Letters to The Editor — September 7, 2024

‘Bulldozer justice’

It is sad that there is a propagation of hatred and divisive politics in the Hindi-belt States. ‘Bulldozer justice’ is an example. It is also a fact that these States have poor developmental indices. One hopes that the voice of the top court will be heard in these lands.

G.E. Bagthasingh,

Chennai

Recognise the stalwarts

September 5 has passed, observed as National Teachers’ Day in India. While I join many others in welcoming the annual teachers’ award given to many teachers on the birth anniversary of the Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan, I recall another glorious personage — Rt.Hon. V.S. Srinivasa Sastri. An accomplished speaker, he was called “silver tongue” Sastri, leaving his listeners spell-bound by his fluency and diction. His famous speech at Geneva still stands as a shining example of his arresting style in delivering lectures.

September 5 in remembrance of Radhakrishnan and September 22 to commemorate V.S. Srinivasa Sastri (his birth anniversary) can be celebrated as ‘Teachers’ Day’. Mine is a lone nonagenarian’s voice from Chennai hoping to prevail upon the government to act on this.

Mani Nataraajan,

Chennai

Still going strong

In an age of electronic gadgets, that typewriters still hold sway was bliss for old-timers like me. Even today, the typewriter is a vital cog in the functioning of the Indian judicial system (E-paper, “A stroll through still-thriving typewriting institutes”, September 4). The clickety-clack was a sound that spelt life for many. In the early 1980s, when Godrej conducted a ‘speed test’ contest to promote its ‘Prima’ typewriter, I was ranked second on an all-India basis, clocking 81 w.p.m. The sight of type-bars going back and forth, and swift fingers magically transferring the ink on ribbons into words and sentences on crisp white paper are still a fascinating experience.

R. Sivakumar,

Chennai

A different experience

I am a senior citizen and a reader. Due to portrayals in films, I have always had a negative image of police stations. But I was in for a surprise when I had to approach the C6 Thudiyalur Police Station, Coimbatore recently. This was because I had to file a first information report on the loss of bank locker keys. The receptionist outside gave me a warm welcome and after checking with the superior officers, guided me to a senior police official who helped me write out a revised petition. This was then entered in the police register. After a few clarifications, I was given a computerised printout to acknowledge receipt of the petition. The bank officials had told me that it would take one month to get a certificate but at the police station, I was given the document in an hour as they understood the requirement and were satisfied with my responses to queries on the loss of the locker keys. The next day I received a call from the Commissioner of Police’s office on the ‘service quality’ at Thudiyalur. The only issue that I would point out is that the condition of the police station needs to be looked into. There also needs to be a separate room to question those who approach the police to file FIRs or submit petitions.

Nandkumar,

Coimbatore