Weak monsoon

With reference the Editorial ‘Prepare the ground’ (June 4), it is now quite clear that we will have deficient monsoons this year. The risks to the agricultural sector have been well articulated. Other aspects need attention too. Drinking water crises may likely emerge especially in rural India. This in turn could lead to more extraction of ground-water and contamination of rivers, lakes, etc.

These are a recipe for spread of water borne diseases and the resulting challenges for public health. T

At a macro level, we need to address issues of water governance, keeping in mind sustainability, equity, and ecosystem protection.

V Vijaykumar

Pune

Gold in reserves

This refers to the news report ‘Central banks turned net buyers of gold in April’, (June 4).

The resumption of central bank gold purchases in April, led by Poland and China, reflects a continuing structural shift in how sovereign institutions are managing reserve portfolios. Poland’s stated intent to use gold reserves for military expenditure — subsequently walked back by the Finance Minister — illustrated how geopolitical anxiety is now directly shaping reserve management decisions in ways that would have seemed unusual a decade ago.

For India, which holds substantial foreign exchange reserves, the question of optimal gold allocation deserves periodic reassessment rather than being treated as a settled matter of policy.

Swathi Senthilkumar

Coimbatore

Monetary dynamics

Apropos the article ‘The missing link in monetary transmission’, (June 4).

The observation that sovereign borrowing costs have actually risen while the RBI has cut repo rates by 125 basis points deserves far more attention in mainstream policy discourse.

At ₹11.5 lakh crore of central government borrowing annually, even modest yield elevation translates into fiscal costs that eventually crowd out productive expenditure. The RBI occupies a unique dual role as both monetary authority and sovereign debt manager.

That institutional position creates both the responsibility and the tools to address this asymmetry more directly than has been attempted so far.

K Sakunthala

Coimbatore

Published on June 4, 2026