MyVoice: Views of our readers 26th December 2020

Today is the Boxing Day 'test'

The current year hasn't been a good year for the Indian cricket team. Setbacks are not new for the Indian cricket team. In what can only be described as a horrible collapse, India was shot out for just 36 runs in the second innings of the first Adelaide Test. This was India's lowest score in 88 years of playing Test cricket.

Going into the second Test starting Saturday after dismal performance in first Test, the Indian team will have to muster up all their mental strength to pose a worthy challenge to the marauding hosts. It is not that easy to come back from a humiliation and disastrous collapse of first Test. The mental scars keep pulling one back but there is no escape for India from reality. Without Virat Kohli, who has proceeded on paternity leave, the job will not be that easy for team India.

Captain Ajinkya Rahane and his boys need to look back at their earlier sojourns when they came back from ignominy to turn the tables on the Australians. The famous Test series victory in early last year is a shining example for Team India to emulate to perfection. Apart from being a best batsman, Ajinkya Rahane has added responsibility of captaincy and he will have to build up a strong strategy to take on Australia in the Test series. We do trust captain Ajinkya Rahane to the best of his strength will definitely succeed in the remaining three Test matches.

Kodihalli S. Rao, Thane

Deplorable behaviour

It is shocking to note that a municipal commissioner of Vuyyuru town in Andhra has instigated his employees to dump all garbage near the entrance of some public sector banks under the reason of non-sanctioning of loans to its employees under various schemes being announced by the C M Jagan Mohan Reddy such as Jagananna cheyuta etc each and every day. This shows that the Commissioner has acted more politically and mischievously to bring pressure on the banking system in getting loans sanctioned instead of taking the issue at the official level.

Further, the bankers will be meeting periodically at the state level bankers conference or the Mandal level bankers meetings conveyed by the leading banker and the Project director DRDA wherein all the projections/ targets and achievements/ reasons of loan sanctions/ non-sanctions/ viability of proposals/ status of bad loans in some portfolios etc under different schemes will all be discussed and decided for necessary action by all.

The commissioner must have taken up the issue with the banks regional level or at the bankers' conference before resorting to such a nasty step of dumping garbage in front of banks. This is a very serious issue of mis-behaviour by a government official and the District Collector should immediately warn such officers to behave like an officer and not like a street fighter with bank officials.

Even though the Commissioner had ordered for removal of the garbage from the bank premises the next day the collectors should ensure that such things should not be repeated in future lest the bank officials will be more demotivated in grounding government schemes. After all, banking is not a charity but it is a business to financially lend to genuine borrowers from people's money which should be repaid .

Katuru Durga Prasad Rao, Hyderabad

Increasing parking woes

As the number of vehicles is increasing day by day, car parking is becoming a nuisance in the residential colonies in cities across the country. Most of the car owners are freely parking their vehicles on roads causing severe inconvenience to the moving vehicles and especially to those who are sincerely parking their vehicles inside their home spaces. As there are no specified rules regarding the parking vehicles on roads, many car owners are taking advantage and parking their vehicles in front of their homes and neighbours houses permanently. People are purchasing one or more cars even though they don't have parking space in their residences and habituated to park their vehicles on roads occupying 20-30 per cent of roads. Government should consider restricting registration of vehicles if the owner did not possess enough parking space. "No Parking Space-No Registration" policy should be introduced by the government and new strict rules should be implemented for parking vehicles on roads and before the neighbour's house in the residential colonies.

Also, govt should introduce "scrap and crush" method where the very old vehicles should be treated as scrap and should be crushed.

Tumuluri Sri Kumar, Hyderabad

Modi government's eyewash

This refers to "Let's talk, but not MSP: Govt" (THI 25 December) . It is a well known fact that before every budget, the Finance Minister makes it a point to meet captains of industry to share and take inputs from them before presenting it in Parliament. However, when it comes to sensitive new laws, the BJP government led by PM Modi often gets the law passed by whatever means, creates controversy over it and then uses various forums to attack those who are opposed to such law. This happened with CAA/NRC, Triple Talaq and now Interfaith marriage law which being hurriedly passed by the state government ruled by BJP. As for new farm law, instead of "reaching out" to the farmers before enacting the law, now after creating huge controversy and political divide, the party is now organizing an "Outreach" campaign. It is believed, as a part of this program some 100 press conferences and 700 meetings are being conducted, culminating with the proposed virtual meeting with nine crore farmers to be addressed by the PM.

All this is nothing but a drama to get political mileage at the cost of taxpayers' money. After passing the law, if the BJP government can "Outreach: nine crore farmers now, why they could not have "reached out" to farmers explained to them the benefits of the new farm, instead of forcing them to come on the road and stay put for so long.

N Nagarajan, Hyderabad

UK PM not welcome

In view of the new Covid strain found in the UK spreading panic of transmission across the globe, India should request British PM Boris Johnson either to go ahead with or drop his India visit only in line with the virus-effect to be felt in 2021 January. The Centre had better keep silent till then and decide on, only in January, welcoming the dignitary into the country. Otherwise, it would send a wrong message that the government is not concerned about our health.

E Sethuramalingam, Kollam