Morning Digest | Silicon Valley Bank ‘contagion’ may leave India unscathed; Centre opposes recognition of same-sex marriage in Supreme Court citing societal values, and more

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Silicon Valley Bank ‘contagion’ may leave India unscathed

The failure of the U.S.-based Silicon Valley Bank (SVB) may only hit some Indian tech startups and IT firms for now, while any broader “contagion” effects that may arise will neither reach Indian shores in a hurry nor are they likely to trigger “systemic risks”, according to top Finance Ministry officials.

However, the Central government is cognisant of the fact that the key underlying trigger for the Santa Clara-headquartered bank’s woes — rapidly rising U.S. interest rates that have rendered past government bond holdings “underwater”, or loss-making securities — could impinge on the operational health of other financial institutions as well.

Same-sex marriages can rock societal values: Centre

The Centre in the Supreme Court frowned upon same-sex marriage while invoking the “accepted view” that a marriage between a biological man and woman is a “holy union, a sacrament and a sanskar” in India.

“The institution of marriage has a sanctity attached to it and in major parts of the country, it is regarded as a sacrament, a holy union, and a sanskar. In our country, despite statutory recognition of the relationship of marriage between a biological man and a biological woman, marriage necessarily depends upon age-old customs, rituals, practices, cultural ethos and societal values,” the Centre said in a 56-page affidavit filed on March 12.

Adani Group repays $2.15-billion loan due before March 31, prepays Ambuja Cements debt