This refers to Kuldeep Nayar’s interview with Dr Manmohan Singh titled "The Entire System Reeks" (July 24). A bureaucrat-turned-politician, Singh was candid enough to talk about some of his frustrations as finance minister. He was the right man in the wrong company of self-seeking politicians. Though the Congress government, steeped in corruption, has been voted out of power, Singh will be remembered for his achievements, especially liberalisation, free market economy and the ending of the quota-permit-licence raj, albeit he could not eliminate the inspector raj altogether.
The Congress rule, however, was a saga of unending scams, as we now see numerous skeletons tumbling out of its cupboards. They say you can’t fool all the people all the time. But our political masters have developed the art of fooling all. Look at the euphemisms coined by them. The famous securities scam was attributed to a ‘system-failure’. No one assumes responsibility for the failure of the system. And that is why crores of public funds are disappearing into thin air.
A.G. Ajwani, Delhi
This refers to your article on the Punjab Police, After the Highs, the Lows (July 24). Most of my relatives live in Punjab and they all know at least five or six families whose relatives have been killed by the police under K.P.S. Gill in an ‘encounter.’ What could you expect from a DGP who places himself next to god in an interview in Newstrack, is fond of Scotch and ‘posteriors’?
Vicky Bhatia, Agra
E. Jeyasingh’s response in Letters (July 17) to Sunder Rajan’s review of Saeed Naqvi’s book, The Last Brahmin Prime Minister was the typical reaction of a Mandalite. The leadership of the Ayodhya movement is in the hands of other castes including a substantial number of backward castes. The exodus of Kashmiri Pandits never strikes the reader since it is unfashionable to talk about it.
By trying to see everything through blinkered glasses, in terms of Brahmins versus the rest and glorifying the latter at the cost of fudging the real issues, the reader readily falls into the Mandalite trap. Unfortunately, in the present intellectual clime even the slightest defence of Brahmins becomes antithetical.
R. Ramaswamy, Delhi
This veggie mafia (cover sory, Green Evolution, July 31) really gets my goat! I have just one question to ask them—do they know that plants have life? Since they are as alive as humans or animals, does this mean that it is okay to kill and eat someone who is dumb but not someone who can actually bellow and fight back? It’s time these hypocrites stopped going over the edge on the alleged moral aspect of vegetarianism.
C. Lahiri, Delhi
It’s true that there is a growing trend towards urban vegetarianism. Maybe it is due to the new-found ecological and medical concerns or to the awareness and influence of food wisdom. Whatever be the cause, a balanced diet may be best suited for humans.
It is necessary to examine whether our food habits have a bearing on our physical strength and stamina and if it affects our performance in sports and other fields. The aim for ‘gold’ has to start from our household. Along with education and health-care, the nation has to give top priority to nutritious food for all with a time-bound programme.
And just as TNCs are introducing their fast food-culture here, why aren’t Indians trying to invade the world with veg food and earn foreign exchange?
A. Jacob Sahay, Thiruvananthapuram
Green Evolution was a bold attempt at highlighting vegetarian food and its advantages. However you should have titled it Green Revolution.
Your data does confirm that meaty substances add more fat to the human body than vegetables. A scientist in the US had proved that vegetarianism is safer than non-vegetarianism as the latter helps the fast spread of diseases, like cancer and rheumatism through bacteria of animals.
Your cover story was so different that no one had attempted it till now.
T.R. Anand, Sarangabad (WB)
The Star Raider (July 17) Rupert Murdoch is living in a fool’s paradise if he believes that by getting access to Indian air space, he would, through Hindi, bring "order—and ultimately, peace" to India.
Thrusting Russian down the throats of non-Russians for more than 70 years could not bring ‘order’ to the former USSR. Thrusting Japanese down Korean throats did not help Japan retain its hold on Korea. And so it will be with Hindi being thrust down non-Hindi speaking throats.
S. Gandhimathi, Madras
It is obvious that the Indian press is afraid of Rupert Murdoch and the entry of foreign media into the country. Murdoch’s invasion began the day he introduced STAR TV in India. It improved production technicalities but at the same time is eroding traditional values and ethics through characters portrayed in its serials. For instance, Baywatch is nothing but a parade of nude young men and women. The Bold and the Beautiful formula is to love someone, marry another, leave him and look for someone better. These serials are acting as slow poison, corroding our cultural, national and social values. And, perhaps, that’s the reason why we’re afraid of Rupert Murdoch.
