This refers to your cover story COVID-19: All We Know, All We Don’t (June 22). Did the lockdown work? That is a million-dollar question. It was supposed to slow down and eventually stop the spread of the disease and give the government time to bolster healthcare services. Some might say that without the lockdown, there might have been millions of cases instead of the three lakh or so right now. However, the answer is that the government has failed on both counts. It hoped that by locking people, cases would be confined, but it did not take any proactive action alongside. It failed to ramp up testing, which is a vital tool to stop the spread of the pandemic. But in the first 45 days, the number of tests did not touch even a lakh. Many people who had symptoms were advised to remain at home, but neither they nor their family members were tested. This was a grave error. The US has conducted almost eight million tests, while India’s figures remain dismal. Our broken healthcare system remains a hindrance. We spurned the opportunity to contain the virus during the lockdown and still seem to rely more on divine intervention rather than strategic planning.
Ashok Goswami, Mumbai
The Black Death of 1347, in which a third of Europe’s population perished, is a grim reminder of the upheavals that turned highly stratified medieval society upside down, adversely affecting the fortunes of Europe’s wealthy landowners. The novel coronavirus could become a game changer too. The post-liberalisation period saw market-driven reforms, but the poor remained largely invisible. Even the media and mainstream cinema catered to the upwardly mobile urban middle class. As the pandemic deepens the economic crisis, the value of migrant labourers’ work and their indispensability is dawning upon us. As economic activities resume, their services are required to boost the economy. So, immediate succour and monetary benefits are the need of the hour to win their trust and support, Otherwise, who knows what chaos will follow?
Vijay Adhikari, Nainital
Company Call Letter from Emily Eden (1797-1869) to a friend. She was an English poet and novelist who wrote an account of her travels in India.
The cover story Can India become China 2.0? (June 15) is on point. We must dream big, but also not close our eyes to the obvious. The world was never so small as it is today. We should realise that the position China occupies is the result of its long-term strategies and strong policies. Its political system might have given China an upper hand, but its efforts can not be overlooked. Anti-China sentiments might make us jubilant, but rhetoric cannot lead us anywhere. We need a thorough analysis of our orientation and preparedness to avail opportunities before other nations snatch them.
Devendra K. Mishra, Mumbai
It is unfortunate that the LAC has become a potential flashpoint when the world is grappling with a pandemic. However, it is a positive sign that talks are on at military and diplomatic levels to find a peaceful solution. Both India and China must guard against a hardline stance and avoid a collision course. They should rely on diplomatic engagement to reduce tension along the border in Ladakh and Sikkim and sort out their territorial claims to areas adjacent to the LAC. Both have health and economic challenges due to the pandemic, so military conflict is not an option. No country should base its foreign policy on the ‘might is right’ principle or flex its military might to settle territorial claims. If reports that China made multiple incursions into areas hitherto held and patrolled by India were true, it should retreat and restore the status quo ante. Since we are a democracy, the Opposition is within its rights to ask the government to share information about the situation along the border and explain the credibility gap between denial of intrusions and partial disengagement or pull-out by Chinese troops. Some sections of the Indian media do no service with rhetoric like “India stares down the dragon”. Jingoism, bellicosity and sabre-rattling are not signs of strength. Anyway, a pandemic is not a time to think in terms of nationalism, militarism and expansionism—it is a time to foster peace and cooperation. The virus mocks the world’s troops, tanks and stockpiles of arms and makes a case for demilitarising the planet.
G. David Milton, Maruthancode
This refers to Our Tarnished Touchstones (June 15). Balbir Singh, like other hockey players of his time, always lived in the shadow of Dhyan Chand. Consequently, he could never get his due. Moreover, hockey, despite being our national game, has not been able to get corporate backing and thus, generate interest among the masses. It is up to those in power to set things right. Unfortunately, successive governments have failed here as well. We may have recently started thinking beyond cricket, but hockey—both the game and its iconic players—continues to be ignored.
Vijai Pant, On E-Mail
This refers to Dead Xihu’s Tears (June 15). The oil well blaze has gutted Baghjan in Assam. This area is also known as the Amazon rainforest of the east.The Baghjan area had rich biodiversity, but the fire has had an impact on the wildlife. Eight thousand people have lost their homes. The CM of Assam tried to console the victims. Locals are now demanding a total ban on drilling holes for oil and gas around the Dibru Saikhowa National Park. They want restrictions on drilling within a 10-15-km radius of the park. The blaze hasn’t stopped even though firefighters have been trying to douse it for more than three weeks. Experts from Oil India Ltd say it could take more than one month. Nobody can predict what will happen to the locals. Hundreds of thousands of birds, animals and trees have been gutted to ash. The incident proves that uncontrolled development and industrialisation will eventually destroy our biodiversity and our lives.
Ashim Kumar Chakraborty, Guwahati
