MyVoice: Views of our readers 18th January 2023

India must brace for global recession

The global economy is "perilously close to falling into recession," according to the latest forecast from the World Bank. It expects the world economy to grow by just 1.7% this year - a sharp decrease from the 3% it predicted in June. The report blames a number of factors stemming from Russia's invasion of Ukraine and the impact of the pandemic. A rich demographic dividend is powering consumption and growth, as reflected in robus net direct tax collections reaching a record high of Rs 14.09 lakh crore in 2021-22, with GST collections too rising month-on-month. This has resulted in a multi-year growth cycle that is bound to power the Indian economy to the 3rd position in terms of GDP by the end of this decade. However, India cannot escape the global headwinds. RBI has to step in with judicious management of inflation by tweaking repo rates to adapt to changing environments, without paralysing the domestic sector.

T Ramesh, Warangal

The judiciary-executive sparring unfortunate

With the Centre not clearing the files on collegium's recommendation of judges for appointment in the higher Judicuary for days, CJI reminder about the shortage of judges, which is hampering the progress of work in courts, is justified. To this, the law minister came out with a fresh missive to the Chief Justice of India for restructuring of Memorandum of Procedure by including a government nominee in the collegium has left all the stakeholders confused and bewildered. The opposition as usual came out strongly against the government move as extremely dangerous. As important issues are facing the nation requiring the attention of the government on priority, it is high time Law Minister and Chief Justice of India had one-to-one dialogue and settle the matter amicably once and for all in the interest of justice instead of prolonging the controversy through arguments which do not augur well both for the judiciary and the nation at large.

K R Srinivasan, Secunderabad

Appalling effects of climate change

According to a NASA analysis, the Earth's average surface temperature in 2022 was the fifth warmest year compared to last six decades. According to researchers from NASA, global temperatures in 2022 were about 1 degrees Celsius higher than the average for the baseline period continuing the planet's long-term warming trend. This warming trend is alarming. The effects of our changing climate are already being felt: Cyclones are becoming more powerful, forest fires are getting worse, droughts are wreaking havoc, and sea levels are rising especially in Asia. Scientists from NASA and other countries recently found that carbon dioxide emissions in 2022 were the highest ever recorded. Therefore, stringent actions needed around the globe to reduce greenhouse gas emissions for top notch future.

VijayKumar H K, Raichur

'Don't shoot the messenger'

Opposition leaders rightly fumed over Joshimath 'gag order' imposed by the Central government on various organs and research bodies to share with the public any news or analysis of the causes for the serious land subsidence in Joshimath. It is surprising what damage would be caused by sharing any valid information as Joshimath continues to sink, which the maing Opposition party Congress demanded to be treated as a national disaster. State-run institutions should be allowed to interact with media or share information on social media in the best interests of the society to prevent emergence of more Joshimaths in the country. "After Joshimath, now the news of cracks in houses is also coming from Karnprayag and Tehri Garhwal. Instead of solving the disaster and solving the problems of the public, banning the reports of government agencies - ISRO and banning interaction with the media!" Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge rightly tweeted.

Satyanarayana S, Hanumakonda

Is it high time to tax the rich in India?

It is shocking that just 5% Indians own more than 60% of country's wealth, while the bottom 50% possess only 3% of wealth, according to Oxfam India's latest report 'Survival of the Richest: The India story.' We used to tax the rich with 1% levy on the net wealth over and above Rs 30 lakh. The Modi government abolished it in 2015. The total number of billionaires in India increased from 102 in 2020 to 166 billionaires in 2022. The report highlights that the combined wealth of India's 100 richest has touched $660 billion (Rs 54.12 lakh crore) - an amount that could fund the entire Union Budget for more than 18 months. As the government prepares to present its last budget in its term, it should give the report a deep consideration to help the poor withstand shocks of inflation, increasing unemployment and spiralling costs of healthcare.

P Pradyumna, Hyderabad