The youngest Chief Minister, Akhilesh Yadav, of the most politically important state of the country is well-educated, practical and down-to-earth. We hope power shall not corrupt his mind. He should not induct leaders with criminal background into his team and must deal strictly with ‘goonda raj’.
Swami Vivekananda had once observed: “Nothing can be achieved without some kind of sacrifice. It is usually the young who have the strength of mind and the will to be able to make sacrifices to achieve their goals”.
MAHESH KUMAR,
New Delhi
Simplify tax structure
Simplification of taxation structure by cutting down unnecessary clauses is the need of the hour. Everything should be defined in clear terms and without any ambiguity. Vodafone recently won a case in the court of law. A huge amount is blocked under litigation due to ambiguity in laws. Some big companies take undue advantage and cause revenue loss to the government.
Education cess and secondary and higher education cess should merge in the basic rates in direct and indirect taxation to avoid unnecessary clerical jobs and paper work. There should be implementation of goods and services taxes to cut multiple taxes and a uniform national taxation policy should be adopted.
To boost economic growth, incentives should be given on new investments, like investment allowance which will accelerate the growth. To flush out black money, the government should introduce the voluntary disclosure scheme which will boost growth. Interest rates will come down and there will be more investment.
The tax net should be widened. More services should be covered under the services tax structure. Taxation rates should come down which will help in tax collection. Indirect taxes pinch the tax payers less. So, the Finance Minister should present a rationalised and investment-oriented budget.
DEEPAK SARAF, Rampura Phul
II
The government might opt for a more populist budget and rethink any possible decisions to trim subsidies, diesel decontrol or any other unpleasant decision like opening up the retail sector (“Reforms put on hold”, March 10). However, the UPA government should see the forthcoming budget as the last opportunity to redeem itself.
If this budget fails to give any direction to the economy, the Congress is likely to find itself out of power in 2014 because next year's budget would be too late to do anything substantial for the economy. Sticking to economic reforms is the best path ahead and the budget is the best occasion to introduce the next generation of reforms. Time is ripe to take some hard decisions and rejuvenate the economy and a revitalised economy will no doubt result in better fruits for UPA in 2014.
Dr MANDEEP SINGH,
Yamunanagar
‘Mobocracy’
Thousands of commuters and the general public had to face the heat of the Jat agitation in Haryana for many weeks. The state government’s 'wait and watch' policy made the common man bear the brunt of the agitators. Many could not reach their offices, some could not attend the marriages of their kin or meet their dear ones as routes were jammed. Is this democracy or just plain ‘mobocracy’? The Supreme Court’s intervention
(‘SC guidelines soon to tackle protesters with iron hand,' March 11) came like cool breeze in a desert.
HARDESH
GOSWAMI,
Bhiwani
Messy affair
The menace of copying has posed a serious challenge before academicians, parents and the society at large
(‘242 cases of copying registered on a single day,’ The Tribune, March 4). Many factors are responsible for this evil practice being prevalent over the years. Girl students in remote areas are made to pass 10+2 examination as a certificate for their marriage. They are dropped from college and soon married.
They are just pushed through board examinations by adopting ignoble means. Boys in this sleepy hilly state are not conscious of the global competition they need to face to get success.
For fear of annual increment getting deferred if results are below 25% and to avoid the wrath of school management committees, most of the teachers assist weak students in copying during examinations. Swami Vivekanada had said ''We want education by which character is formed, the strength of mind is increased, intellect is expanded and by which one can stand on one's feet''. We sincerely long for such education.
SUSHMA
KUMARI, via e-mail
