Letters to The Editor — July 26, 2024
Letters to The Editor — July 26, 2024
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26Jul 
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25Jul No Comments
No Comments Letters to The Editor — July 25, 2024
Union Budget The Budget does have some trace of political optics. Though the tax regime does give some relief to the tax-payer, the question remains whether the new tax regime encourages the ‘saving tendency’, as in the old regime where savings did occupy a good space. It is an undeniable fact that savings are a must for a robust economy. S. Seshadri, Chennai In a visual nutshell The Budget issue (July 23) was a treat with its detailed analysis on the pros and cons of the Union Budget. But the one thing that caught my attention on opening The Hindu in the morning was the lead cartoon. In his uncanny whimsical manner in depicting political characters, the visualiser has brought out the feelings of the common man on the Union Budget. Saravanan Krubapuri, Chennai In the jungle of write-ups...
23Jul No Comments
No Comments Letters to The Editor — July 23, 2024
Biden bows out After questions were raised over his physical and mental acuity to run for U.S. presidentship, Joe Biden’s move to bow out of the race is no surprise (Page 1, July 22). Though Mr. Biden has now endorsed Vice-President Kamala Harris as a Democratic nominee, one wonders whether the party would second her. A lot is stacked against Ms. Harris. If she wins, it would herald a new era in American politics. Prabhu Raj R., Bengaluru It is not clear in which direction the Democrats will go now. This is certainly not the way Mr. Biden would have wished to end his decades-long political career. But the stakes in this election are higher than ever. R. Sivakumar, Chennai Mr. Biden’s decision is a blunder. First, he ought to have fought tooth and nail against his formidable foe, Donald ...
22Jul No Comments
No Comments Letters to The Editor — July 22, 2024
Unrest in Bangladesh The ongoing violence in Bangladesh against the reservation system, which has claimed many lives, is shocking (Page 1, July 21). Of course, growing unemployment is the main reason that prompted youth to revolt against the government. Further, it is a fact that the gap between the “haves and the have-nots” is widening across the world. Rulers around the globe need to look into this and provide opportunities to all sections in a democratic manner. Kshirasagara Balaji Rao, Hyderabad In Paris It is a great moment that the French government has requested India to help in providing security for the Paris Olympics in the form of a dog squad (Inside pages, “10 Indian dogs in Paris to guard Olympics”, July 18). It is an honour that has been bestowed on our security system. Th...
19Jul No Comments
No Comments Letters to The Editor — July 19, 2024
Jobs Bill States must remember that it is merit and not domicile that matters in the private sector (Page 1, “Karnataka halts jobs Bill as industry raises uproar”, July 18). The private sector thrives only because it promotes meritocracy and productivity. The State’s endeavour should be to create more jobs, provide better skills to youth and bring in more investment. Bal Govind, Noida, Uttar Pradesh In Karnataka, the move to have job reservation in the private sector for locals/Kannadigas has created a storm within a certain sector/section. It is ironic that these enterprises grab every advantage provided by the State government/agencies (concessional rates, tax reduction, cheap water and power) and flourish but have reservations when it comes to employing locals. Most of them employ No...
18Jul No Comments
No Comments Letters to The Editor — July 18, 2024
No value for human life The media and political circles in Kerala celebrated the State’s top rank in the SDG index with great fervour. However, just days after this achievement, came the news of the death of a sanitation worker (Inside pages, July 16). The citizen is ultimately responsible for this tragedy. The fact is that large amounts of non-biodegradable waste would not have ended up in the sewers if we had a basic civic sense. It was also distressing to have images of the rescue personnel diving into filth. A thorough study is needed to understand how waste is collected and disposed of in our towns and metros. Timely inspections should be conducted, and authorities held accountable if lapses are found at each stage. Heavy fines should be imposed from their personal accounts. The Am...
17Jul No Comments
No Comments Letters to The Editor — July 17, 2024
Court and Money Bill route The Bharatiya Janata Party is now faced with challenges in the form of a strong Opposition and the need for debate and discussion in matters of passing contentious Bills in Parliament. Therefore, it is very likely that the passing of Bills in both Houses of Parliament will encounter hurdles in terms of a consensus. With the Supreme Court to hear petitions against the passing of laws as Money Bills, the days ahead will be interesting (Page 1, July 16). N. Visveswaran, Chennai Since 2014, many Bills have been passed under the cover of Money Bills, without any discussion or debate in the Lok Sabha. The government used its brute majority to advantage despite protests by a weak Opposition then. The amendments made to the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) wh...
