Semiconductor push
With reference to the editorial ‘Chip stack’ (August 4), the great push that India is imparting for creation of a semiconductor ecosystem is crucial, as the country is already far behind other leading nations and needs to catch up. With increased accent on clean energy development and fast paced progress in R&D in electronic devices for industrial and defence purposes, semiconductors are going to play a seminal role in the current century.
China which is one of the dominating nations in the field appears to be flagging .
India should take advantage of its current growth trajectory and make all out efforts to bring in as many established and proven international semiconductor companies as possible. The accent should be on the transfer of technology and establishment of R&D facilities by the companies desirous to invest in semiconductor fab units in India.
With the kind of huge incentives being offered by the government, getting R&D facilities established in the country may not be very difficult and is essential for building a futuristic semiconductor ecosystem.
Kosaraju Chandramouli
Hyderabad
Curbs on imports
The decision of the government to impose restrictions on the import of laptops, tablets, etc., especially from countries like China on security grounds is welcome.
But, at the same time, it is imperative that it takes steps to boost the production of the aforesaid commodities domestically and also ensure that they are of good quality. In these days of economic inter-dependence of nations, the governments need to weigh the pros and cons of their export-import policies and take correct decisions.
S Ramakrishnasayee
Chennai
Conflict resolution
This refers to “Mediation holds promise” (August 4). The processes — mutual negotiations, mediation/conciliation and voluntary arbitration —are the most effective modes of solving commercial disputes because all the contending parties are satisfied with the outcome. In court-directed verdicts the losing party is left unsatisfied. This affects the future relations between them. As such the implementation of Mediation Bill 2021 which gives a legal status to the conflict resolution mechanism built on mutual consensus between the disputants is a right move to wean away the parties from litigation. It will promote ease of doing business also.
YG Chouksey
Pune
Controlling inflation
This refers to the ‘Repo rate can’t fix food-driven inflation’ (August 4). The persistently soaring prices of food articles, particularly vegetables, have proved that the hike in the repo rates turned ineffective in taming CPI inflation.
On the contrary, it made capital costly and affected the production of goods and services, besides the exports of the country. The elevated prices of food and other essentials are denting the disposable incomes of people and, therefore, their savings and investments too.
Governments at the Centre and States have bigger roles than the RBI to play in controlling inflation. The flaws in storing and distributing the food items to the last mile consumers are facilitating the middlemen to manipulate the prices according to demand to maximise their profits. The government must strengthen its machinery and measures to ensure that unscrupulous traders are not hoarding food articles and selling them at exorbitant prices.
VSK Pillai
Changanacherry, Kerala