Oil prices are back up, see-sawing around a $100 per barrel fulcrum. The US has blown up a ?rogue? satellite in space with a missile, a la China. Cuba has seen a handover of power (who would have thought?) that has sounded celebrations in Miami. Pakistan has elected a whole new house of people?s representatives, with Pervez Musharraf?s interview to The Wall Street Journal becoming a hot-forwarded item on the Internet. It has, by any stretch of the line, been an eventful week for the world. But strangely enough, in the Emirate of Dubai, the talk of the town (?Sidebar?, Feb 21) appears to be the acceptability of lap-lace lingerie mannequins as part of retail display do-ups. Do we not need a global media glasnost urgently?
?John Vikluto
Pan peeve
Ever since the government has made it mandatory not just to quote a permanent account number (Pan), but to submit a Xerox copy of the Pan card as well to make investments, it has become harder to do the same. It is hard to understand how this extra paperwork would deter scamsters, but the inconvenience caused to honest investors is high. Those of us who adore fair play, and there are many of us, know that there must be a better way to tackle miscreants and achieve objectives in the market?s best interests. Pan card documentation is mostly drama.
?Pritipal Singh, Chandigarh
Corrigendum
The infographic accompanying the front-page news story ?Indian banks ramp up retail ops in the UK?, published on February 20, featured a picture of Indian Bank. However, the said bank was not among the banks of Indian origin mentioned in the report ramping up retail operations in the UK. The snapshot error is regretted.