16Jul No Comments
No Comments Letters to The Editor — July 16, 2024
Encounter in Chennai It appears that the Chennai city police commissioner is, as he said when assuming charge, beginning to “speak to history sheeters in the language they understand” (Page 1, July 15). The accused should have been left alive so that the case of why the BSP leader was murdered is solved. A. Jainulabdeen, Chennai The version of events put out by the Chennai police is unbelievable. The new city commissioner did say that he would ‘talk to rowdies in their language’ but he must teach his own officers a lesson or two in putting out a credible version of events and also about ‘common sense’. With the death of the ‘accused’, how does the police propose to gather crucial evidence? A.P. Thiruvadi, Chennai Assassination bid The abortive bid on the life of Donald Trump exposes the...
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No Comments Letters to The Editor — July 13, 2024
Myanmar and democracy I commend The Hindu’s recent coverage of Myanmar and the question of how peace can be achieved. The old approach of Myanmar’s neighbours was to indulge the murderous and venal Sit-tat/Tatmadaw for fear of complete anarchy. However understandable that view was, the Sit-tat is now the principal source of chaos. Some in India — inter alia in this daily’s pages (‘Parley’ – Opinion page, “Should India review its Myanmar policy in view of the humanitarian crisis?”, July 5) — have started to demand a less passive Indian policy. They should, more boldly, embrace the cause of a federal democracy as the only path to peace. Caution but prolongs the agony. Today, the people of Myanmar are bombed, beaten, robbed, and raped. But they have shown that they can only be governed by ...
12Jul No Comments
No Comments Letters to The Editor — July 12, 2024
Court on maintenance The Supreme Court of India’s verdict (Page 1, “Divorced Muslim women entitled to secular remedy: SC”, July 11) will truly empower them financially and socially. This is yet another landmark judgment by the apex Court after Mary Roy vs The State Of Kerala (1986) that gave equal rights to Syrian Christian women as their male siblings in matters of inheritance. N.A. Joseph, Ettumanoor, Kottayam, Kerala The Court ruling is not only the need of the times but would also go a long way in empowering divorced Muslim women. It will protect their individuality and enhance their self-respect. C.G. Kuriakose, Kothamangalam, Kerala Judge on the homemaker Justice B.V. Nagarathna of the Supreme Court of India has hit the mark in her comments on a lack of emotional and financial sec...
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No Comments Letters to The Editor — July 10, 2024
Court and NEET Now that the Supreme Court of India has concluded that questions in the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (Undergraduate) were leaked (Page 1, July 9), and that the sanctity of the examination was compromised, the moot question is what next? Cancellation of NEET-UG 2024 in its entirety is needed so that justice is done to all 23 lakh students who appeared for the examination. In order to maintain the continuity of studies of aspiring students, the examination for 2024 may be cancelled and the State governments asked to follow the procedure that was in vogue during the pre-NEET era for admission in medical colleges. The National Testing Agency (NTA) should plug all loopholes and have a foolproof system in place for NEET-UG in 2025. Dr. J. Rajan Vedasiromoni, Tirunelve...
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No Comments Letters to The Editor — July 8, 2024
Left of centre shiftsDeparting from the existing winds favouring right of centre ascendancy in many countries, the wins of Labour party leader Keir Starmer as the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, and reformist leader Masoud Pezeshkian as Iran’s new President-elect are reasons for subdued cheer for the left of centre ecosystem everywhere. The noticeable difference is that while Mr. Keir does not have to look over his shoulder frequently to a titular king, Mr. Pezeshkian has no such luxury as the religious head and supreme leader could be breathing down his neck. The results, on the whole, proclaim added strength to the common man. Ayyasseri Raveendranath, Aranmula, Kerala It is a welcome change for Iran that a reformist has been chosen as the new President-elect. But as conservative...
6Jul No Comments
No Comments Letters to The Editor — July 6, 2024
The U.K. verdict The Labour Party’s emphatic win in the general election heralds a new era for Britain. But, it is not without its challenges. Political change and the ‘inconsistency’ of Prime Ministers led to the downfall of the Conservative Party. Labour now has a challenging run ahead of it. Balagopal Gopinath, Keerikkad, Alappuzha, Kerala Whither quality The photograph of a crumbled bridge in Siwan district, Bihar, not only reflects the poor quality of construction of bridges in the State but also the waste of precious time, human energy, and crores of taxpayer money (Opinion page – ‘Picture of the week’, “Falling like a house of cards”, July 5). That bridges are falling like a pack of cards is a blot on the civil engineering profession in India. Some of the most massive and expensi...
5Jul No Comments
No Comments Letters to The Editor — July 5, 2024
Jarring We cannot bring back the dead, but the least we could have done was to grieve for those who lost their precious lives (“Hathras stampede toll hits 121; organiser pins blame on ‘anti-social elements’” (July 4). The large-scale T20 World Cup celebrations at this moment are cause for introspection. Have we lost sensitivity and compassion towards our own countrymen? Could not the victory celebrations have been low key? Balasubramaniam Pavani, Secunderabad Railways and safety There have been many train accidents in India in the near past. The recent one in which a goods train collided with an express train near West Bengal’s New Jalpaiguri is gruesome. When Lalu Prasad Yadav was the Union Minister for Railways, accidents were very rare. Further, he was able to ensure that the Railway...
