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Letters to The Editor — December 21, 2024
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Letters to The Editor — December 21, 2024

In and outside the HouseThe ‘scuffle’ between Members of Parliament across the aisle over the Home Minister’s remarks on Dr. B.R. Ambedkar is distressing. Parliament, meant for constructive debate, is increasingly becoming a battleground for hostility. B.R. Ambedkar’s legacy is becoming a tool for partisan conflicts. Such behaviour not only undermines the dignity of our institutions but also sets a bad example for citizens. Our representatives must remember that their duty is to uphold democracy through dialogue, not through physical altercations. Pavithra M., Tiruchi, Tamil Nadu There have been allegations of gross misbehaviour, the use of physical force and endangering the life of some MPs. The happenings in Parliament are a shade worse than the ruckus in the Kerala Assembly,...
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Should legislatures in India have fixed tenures?
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Should legislatures in India have fixed tenures?

The Constitution (One Hundred and Twenty-Ninth Amendment) Bill, 2024, introduced in the Lok Sabha on December 17, 2024, mandates a fixed five-year term for the Lok Sabha, with State Legislature elections aligned to this cycle. If the Lok Sabha or any State Assembly is dissolved before completing its full term, mid-term elections will be held only for the remainder of the five-year term. Should legislatures in India have fixed tenures? P.D.T. Achary and M.R. Madhavan discuss the question in a conversation moderated by Aaratrika Bhaumik. Edited excerpts: Do fixed legislative tenures promote better governance by reducing the disruptions of frequent elections? P.D.T. Achary: It is worth questioning whether this Bill and the proposal for simultaneous polls are necessary at all. Th...
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Letters to The Editor — December 21, 2024
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Corrections and Clarifications — December 20, 2024

The caption of a standalone photograph titled “Honouring the bravehearts” (Inside pages, December 17, 2024) erroneously identified the Chief of the Army Staff as General Manoj Pande. It should have been General Upendra Dwivedi. Published - December 20, 2024 12:32 am ISTSource link
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Letters to The Editor — December 21, 2024
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Letters to The Editor — December 20, 2024

In Parliament Just what is happening to our elected representatives? Are they street fighters or political representatives? The much vaunted debate on the Constitution of India was a waste of time. Instead of a well-thought-out and dignified review of the Constitution, we were treated to long stretches of meaningless arguments. Mutual and personal recrimination dominated Parliament. In the past, battles were fought well and dignity was never bruised. Our politics and their practitioners have plumbed low depths. T.C. Narayan, Bengaluru Leaving on his terms With R. Ashwin’s retirement, Indian cricket has bid farewell to a true legend (‘Sport’ page, December 19). From spinning webs around the world’s best batsmen to his astute cricketing intellect, Ashwin redef...
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Making affordable generics more reliable
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Making affordable generics more reliable

Generic drugs are crucial for addressing healthcare affordability in a population marked by significant income disparities. Bioequivalent to branded drugs, generics offer cost-effective alternatives. India leverages economies of scale and low production costs to supply affordable medication domestically and internationally.With out-of-pocket healthcare expenditure at 39.4% of total health expenditure in 2021-22, generics reduce financial burdens and improve treatment adherence. By August 2024, generic medicines worth ₹5,600 crore sold through Pradhan Mantri Bhartiya Janaushadhi Pariyojana over a decade saved consumers an estimated ₹30,000 crore.Ensuring the quality of generic medicines in India is vital to make them affordable and effective as innovator drugs. Despite being bioequivalent t...
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Andhra Pradesh’s water policymaking matters
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Andhra Pradesh’s water policymaking matters

Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu chairs a review meeting with State Water Resources Department officials on December 3, 2024. Photo: Special Arrangement Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu has recently called for a comprehensive water policy for Andhra Pradesh while reviewing the water resources development. The idea of such a policy must be welcomed. The fledgling state of Andhra Pradesh requires, at any rate, a territorial re-imagining of its water futures especially given the multiple challenges it confronts as a result of its bifurcation a decade ago.Water policymaking at the State level is often underrated, yet it is both desirable and imperative for subnational and national water security. This is so at least for three fundamental ...
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Failing PDS beneficiaries in Odisha
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Failing PDS beneficiaries in Odisha

