0.75% discount on fuel purchased through credit cards
The Union government post-demonetisation of currency on November 8, 2016, to encourage the use of cashless transactions, had started giving several discounts for promoting the use of credit and debit cards which also included 0.75 per cent discount on the purchase of petrol and diesel through credit or debit cards. Due to inadequate publicity, it is not clear which discounts are still prevailing which also included on online payment of insurance premiums.
With all such discounts having since lost relevance after the normalisation of currency-position; the Union government should not burden exchequer with subsidy-loss through such discounts anymore. Instead, steps should be taken to ensure banking to be made least expensive including in respect of credit and debit cards. The concept of minimum-balance-charge for bank-accounts should be altogether abolished with banks already earning a lot on providing a very small interest-rate on bank-balances in savings-accounts and no interest on credits in current-accounts. Likewise charges for the issue and maintain debit cards should be abolished.
However, consolidated steps can be taken to minimise currency-circulation which may also include a monthly cash-withdrawal limit from banks of say Rs 96,000 for an individual, which may be gradually reduced to Rs 50,000 per month.
Madhu Agrawal
Limit monetary benefit to ultra-rich Cricketers
The Board for Control of Cricket in India (BCCI) has announced award money of Rs 15 lakhs extra in addition to the equal amount of match-money to each of the cricketers having played in recently concluded series with Australia where India won the series. All this is in addition to a very hefty annual salary-package of up to Rs 7 crores per cricketer and lifetime heavy pension after their retirement from cricket paid by BCCI.
It is absolutely unfair to create such a class-distinction in a society where cricketers earning otherwise also through their costly appearance in advertisements and business-income are paid so heavily from the BCCI funded through public-craze where cricket has become a religion for people. There should be an upper-limit of salary-package for BCCI which may be equivalent to a highest paid bureaucrat in the country.
If earning of BCCI is a criterion for payment to cricketers, then priests of famous temples can also demand such hefty payments based on the income of temples. The central government should ensure that BCCI funds may be utilised for public-welfare schemes in the manner income from famous Hindu temples like Tirupati are spent.
Subhash Chandra Agrawal
Strike – Where country loses
Currently, it is seen that BEST and Banks are organising strikes on a major level and the motive behind this strike is simple fulfillment of their demands. But do they ever realise how our country is adversely affected by these kinds of strikes? When BEST goes on a Strike, every common man is suffered and when Banks goes on strike, every financial work is hampered directly affecting the bank customer. Today, if we see our country is in debt which means every citizen carrying a hefty sum of Rs 60,000 as a share of the country’s debt. So everyone should think in this situation are really this strike important, should we really do this strikes now and then! If we really want our country to progress, every citizen should contribute with the sense of sacrifice and keeping personnel demands at distance. Otherwise, in no time, we will see a downfall rather than a rising Country.
Nehali Shimpi
Strike and senior citizens
I, a senior citizen aged 71 years from North Mumbai and a huge number of senior citizens above the age of 60 years travelling by BEST buses everyday and have savings accounts with nationalised and the other banks, are wholeheartedly grateful to all the strikers for putting me and crores of senior citizens like me into unbearable troubles for three consecutive days!!! It is ridiculous to note that though the bank employees get the heftiest salaries and bonus with so many types of leaves and allowances, they go on strike nearly every now and then. They are entitled also to go on privileged leaves and enjoy outings with their families at the cost of the bank (read crores of bank customers like me). Is this their art of avoiding work?
Hansraj Bhat
Shame on Police
A few weeks back, a woman with the help of two of her male friends from Dombivli, a far-off suburb in Mumbai, cut off her tormentor’s genitals because he used to pester her for sex very often in spite of her being married. She later confessed to the crime. But why was the woman arrested along with her friends? She did a good thing. They should’ve been applauded.
The man deserved the punishment he got. Shame on the police for arresting the woman and her friends who taught the man a lesson by chopping off his genitals! In today’s world, women are rejected in society and are treated as sex objects by most men, including the police.
Jubel D’Cruz
Use Sci-tech for a healthy lifestyle
Development is necessary for the growth and progress of a nation but not at the expense of the environment and ecology. What good are luxuries and comforts while it that has an adverse effect on the health of the people. Rampant destruction of forest for commercial gains is a matter of concern and 11 square meters of forest area lost in the State in the year gone by has come as a shock. We are intruding into animals’ space and animals are forced to trespass into civilisation areas which have resulted in lives lost both in terms of the animal as well as human numbers. Cities and towns have been turned into concrete jungles which have resulted in an ecological imbalance which is the reason for regular famines, floods, and other natural calamities.
Development needs to be well planned and every single tree uprooted should be replaced with a similar plantation in the nearby vicinity. Public gardens and playgrounds should be mandatory in all new townships being constructed so that the health of citizens is not compromised. Jungles should be untouched and men are intelligent enough to discover substitutes for wood to manufacture paper or other commodities for which we destroy forests. Progress in science and technology should be used for a healthy lifestyle and not comforts that have resulted in a rise in elite diseases that were once unheard of in the days of yore!
S.N.Kabra
(The views expressed by the author in the article are his/her own.)