4Jul No Comments
No Comments Letters to The Editor — July 4, 2024
In Parliament The abrasive exchanges between the Congress and the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party have certainly lowered the dignity of Parliament (Page 1, “PM says mandate is for continuity, Cong. a ‘parasite’ on allies”, July 3). The Prime Minister, given his seniority, should have shown some consideration for fellow members instead of bulldozing them. No MP should forget that a strong Opposition, which has been missing for a long time, is essential for a healthy democracy. The BJP failed to win the required number of seats and must introspect over this. P. Sanath Kumar, Visakhapatnam The Prime Minister’s speech did not have answers for the points raised by the Leader of the Opposition or the other Opposition leaders. Instead, it was focused on levelling accusations and ridiculing the C...
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29Jun No Comments
No Comments Letters to The Editor — June 29, 2024
Talking about Emergency The President of India mentioning the Emergency that was imposed by the Congress-led government in 1975, in her first address to Parliament after the 2024 general election, was unusual (Page 1, June 28). There is no doubt that the Emergency episode was a nightmare but most people in India have forgotten about it. Though the speech had the line, “My Government is continuously working for lasting peace in the North-East”, there has been no mention of the burning strife in Manipur. It is a pity that the ruling party and its government at the Centre talk about history instead of debating contemporary issues. Kshirasagara Balaji Rao, Hyderabad I am 85 years old and have worked in the central government. The attempt to harp on the Emergency is unwarranted. That Mrs Gan...
28Jun No Comments
No Comments Letters to The Editor — June 28, 2024
On the Emergency It is strange that the Bharatiya Janata Party-led National Democratic Alliance government is now harping on the excesses of the Emergency instead of addressing the pressing concerns being experienced by the people of India (Page 1, June 27). It is noteworthy that there was no mention of the ongoing ethnic strife in Manipur that has drawn world-wide attention. The BJP does not seem to have changed its spots. If this is its tone and tenor, government and Opposition cooperation and any meaningful dialogue between the two of them is unlikely to happen. V. Padmanabhan Bengaluru The Emergency days were traumatic not only for the general public but also for many a political leader, government employees and several other sections of the society including the media. However, it ...
27Jun No Comments
No Comments Letters to The Editor — June 27, 2024
The Speaker The words by the top leader in the country, of there to be consultations and consensus in running the government, seem to have gone up in thin air. In the 17th Lok Sabha, the present Speaker was seen to be acting in a partisan manner. Given his past conduct in the august House, where the Opposition was hardly given a chance to air its views, it remains to be seen how Parliament will run in the days ahead. It is utopian to expect a leopard to change its spots. Tharcius S. Fernando, Chennai Governor’s view One is in agreement with the sentiment expressed by the Tamil Nadu Governor, R.N. Ravi — “We must not be in denial over drug abuse, illicit liquor in T.N.” (Chennai, Inside pages, June 26). The ruling party in the State needs to act. The Chief Minister must issue a comprehen...
26Jun No Comments
No Comments Letters to The Editor — June 26, 2024
‘Will work for consensus’The Prime Minister’s “aggressive note”, that his government “Will work for consensus in Parliament, says Modi” (Page 1, June 25), is befuddling. Has the top leader forgotten that he needs to shun “double speak”? Right now, Modi phraseology is about one-way traffic. In the coalition government that he runs, the most important portfolios are with the BJP. The pro tem Speaker selection too has been his/the party’s choice. Mr. Modi has already enjoyed two stints as Prime Minister. In his third term, he could accommodate fine gestures and democratic values. P.K. Sharma, Barnala, Punjab Water seepage The Prime Minister took a personal interest in the construction of the Ram Temple in Ayodhya, and the inauguration was grand. Alas, the gigantic structure now has flaws (...
25Jun No Comments
No Comments Letters to The Editor — June 25, 2024
Toddy tapping I write this letter as a retired (and first) Dean of Kanyakumari Government Medical College, Tamil Nadu. Every year, many fall victim to spurious (methanol-added) arrack. Those who are addicted to arrack consume this toxic liquor. To avoid this, the government must think of opening toddy shops. Toddy is a natural product from palm and coconut trees. In Kerala, coconut toddy is common and is cheaper than Indian-made foreign liquor and arrack. Farmers can generate income for themselves and the government as well. The government should grant licences to tape toddy from palmyra trees. Dr. Arunachalam, Nagercoil, Tamil Nadu The state of the nation On going through newspapers and watching television, one is left with the indelible impression that we are fast moving away from a c...