VisVoice

Big Individuals/Banks' Board/Directors are more equals* 1. Ex-Chairman of HDFC Bank Ltd : Last week, the then part-time Chairman (ex-chairman) of HDFC Bank Ltd.,(the bank) created a storm/bloodbath in stock exchanges by his statement that  “certain happenings and practices within the bank that I have observed over last two years, are not in congruence with my personal Values and Ethics”. He further quoted the above as the “basis” for his decision to resign from his position as Part- time Chairman and Independent Director on the Board of HDFC Bank. He did not elaborate further. In the last two years, (i)             RBI fined the bank for ₹ 1 Cr. for violating regulations relating to interest rate on deposits, recovery agents and customer service (Sep 24) (ii)       SEBI issued an administrative warning for non-compliance with merchant banking regulations. (Dec 24) (iii)       Dubai Financial Services Authority s...

  LAL SALAAM  COM. D.P.N.DAVID  Comrade D.P.N. David, (popularly known as 'David Sir' in Tamil Nadu and as DPN among seniors), the trade union warrior, attained RIP status and went to be with the Lord on 2nd March 2026. He served SBT for more than three decades. Easily the most popular employees union leader among SBTians in the 1980s and 1990s, DPN was the Assistant Secretary of SBTEU for SBT branches in Tamil Nadu (except KK District)  and all branches outside Kerala. He was also a long time office bearer of Tamil Nadu Bank Employees' Federation affiliated to AIBEA.  I had the fortune to work closely with him in the trade union activities as a member of SBT Employees' Union (SBTEU) and as a member of SBT Officers' Association (SBTOA). I share a few of my impressions/ experiences as under: 1. Learnings about SBT and SBTEU:  I was transferred to Vellore branch of SBT, along with my friend Rajkumar, within one month of joining the bank's Mount Road branch, C...

  Happy International Women's Day - 8th March 2026 I went to my fitness class on Friday. There was a debate between two. One said jokingly "O nly one day is celebrated for women, as all the other days belong to men." The other said, "This is western culture. You all have already got all the  recognition like men. There is no need to celebrate a date connected to a gender".  In the evening, when I was walking with my wife around the complex, we met another couple. Again there was a talk on women's day. The gentlemen said, "I don't think there is any bias in a community like us (upper middle class) and there is no reason why we should celebrate an event like that in our complex". I always message my thoughts (through WhatsApp now) to the women I know, while extending my greetings on 8th March. This made me to ponder and I browsed to find out whether 'gender inequality' is a thing of the past or does it still exist. I felt the truth betwee...