L E T T E R S    T O    T H E    E D I T O R

Assist, not obstruct, development

The Haryana government has filed an application in the Supreme Court seeking to ‘restrain Punjab from going ahead with the construction of the Shahpur Kandi Dam (SKD) on the river Ravi’.

SKD would serve the same purpose as is being performed by the Nangal Dam built below the Bhakra Dam. SKD would even out the fluctuating releases made from the Thein Dam through its power plant. Each unit of the Thein Dam has a capacity of 150 MW and four units have been installed. The units are operated to “meet peak demands” and in the absence of a balancing structure like the SKD, the water gets spilled from the Madhopur barage and flows into Pakistan.

Already Rs 190 crore have been spent on the dam by the Punjab Government and total estimated funds needed are pegged at Rs 2,900 crore. It may be stated that this ‘roller compacted concrete dam’ has to be built or completed in one season as there is no arrangement for diverting water.

Haryana government’s obstruction of dam work would not allow the work to complete in one season, so surplus water would flow into Pakistan. Will that be in national interest?

Construction work should not be obstructed. Neither BBMB nor any other agency is ‘ready’ or in a position to take up work in place of engineers of the Punjab Irrigation Department.

GS DHILLON, Chandigarh

Life without desires Poet Mirza Ghalib had said: Gar tujh ko hai yaqeen-e-ijaabat dua na maang\yaani baghair yak dil-e-bemudda na maang (If you are sure of the acceptance of your prayer, do not pray to God for anything else than a desireless heart). In other words when there is no desire, there will be no worry about its fulfillment (Upendra Bhatnagar’s middle: "Destabilising desires", November 30). Likening desires to toys, another bard, Shaad Azimabadi, said: Tamannaon mein uljhaaya gaya hoon\khilauney dey key baihlaaya gaya hoon. It is very difficult, nay impossible, to live without desires. Only mystics can gain control over desires, or happy-go-lucky sort of persons who take things as they come. However, genuine desires are indispensable. These spur a person to try harder to achieve his\her object as mere desiring something does not make it happen. “If wishes were horses, beggars might ride,” goes a saying. One should not yearn for more than what one actually needs or what one does not deserve. Ambitious people seldom enjoy peace of mind. BHAGWAN SINGH, Gurdaspur

Golden Forest case

It has been mentioned in the news report, “Golden Forest Case: Supreme Court Cancels Registry of 106 Acres” (Chandigarh Tribune, October 15) that the total land holding of the earlier chit fund company Golden Forest works out to 10,000 acres, out of which 800 acres have already been disposed of against a realisation of Rs 560 crore.

It is surprising that none of the investors has been refunded whereas it is clear that either about 50% of the investors should have got back their amount with interest or all the investors would have received back their total invested amount by now with realisation of Rs 560 crore by sale of just 800 acres of land out of about 10,000 acres.

The SC-appointed committee could not identify about 2,000 acres of clear land out of 10,000 acres. It is high time that the committee act speedily so that most of the elderly investors\down trodden get a sign of relief by getting back the amount as they have already lost about more than ten precious years of their life in the lengthy process. The committee should also take some of the investors into confidence to suggest constructive measures. The Supreme Court should regularly monitor the progress of the case.

GOPAL DASS, Ambala Cantt

Right intention

If Prime Minister Manmohan Singh thinks that the direct cash transfer scheme can actually change the lives of the poor, then we should support him.  But if it turns out to be another scheme with loopholes and if the benefits do not reach the real beneficiary, then what?

It is not A or B scheme, which will change the course of things; it is the intention to run an honest and viable social welfare programme with checks and balances in place, which can help the poor. This will prove to be the last throw of the dice by Dr Manmohan Singh. To successfully implement reforms of this magnitude, he requires a full army of efficient and honest politicians and bureaucrats.

SUMEET SETH, Karnal

II

No planning for enrollment for the Aadhar card has been done by the government to accommodate the heavy rush. I visited the Aadhar centre regularly for about a week, but could not manage to get enrolled due to glitches in the biometric machine which does the entire job. The government does not delve on plan implementation properly. It needs to open more centres, install sensitive biometric machines and provide proper seating arrangement for senior citizens. Let the Punjab government apply correctives to enable all citizens to get their Aadhar cards made without hassles. Is it too much to expect when the deadline of January 1, 2013 is fast approaching.

JASBIR SINGH CHAWLA, Patiala

Jats vs non-Jats

That the thrust of the Haryana Government on development is four times more in Jat-dominated districts is only one side of the picture. The other more dismal aspect is that about four times more government jobs have gone to these very districts and most of these have gone to Jats.

Non-Jat group of intellectuals have been raising the issue to awaken the people of Haryana to these realities. They believe that the Congress party is bothered about the welfare of a particular caste viz. Jats in Haryana, to the virtual exclusion of all other castes.

The apprehension of these intellectuals that the backlog of more than one lakh government jobs reserved for Backward Classes would almost entirely go to Jats, is not unfounded.

RAM NATH WADHWA, Karnal