Selecting RBI governor

PM and FM should have the final say in the selection of incumbents to bodies like RBI

Letters: Shock therapy

It has become a universal feature at most high ranking private hospitals across the country, which devise newer plans everyday to concentrate more on patients' comfort rather then on treatment

Letters: Under the scanner

The Opposition cannot be faulted for opposing such a provision that intends to add piecemeal levies to a consolidated tax

Letters: Inside story of Mint Road

With reference to Debashis Basu's "Tales from Mint Road" (July 25), the writer seems to be solely "batting" for former Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Deputy Governor K C Chakraborty. He also goes on to question the rationale behind the "injustice" being done to Chakraborty in 2010 by Duvvuri Subbarao, the then Governor of RBI, by taking away some key portfolios from him. The writer appears to be highly peeved as the former deputy governor was left to contend with a few so-called insignificant departments such as customer services, information technology and inspection.But, interestingly, the buck does not stop here as the writer also takes strong exception to Subbarao going out of the way to seek an extension for Usha Thorat, another deputy governor at the central bank, just two months after shabbily treating Chakraborty, perhaps his (writer's) favourite. While one does not know the inside story behind the writer so vehemently taking up the cause of the former deputy governor, the resulta

Letters: Better agri-marketing

With reference to "Farm marketing" (July 25), by incorporating innovative methods and technologies into the farm sector, the government can help improve crop yield in a safe and sustainable manner. Increased allocations under the Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana, proposal for 100 per cent rural electrification and enhanced agricultural credit target were some welcome measures the government proposed in the Union Budget to raise productivity of the primary sector and mitigate rural distress. The exemption of perishable farm output from the ambit of agricultural produce marketing committee (APMC) laws is a low-hanging fruit in agri-marketing reforms that the government must pluck at the earliest. It will not only reduce marketing overheads but also help in eliminating middlemen.Further, the creation of an online National Agriculture Market platform is a great leap forward in ending the monopoly of APMCs and connecting farm gates to retail stores. The electronic trading portal will introd

Letters: Prioritise PSB claims

STATSGURU (July 25) highlighted the public sector banks' (PSBs) capital position over a period of five years. PSBs are helpless when it comes to the recovery of dues of wilful defaulters. Hence, more capital is required for provisioning against the NPAs (non-performing assets). Harping on about capital levels is not the remedy. PSB claims are dealt with by the judiciary on a par with general disputes. Cases in debt recovery tribunals are pending for long. Enforcing recovery certificates is very cumbersome. Sarfaesi proceedings are stayed out by courts defeating the very purpose of the Sarfaesi (Securitisation and Reconstruction of Financial Assets and Enforcement of Security Interest) Act. PSBs' claims for recovery should be prioritised, only then can these banks be strong. Else, there could be a future worse than today. The government should wake up and modify the legal procedures for PSBs.K B N Rao BengaluruLetters can be mailed, faxed or e-mailed to:The Editor, Business StandardNeh