A tribal woman from Kandhamal district sits with social activists in front of the Odisha Assembly in Bhubaneswar, demanding better compensation for the family members of the three women who died in Kandhamal. | Photo Credit: The Hindu In November, three women died after consuming gruel made of mango kernel in Kandhamal district of Odisha. The tragedy has brought issues surrounding the implementation of the National Food Security Act, 2013, in the State into the limelight. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government in Odisha is facing criticism for stalling the public distribution system (PDS) on technical grounds, leading to deprivation among marginalised communities.In 2001 too, 24 Adivasis lost their lives ...
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Letters to The Editor — December 21, 2024
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Letters to The Editor — December 18, 2024

Business in the Upper HouseEminent personalities and educationists in public life are among those Members who occupy the seats in the Rajya Sabha. But even the proceedings in this House are dismal. Of late, one is witness to uproarious scenes and frequent violations of constitutional values, so much so that its democratic functioning is flouted with ease and without compunction. It is time that the Members of the Upper House also realise that they are accountable and engage in constructive debate. N. Visveswaran, Chennai Another angle to greenwashing the Indian Railways As a regular train traveller, I would like to raise another very visible, yet blatantly ignored, fallout of the electrification of certain railway lines: the mindless destruction of greenery that was the hallma...
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Green hydrogen and the financing challenge
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Green hydrogen and the financing challenge

The economics of green hydrogen production hinge on two factors — the levelised cost of electricity (LCOE) and electrolyzer costs, both driven by the cost of capital. | Photo Credit: Getty Images/iStockphoto As India charts its path to net-zero emissions by 2070, green hydrogen offers a crucial pathway to decarbonise its industrial sectors. India’s ambitious target of producing 5 million metric tonnes (MMT) of green hydrogen annually by 2030 signals its bid to establish early leadership in this emerging sector. However, the daunting economics of financing these projects threatens to derail India’s green hydrogen ambition.Based on a recent analysis by BloombergNEF, India is on track to meet only 10% of its stat...
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Panchamasalis back to square one
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Panchamasalis back to square one

Panchamasali reservation agitation committee honourary president Sri Basava Jaya Mrutyunjay Swami leads a ‘rasta roko’ protest on Pune-Bengaluru national highway against the lathi charge on the community members in Belagavi on December 12, 2024. Photo: Special Arrangement Last week, Lingayat-Panchamasali activists protested before the Suvarna Vidhana Soudha in Belagavi of north Karnataka, where the winter session of the legislature was being held. The protest demanding the community’s inclusion under the 2-A category of the Other Backward Classes (OBC) reservation list turned violent. But this is no new protest; it is a three-decade-old demand yet there is no sign of resolution.The demand received a fillip under the seer of the Lingayat Panchamasali P...
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Letters to The Editor — December 21, 2024
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Letters to The Editor — December 17, 2024

Debate in ParliamentA media article has highlighted how politicians in particular keep repeating the same thing over and over again. This is very true of Indian politicians. One is unable to understand what useful purpose is served by harping on the Emergency-era all the time, regardless of its relevance to current issues and legislative proposals. Those at the helm of affairs may rest assured that the Emergency is deeply etched in the collective memory of the nation, which will ensure that the people of India will never let anyone dare to attempt it again. M. Jameel Ahmed, Mysuru The picture of victory The replacement of the photo/painting in the Indian Army Chief’s lounge, which commemorated Pakistan’s surrender to India in the 1971 war, with another painting depicting my...
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Letters to The Editor — December 21, 2024
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Corrections and Clarifications — December 16, 2024

In the Editorial, “A legend, made” (December 13, 2024), a sentence in the first paragraph should have read: “Gukesh won Game 3 to tie the match....” Published - December 16, 2024 12:32 am IST Read Comments Copy link Email Facebook Twitter Telegram LinkedIn WhatsApp RedditS...
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Letters to The Editor — December 21, 2024
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Letters to The Editor — December 16, 2024

