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