Building Up Again
I like the cover story,Construction Industry Now (New Business Age, July 2015) by Akhilesh Tripathi. The article provided a lot of information on different aspects of the construction industry. The interviews in the piece were informative. The reconstruction of our damaged structures needs more money with more materials. As a whole, the construction industry has the capacity to fulfill the demands of reconstruction.
- Seema Ghimire, Balaju
Birgunj Will Bounce Back
This is in response to the article, Housing in Birgunj Slow Growth, High Hopes (New Business Age, June 2011). Birgunj, in future,will be one of the best places to live and work safely and happily in. I cannot deny the facts that political instability in the country has been a great problem in the areas like business, education, hospitals, transportation, electricity etc. This is the reason people are showing disinterest to make huge investments not only in buying flats but also in the aforementioned sectors. As soon as the country’s political situation/government gets stable, all the proposed project will progress fast and investors,businessmen, locals will seek out opportunities in Birgunj, which will make Birgunj a point of attraction for all of us and outsiders as well. Hope for the best.
- Upendra Kumar Chaube, via email (helloupendrakumar@gmail.com)
Talking about Inflation
The article, Business Ethics after the Earthquake (New Business Age, June 2015) by Krishna Khanal catches my attention and I have a few concerns.
The concept of inflation as available in Wikipedia is, "In economics, inflation is an increase in a currency supply relative to the number of people using it. As a result of this supply inflation the general price level of goods and services in an economy over a period of time rise." So, in my opinion it is the devaluation of the currency rather than the increase in the price of goods that defines inflation.
I would like to mention some examples that define inflation: One popular example is of Zimbabwe where to buy a bag of potato, one has to carry a bag of one trillion notes. Another is the post disintegration of Russia in the 1990s when one had to carry lots of notes just to get bread.
So, inflation is defined by the devaluation of the currency either being weak due to international monetary exchange or due to high production of the currency by banks. In my opinion, an increase in the price of tents and zinc sheets was a price hike rather than inflation. I thought that this was worth sharing.
- Mahesh Pokhrel, Battisputali
No Bust for Insurance
Your magazine’s segment Corporate Focus is always informative and a good read. The July 2015 issue covered two different corporate houses focusing on banking and insurance. At the aftermath of the earthquake, many thought that insurance companies would go bankrupt but the rumours turned false. I hope the magazine will continue this segment in upcoming issues.
- Ajay Mahat, Kathmandu
Believe in High Rises
The interview “I’m against banning high-rise buildings” (New Business Age, July 2015) with Bishnu Panthee made me happy to know about it. The interview changed my perceptions about high-rise buildings and apartments. Well-engineered, well-structured buildings built following the building code can stay strong. Before, I had my doubts. We are in an earthquake prone zone, which was well known to all, but we ignored the fact. But now onwards we should take care. The suggestions and ideas of Panthee should be taken seriously by all of us and, in future, we should build stronger structures.
- Rudra Kumar, Nepalgunj
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