The two-day debateThe debate in Parliament on the Constitution went exactly as expected. The Opposition criticised the ruling party for its actions, while the ruling party repeated its accusations about the Emergency. It would have been unrealistic to expect this debate to result in any real solutions (Page 1, December 15). Instead of committing to working together to improve the Constitution, both sides across the political aisle seem to have dug in their heels even more. We can celebrate the Constitution’s 75th anniversary all we want, but it will not mean much unless we truly live by its values. As someone who has lived through 70 years of Indian politics, I have come to believe that leaders who are known for dishonesty and corruption have no right to speak about the Constitution’s valu...
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A nuanced and compassionate understanding of Rohingya’s flight is the need of the hour
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A nuanced and compassionate understanding of Rohingya’s flight is the need of the hour

The presence of Rohingya community within India is progressively becoming an issue of political blame-game and some political actors are busy pedalling mass anxiety without factoring in the complex multiplicity of vectors related to the issue, including the growing importance of the issue globally. Thus it is creating a situation where the presence of Rohingyas is becoming a manifestation of classic tale of poor and illegal immigrants in global north or global south as they are vilified and blamed for the rise in crime. They are dehumanised and subjected to dog-whistle tactics of mainstream politicians to induce mass anxiety.In Uttar Pradesh, in July 2023, the police had reportedly detained 74 Rohingya Muslims — 55 men, 14 women, and five minors — in 2023. Now, in Muslim majority former St...
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Growing cybercrime and the need for an Indian cybersecurity force
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Growing cybercrime and the need for an Indian cybersecurity force

In today’s rapidly evolving digital landscape, the importance of cybersecurity cannot be stressed enough. In India alone, a company falls victim to cyberattacks every 11 seconds. By August 2024, nearly 60% of businesses globally had experienced a ransomware attack. On a global scale, we contend with 5.5 billion malware attacks annually and an astounding 6.3 trillion attempted breaches —an average of 6.5 attacks every second. According to some leading research sites such as CRN India, ransomware poses a significant threat in India, with eight out of 10 enterprises confirming that they have experienced such attacks. Further, almost 40% of large enterprises in India have fallen victim to phishing email-led attacks. A striking 92% of all surveyed enterprises believe that operational disrup...
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Letters to The Editor — December 21, 2024
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Letters to The Editor — December 14, 2024

Court’s ‘freeze’ orderThe Supreme Court of India’s freeze on suits on claims over places of worship is a source of relief. Most Indians are descendants of migrants from other parts of the world — an inconvenient truth for some political narratives. This is a point that was also highlighted by the former Supreme Court judge, Justice Markandey Katju, in 2011. India’s history, marked by waves of migrations and invasions, has seen countless instances of places of worship being destroyed, repurposed, or rebuilt. Similarly, invaders have often displaced earlier settlers. Seeking justice for every such historical grievance is impractical and endless. Worse, entertaining such cases risks perpetuating communal strife and minority demonisation, which may serve divisive agendas but is certainly n...
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Letters to The Editor — December 21, 2024
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​Welcome spotlight: On the Supreme Court directive to Manipur government

Hearing a case by petitioners aggrieved with the unremitting hostilities in Manipur, the Supreme Court of India has directed the Manipur government to disclose details of destroyed and encroached properties following the ethnic violence a year and a half ago. The Court had also, a few months ago, extended the working tenure of the Justice Gita Mittal-led Committee supervising the investigations related to the violence and also humanitarian assistance and relief in the State. Ideally, these steps should not have been under the aegis of the Court and, instead, under the remit of the executive governments — in this case, the State and the Union Home Ministry. But the violent imagery of sexual violence, the wanton destruction of property, including places of worship, and the continuing hostili...
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Amol Palekar: The government can’t give in to trolls on social media
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Amol Palekar: The government can’t give in to trolls on social media

