Investment better than cash aid
Investment better than cash aid
As a regular overseas tourist to your country (three times in
one year) I wish to express my great appreciation as to how
people in Kuta, Bali, (where I am staying now) took the blasts in
their stride. Many locals and visitors feel wary when in a bar or
restaurant but do still troop in. While no doubt this incident
has hit arrivals, Bali is still a case of overkill.
The locals found others reaping profits and jumped in to
invest in shops, restaurants and hotels, resulting in excess
supply. I wouldn't agree with your hotel owners' chairman that
there is 60 percent occupation rate as most hotels look virtually
deserted, as do restaurants.
One grievance of mine is the poor supply of your newspaper in
Kuta, where it comes around noon or is often not available. Some
paperboys harass you with double rates. I find your newspaper
superb in all respects -- the coverage, the articles, the quality
of the writing, etc. I even took a few copies home on my last
visit for my people to read. My day is not made if I don't read
your paper.
I wish to write on many subjects at the end of this stay but
it would be too long. As a person with long professional
experience in the government of India I have strong reservations
about the scheme for direct cash assistance payments to low
income groups to compensate for the hike in fuel prices. Imagine
the colossal volume of cash transactions with attendant risk and,
considering the background, large amounts are bound to be
siphoned off by officials. Heavy public investment would generate
employment and automatically incomes. The money will just
disappear without creating any assets.
M. SEETHARAM, Kuta, Bali
As a regular overseas tourist to your country (three times in
one year) I wish to express my great appreciation as to how
people in Kuta, Bali, (where I am staying now) took the blasts in
their stride. Many locals and visitors feel wary when in a bar or
restaurant but do still troop in. While no doubt this incident
has hit arrivals, Bali is still a case of overkill.
The locals found others reaping profits and jumped in to
invest in shops, restaurants and hotels, resulting in excess
supply. I wouldn't agree with your hotel owners' chairman that
there is 60 percent occupation rate as most hotels look virtually
deserted, as do restaurants.
One grievance of mine is the poor supply of your newspaper in
Kuta, where it comes around noon or is often not available. Some
paperboys harass you with double rates. I find your newspaper
superb in all respects -- the coverage, the articles, the quality
of the writing, etc. I even took a few copies home on my last
visit for my people to read. My day is not made if I don't read
your paper.
I wish to write on many subjects at the end of this stay but
it would be too long. As a person with long professional
experience in the government of India I have strong reservations
about the scheme for direct cash assistance payments to low
income groups to compensate for the hike in fuel prices. Imagine
the colossal volume of cash transactions with attendant risk and,
considering the background, large amounts are bound to be
siphoned off by officials. Heavy public investment would generate
employment and automatically incomes. The money will just
disappear without creating any assets.
M. SEETHARAM, Kuta, Bali