Taken in its totality, the figure that your cover story on rare genetic diseases in Indians (Genageddon, June 24) is hair raising. As a society, we respond to the situations that surround us—the cases of malignant ailments that affect our near and dear ones, and sometimes, that odd case of a relative-of-a-relative diagnosed with an inexplicable, dangerous disease. So, your worldview automatically prioritises the categories of health dangers out there: cancer is mostly number one, followed by others. Doctors and scientists also work more on finding cures for the high priority diseases.
I had never been confronted with the entirety of rare genetic diseases till now. Seventy million is surely a huge number! It goes to show that even if, as a conglomerate of modern civilizations, we are getting better prepared against the diseases that threaten us, and that if you have more money, you are better equipped to fight the ailments that you can be potentially afflicted with, a part of biological suffering has remained forever arbitrary, not differentiating between the rich and the poor.
Ram Avadheesh, On E-Mail
Refer to Boiled Beans On Toast (June 24). A perennial genius and a liberal to the core, playwright, actor and film-maker Girish Karnad’s death brings down the curtains on a life that was dedicated to art and literature in every possible sense. The success of his play Yayati initiated a journey that saw him pen critically-acclaimed plays, including Hayavadana, often counted among the most important plays post independence. Then, he wrote the screenplays of Kannada films like Samskara and Vamsha Vriksha, co-directed by B.V. Karanth, that ushered in the new wave of Kannada cinema. But for a later generation of film audiences, especially that of Hindi films, he will be known for his acting roles rather than for his great intellectual achievements. By the early part of the millennium, Girish Karnad became a prominent social voices and there was rarely a social cause that he had not commented on. At times, he incurred the wrath of fellow artistes too. Once, for example, he had disparaged Naipaul and Tagore, which prompted a sharp reaction from filmmaker M.S. Sathyu.
J.S. Acharya, Hyderabad
This refers to Elephants Can’t Recycle (June 24). The BJP proved too hot for the SP-BSP alliance in the Lok Sabha polls. BSP chief Mayawati’s decision to sever ties with the SP clearly indicates that the alliance was a non-starter. In fact, the bonhomie between ‘bua-bhatija’ during the campaign was only a farce to cheat the electorate. Therefore, Mayawati’s remarks days after the announcement of Lok Sabha results do not come as a surprise. Similarly, the silence of Akhilesh Yadav indicates that the alliance was a blunder in the first place. All said and done, it is a wake-up call to both parties that voters cannot be taken for granted. Such an alliance among ideologically disparate parties with no common interest or programme just to prevent the BJP from gaining power is not something voters will take to kindly.
K.R. Srinivasan, Secunderabad
This refers to the column Weapons Of Mass Instruction (June 17). Over the last decade, China has pushed aggressive plans to gain technological dominance. The results can be seen in the global rankings of universities—many Chinese universities feature amongst the best. Indian institutions like the IITs still have a long way to go. For years, employers have lamented that they are unable to recruit people with the right skill-sets. Colleges in India churn out millions of graduates, but not many of them are employable. Experts opine that India must improve the quality of courses and teachers. It must also overcome a culture that values conventional education more than job-oriented vocational training. We need to focus on vocational training. While it is good that many more Indians are going to school than ever before, the level of education remains poor. Government schools are mostly poorly funded and ill-managed. Students from rural areas lack the skills to thrive in today’s technology-driven world. We need to recruit quality teachers by offering attractive salaries and benefits. One wonders what is being done with the funds collected through the education cess. An investment in education is an investment for the future.
H.N.Ramakrishna, Bangalore
We bestow to fate that which we cannot fully comprehend, but comprehend we must.