V. Prasanna, Bombay
Apropos The Star Raider, clothes that are worn by fashion models reveal more than they hide and are seldom meant for common people. So it is with STAR TV and its programmes.
R.D Sharma, Delhi
The Star Raider (July 17) Rupert Murdoch is living in a fool’s paradise if he believes that by getting access to Indian air space, he would, through Hindi, bring "order—and ultimately, peace" to India.
Thrusting Russian down the throats of non-Russians for more than 70 years could not bring ‘order’ to the former USSR. Thrusting Japanese down Korean throats did not help Japan retain its hold on Korea. And so it will be with Hindi being thrust down non-Hindi speaking throats.
S. Gandhimathi, Madras
It is obvious that the Indian press is afraid of Rupert Murdoch and the entry of foreign media into the country. Murdoch’s invasion began the day he introduced STAR TV in India. It improved production technicalities but at the same time is eroding traditional values and ethics through characters portrayed in its serials. For instance, Baywatch is nothing but a parade of nude young men and women. The Bold and the Beautiful formula is to love someone, marry another, leave him and look for someone better. These serials are acting as slow poison, corroding our cultural, national and social values. And, perhaps, that’s the reason why we’re afraid of Rupert Murdoch.
V. Prasanna, Bombay
Apropos The Star Raider, clothes that are worn by fashion models reveal more than they hide and are seldom meant for common people. So it is with STAR TV and its programmes.
R.D Sharma, Delhi
Apropos the article, "Ab Hum Sarkar Hain" (July 17), parliamentarians of the likes of Phoolan—illogically conceited and hopelessly uncivilised—are a painful reminder of how skewed a democracy we have become. Year after year, it’s the electorate of this nation which sends all sorts of lumpen elements—sadhus, criminals and dacoits—to Parliament; in the event of misgovernance, then, who gives them the right to cry themselves hoarse in protest and despair?
While the need for empowerment of the lowest levels of our society cannot be overemphasised, we can’t afford to have insensitive and unintelligent demagogues run our nation. They are unaware of the magnificence and criticality of the task they-are faced with and their priorities and responsibilities.
If we seriously expect that our representatives should govern the nation efficiently, we’ll first have to ensure that they are capable of doing so. We need to be more cautious while exercising our franchise so that intelligence and a responsible attitude takes precedence over cheap populism and rhetoric.
Rahul Gaur, Bikaner (Rajasthan)
This refers to the article Stones and Glass-Houses (July 17). The article is a fitting reply to the so-called champions of swadeshi. Can the swadeshis opposing the entry of TNCs and foreign media tell us why they are not opposing the flow of foreign funds to the NGOs who are accepting funds worth billions of dollars from foreign organisations while the TNCs are being treated as untouchables? If TNCs and foreign media are bad, then foreign money is equally bad. Another absurd charge against the TNCs is that they are destroying our economy. On the contrary, it’s the politicians who are looting our motherland through scams like hawala and urea.
A. Shafiqur Rahman, Madras
Apropos In Isolation Ward Again (July 17), we must appreciate India’s stand on CTBT which says that what we need is a comprehensive test ban and not nuclear weapon test explosion ban treaty as is being professed by nuclear weapon states. India’s present security concerns do not permit it to give up its security rights under NWSs pressure. Countries like Israel and Pakistan may succumb to US pressure; the US itself might extend its security umbrella to Pakistan. But India should stay firm in its stand. It should pass a special nuclear motion to demonstrate that it is ‘steadfast’ on the nuclear option. What it should accept is a CTBT free of all loopholes and is binding on all.
Brajmohan Singh, Delhi
India has displayed tremendous guts in defying the move by big nations to make it sign the CTBT. But is it not farcical that one of the founder nations of NAM, which has always stood for nuclear disarmament, has suddenly started harping on ‘national security’? If all countries start thinking this way, no one will be left with nuclear weapons. And its insistent stand will have neighbouring countries shielding their nuclear activities. Rather than boasting of our strength, it seems expedient to sign this treaty and make Pakistan follow suit.
Zubair Ahmed, Bangalore
The article, Fighting a Noteworthy Cause (July 10), gives a litany of excuses on the part of currency authorities for not doing the job expected of them. It is easier to print and circulate notes than coins. Hence the replacement of five and two rupee notes with coins is impractical. No doubt small notes get soiled earlier as their velocity of circulation is more. The solution is to print more notes and withdraw them as they get torn. Surely there are other ways of effecting economy than cutting down on note production.
Abhishek, Punkunnam, Trichur
