The Indian love story
for the ‘yellow metal’.....has no 7 year itch !! .. it is Rs.2917/- for 1 gm of 22 ct gold.
When there are too many voices ~ it is cacophony… but can different organs of
Govt. speak discordant notes !!!!
Though I am a strong
advocate of buying Gold in e-form, the yellow metal does offer a personal
satisfaction to hold and have in solid form.
Most times you would find those shops in T Nagar and elsewhere – those
shops selling gold, extraordinarily crowded, colourful, bustling with activity
and chaotic at times ! – there are people, who as routine buy small units of
gold every month and there are others who buy on festive occasions, important
occasions to make them memorable, for marriages and so on.. all those make up
those unmindful crowds at jewellers.
It is not traders ~
but Nationalised banks and Post Office
too that joins the race in selling gold coin and trying to make their presence
felt…. Postal Dept claims that their
gold is pure 99.9% certified by Valcambi of Switzerland and the logo of postal
department inscribed on the coins and they cannot be tempered. The Gold Coin Rates or Price of Gold Coin sold by Banks is higher than the gold prices in the bullion
market as banks keep huge margins.
Understand that most of the banks
in India import gold coins from Switzerland tying up with Companies abroad who
earn their share of profit, through MMTC.
Not long ago, you
read the news that following the Centre's decision to halt the import of gold
coins and bars in the country, the department of post was to stop their sales
from its counters from August 1. There
is no scarcity of lovers of foreign gold and those who buy them. The Finance Ministry and PC felt that import
of gold is the vice that is ruining the Indian economy and took measures to
curb gold imports and kept advising people to stay away from buying gold.
Here is today’s news
in TOI which speaks of the diametrically opposite position of Finance Vs
Communications & IT – on the import of gold.
In August, the finance ministry had banned banks from
selling gold coins, which are mostly imported into India, in order to contain
the country’s burgeoning current account deficit (CAD). But on November 6, the
department of posts, which is under the ministry of communications & IT,
floated a tender for the supply of gold coins, which is to be sold to the
department for onward selling through post offices. The tender closes on
November 27, according to the central government’s Central Public Procurement
Portal.
In fiscal 2013,
India imported 850 tonnes of gold valued at about $58 billion, which was one of
the main causes of the country’s burgeoning CAD that year. In the current
fiscal, thanks to the government’s proactive steps to contain gold imports, the
figure is estimated to drop to around 800 tonnes, but it is still a large
figure.
Questioning the rationale behind the tender by the
department of posts, S Sudhakar Reddy, general secretary, Communist Party of
India (CPI), has written to the Prime Minister to look into the matter and make
the government’s position clear on import of gold coins. “If banks selling gold
coins are strictly being discouraged, how could post offices selling gold coins
be encouraged?” Reddy has questioned in his letter. On October 22, finance minister P Chidambaram
had said that the ban on the import of gold coins and medallions would
continue. He had also said that banks were directed to follow the ban
strictly. In his letter to the PM, Reddy said, “Despite
the… ban, I am surprised to see that while the finance minister holds a
specific view on the import of gold coins, the ministry of communications and
information technology holds a divergent view on the same. Gold coin import and
to float the tender by the department of posts immediately implies encouraging
import of gold coins once again. With a heavy import bill burden already on the
economy, why is the government not having a uniform view regarding sale of gold
coins? Given the above, your views and intervention on the government status on
sale of gold coins and its imports are being requested.” [the coloured portion
reproduced from TOI, Chennai edition of date.]
Perhaps the
communication of the Finance Ministry asking commoners to desist from buying
gold especially during the gold rush Deepavali celebrations, never reached the
Postal Dept.
With regards – S.
Sampathkumar.
18th Nov. 2013.
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