Anil S., Pune
Refer to All Is Not Well (June 24), your story covering the alarming drought in Maharashtra. Fresh water is the Earth’s single-most important resource for all life forms. The water crisis in Maharashtra is a calamity of national emergency proportions. Then why isn’t it being talked about enough on the media and why is it relegated to some state issue? We have an impoverished and brutish understanding of non-human issues in this era no wonder writers like Amitav Ghosh are questioning modern progress for its myopic vision of natural resources. A part of being modern essentially lies in one’s capacity to exploit resources. Politicians exploit human and cultural resource while corporations exploit natural resources. This attitude is so deep seated in societies that we think of calamities like drought as being only a sad twist of fate. It is not just that good folk, it is the result of decades of exploitation of nature. And the people of rural Maharashtra are the victims of this. For those who think the political narrative is lost to a right wing in India, let’s consolidate politically for nature, and we will get to the real culprits. Fascism and anti-ecologism go hand in hand, I strongly suspect.
Arvind Mishra, Lucknow
This refers to Lilette Dubey’s tribute to Girish Karnad (Boiled Beans on Toast, June 24). In his passing, we have lost one of the greatest personalities of our times. In our youth, Girish Karnad was a name to reckon with—not only as a path-breaking modernist playwright, but as a powerful actor in some of our best movies. Ankur (1974) was a landmark in his career, and in Nishant (1975), he played a part in a movie that took a step in the direction of dismantling feudalism. In the unforgettable Manthan (1976) too, Karnad played a fictionalised version of Verghese Kurien, the great architect of the AMUL collective and the milk revolution. Then there was the TV series Malgudi Days, still enduringly popular with the masses. To me, like many others, the staging of his inimitable Tughlaq, staged against the impressive backdrop of Delhi’s Purana Qila by the great Ibrahim Alkazi, remained an unforgettable experience. Karnad’s involvement with cinema decreased in later years, but as a playwright he was prolific—writing many plays in a four-decade long career. Mostly taking off from history and mythology, he used these entry points and backcloths to comment on contemporary India and its manifold evils. Karnad, besides being such a towering literary figure, was a man of steadfast morality. Many do not know that the Gnanpith, Padma Shri and Padma Bhushan awardee had to face the ire of violently agitating Kannadigas when Karnataka and Tamil Nadu fought over the Cauvery water sharing tribunal’s judjment. Karnad’s was a lone voice urging Karnataka to gracefully accept the tribunal’s award. His house was not only pelted with stones, but it also sustained damage. Still, Karnad stood his ground and made everyone see reason. Such was the greatness of the man.
Bidyut Kumar Chatterjee, Faridabad
This refers to your story on the new external affairs minister (A Spark Lit Externally, June 17). An expert in external affairs has taken over as external affair minister. S. Jaishankar’s priority should be to ensure that India gets a fair global coverage, as India has not been getting a good press in North America and Europe. Jaishankar will have to be concerned about why India got so little hearing in the international media after the Balakot air-strikes. Not even in some countries with controlled media, which otherwise are friendly to India, was there any favourable coverage. Jaishankar, with his expertise on Russia and China, should come handy in getting to the roots of the reason why the Modi-led Indian government has been getting a bad press in the past two years in some western countries. It had become quite evident that Modi was handling foreign affairs and policy singlehandedly, and the previous minister had hardly any say. Now, Modi can benefit from Jaishankar’s expert opinions whenever he needs it.
Lal Singh, Amritsar
The cover story What Youth Think (June 17) reveals startling facts about the Indian youth. Two-thirds of those surveyed say they visit a place of worship (obviously, that of the religion they belong to) at least once a week. Interestingly, the number of males and females who go to a religious place daily is similar, though the former are more likely to visit multiple days a week. It is significant that the role models of 75 per cent of youngsters are someone within their family. Eighty per cent prefer marriage over other relationships and a majority are not fine with premarital sex. These findings contradict the general perception that our youngsters are westernised and detached from religion, relationships, roots and our cultural ethos. If youth in the metros think politicians are harming India even more than terrorists, it is politicians and their politics that are at fault.
M.C. Joshi, Lucknow
What beef does the youth have with pornstars? They are harmless professionals who are making a living out of what is surely a demanding job in an exploitative industry with no pension plan.
Nitin Lal, On E-Mail