Actor Amol Palekar | Photo Credit: Sushil Kumar Verma An artist who has straddled the world of visual arts, theatre, and cinema with distinction, Amol Palekar’s Viewfinder is a fascinating account of his creative journey.In an industry where people revel in holding on to a popular image, Palekar has invested a lifetime challenging established conventions and norms. Days after the Supreme Court decided to examine his seven-year-old plea questioning pre-censorship in films, Palekar hopes it will be taken up soon. “I hope it is heard when I am still alive,” the 80-year-old deadpanned, for his separate petition on pre-censorship in theatre has been pending in the Mumbai High Court since 2017.‘Protect art and the ar...
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Column | In the lion’s royal shadow
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Column | In the lion’s royal shadow

Lions have long been symbols of royalty across the world. In India, kings sat on lion thrones (simha-asana), and Durga, the patron goddess of royal households, is shown riding into battle on a lion. Uniquely, in our country, lions are also linked with ascetics and their guardian goddesses. Both kings and ascetic were called shardula, a mythical being that is part lion, part tiger and even part elephant.The motif of the lady on the lion originated not in India, but in the Middle and Near East. Its emergence and popularity across Hinduism, Jainism and Buddhism reveals how ideas travel across geographies in history.Take the case of Singapore, in the Malay peninsula. The city is named after the lion, even though the big cats never existed in Southeast Asia. Legend says that a local prince saw ...
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Chief Justices need longer tenures
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Chief Justices need longer tenures

The Madras High Court in Chennai. | Photo Credit: The Hindu In September, Chief Justices were appointed to eight High Courts across India. While a good move, the fact that all of them, with the exception of one, will have very short tenures is unfortunate. This is a persistent problem that calls for urgent remedial action since it affects the institutional effectiveness of the judiciary.Short tenures In fact, one Chief Justice has already completed his tenure. Justice Rajiv Shakdher, who was Chief Justice of the Himachal Pradesh High Court, retired after just 24 days, on October 18. Just as he was settling into his role, he had to attend his farewell. Justice Manmohan, who had been serving as the Acting Ch...
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The significance of ANI versus OpenAI
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The significance of ANI versus OpenAI

ANI’s claims and OpenAI’s defence highlight two significant issues that AI faces: a balance between copyright infringement and fair use, and territoriality in data storage. Image for representation. | Photo Credit: Getty Images/iStockphoto In the evolving landscape of digital news dissemination, there is a symbiotic yet contentious relationship between news publishers and technology companies. Publishers depend on these platforms for hosting content and traffic referrals, which they monetise through advertising. Technology platforms, such as Meta, act as intermediaries, driving traffic to news websites and taking a share of the advertising revenue.The latest frontier of this struggle over the distribution of m...
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Letters to The Editor — December 21, 2024
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Letters to The Editor — December 11, 2024

Stalled HouseWith the repeated stalling of Parliamentary proceedings by both the ruling and Opposition party members over the past few days, it is time for them to be reminded of the historic Supreme Court ruling of 2022: that elected members are expected to show statesmanship and not brinkmanship. It is a matter of shame that the informative and thought-stimulating debates/discussions of yesteryears have given way to the increasing use of lung power to settle scores. Rising instances of despicable behaviour include the repeated trading of barbs, personal attacks and mud-slinging. A country aspiring to lead needs to focus on debating and discussing welfare issues pertaining to the common man. B. Suresh Kumar, Coimbatore China ties India’s External Affairs Minister s...
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Indians need the right to disconnect
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Indians need the right to disconnect

India does not have specific laws recognising the right to disconnect from work. However, the Constitution, the Directive Principles of State Policy, and various judicial pronouncements have spoken of the right to work in a conducive and healthy environment.  | Photo Credit: Getty Images/iStockphoto Soon after death of an EY employee in September, allegedly due to work pressure, MP Shashi Tharoor had said that he would raise the issue in Parliament. He said that “inhumanity at the workplace must be legislated out of existence.” A recent report by The Hindu reveals that Indian women in professional jobs, such as auditing, Information Technology, and media, work more than 55 hours a week. The working hours vary f...
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