Haryana's neglected teachers

IN the editorial "Chautala's gamble" (December 16) you have raised pertinent issues and given a true picture of the party position in Haryana. Political parties are simply interested in coming to power by making unrealistic promises and rhetoric and by offering sops to different sections of society. Political leaders forget that they are running a government and not a charitable organisation. Their job is not to distribute charities but to solve people's genuine problems and to govern in a responsible and responsive manner. Instead of squandering away state funds and distributing bounties from the state exchequer for short-term gains, they should take steps to stand the state on a strong financial footing in the long run.

In these days there is a tendency not to learn good lessons from others but to follow bad examples. If in a neighbouring state a regional party comes to power by making populist promises such as providing free power to farmers, the party in Haryana also tries to copy the same. Before blindly following neighbouring state one should not forget that once progressive and rich Punjab has now reached a stage of bankruptcy due to bad governance. Haryana should learn a lesson from Chandra Babu Naidu's Andhra Pradesh and not from Punjab.

The teaching and non-teaching staff of Haryana's affiliated and aided colleges have not been paid salaries for the last three to four months due to the non-release of grant-in-aid by the state government. Deputations of college lecturers met Chief Minister Om Prakash Chautala thrice on this issue. They also met Finance Minister Sampat Singh, Financial Commissioner Mathur and the DHE. They all turned a deaf ear. Is this not a fine example of an irresponsive and insensitive democratic government in Haryana?

Teachers are facing a severe hardship. The Chief Minister is quoting everywhere the restoration of the grant to Agroha Medical College as his great accomplishment whereas his government has withheld the salary of employees working in 112 affiliated colleges. Is this not his greatest failure? Mr Chautala is also taking credit for fulfilling 13,000 posts of school teachers, whereas colleges are not allowed to fill the existing vacancies nor are they paying salary to their staff. The government has money to raise pension for the aged, to give cash gifts on the marriage of girls belonging to weaker sections, to abolish octroi and rural development cess, to reduce market fees, etc, but no funds to run institutions of higher learning. What type of welfarism Mr Chautala is claiming?

VINAY KUMAR MALHOTRA
Ambala Cantt

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Row over vaccine research

The report “Squabbles hit vaccine research” (Oct 10) says that theileriosis “vaccine though developed in 1990 is still at the experimental stage”. It is a bit slanted view which needs explanation.

The “vaccine” is a stage (schizont) of the causative parasite of the disease, rendered “safe” (attenuated) through serial passage in in vitro culture. The attenuated schizonts constitute the vaccine, commonly known as the tissue culture vaccine. The credit for showing that attenuated schizonts, when injected into cattle, protect them against natural infections, goes to two Israeli scientists —Pipano and Tsur (1966). Further, a Welcom group (Hulliger, Wilde, Brown) working at Nairobi in 1964 provided the important input of refining the in vitro technique.

Since then the vaccine has been used for controlling the disease in Israel and many other countries.

At Ludhiana (PAU), ICAR-funded research (1973-80) showed that the Indian parasite could be attenuated in tissue culture, and used for immunising cattle, and that there exists considerable protection-inducing commonness in five isolates of the parasite collected from far-flung places in the country. Anyone of the isolates could serve as “vaccine strain”.

The National Dairy Development Board with the support of Edinburgh University did intensive work on the vaccine and commercialised its production in 1989. The vaccine has been in the market since 1990 and used extensively in the country.

The licensing authority must have satisfied itself on all aspects of the vaccine before certifying its production. One wonders why people are still engaged in the “development” of this vaccine.

Scientists are not above playing games. The tick research scheme of PAU became a football. Despite a specific directive of the ICAR to maintain the tick borne disease research as a separate entity PAU in its wisdom first “converted” it into a department of immunology, then transferred it to Department of Microbiology and later on a part went to the Department of Parasitology and a part to the Department of Biotechnology.

One wonders why PAU does not restore the distinct identity of the tick centre, freed from the personal ambitions of scientists. If it has outlived its utility, then abolish it. Let the experts propose their own research scheme to the ICAR for funding it.

B. S. GILL
Ludhiana

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Make it a special city

I have been born and brought up in the City Beautiful, a place which has always been a source of pride for all who belong to Chandigarh. Another thing that is remarkable about this city is the effort made by its residents to solve the problems that have befallen the city. In the article “Time is running out for City Beautiful” by Sarabjit Singh has very well highlighted on the major problems facing our city.

I am currently staying in Chicago, finishing my residency in neurology, and visited Chandigarh two weeks back after one year. The change for the worse a very noticeable, especially the encroachments, new slums and the migrant population at the various roundabouts and parks.

I hope the Chandigarh Administration will wake up to this major problem being faced by our city. I know the residents of the city would gladly join in all the efforts, as always. Let us make an effort to keep our city SPECIAL!

KANIKA GROVER
Chicago (USA)
(Received in response to the Internet edition)

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Congress: debatable question

Mr Sunanda K. Dutta-Ray, in his article “Socialism and secularism; redefining Congress ideology” (The Tribune, Dec 16) highlighted Mr N.V. Gadgil’s note to Mrs Sonia Gandhi on “modernising, re-modelling and redefining Congress ideology”, arguing that “socialism and secularism no more appealed to the electorate” and thus the party can stick to these articles of its ideology only at its peril.

Well, I fully share and whole-heartedly endorse Mr Datta-Ray’s view that the Congress should, in no case and under no circumstances, give “secularism” a go-by. “Competitive communalism”, as the eminent writer has aptly observed, would prove ruinous not only for the historic party but also the country at large.

Whether “socialism” should be outrightly discarded or retained as part and parcel of party ideology as before seems debatable. Apparently, a pro-poor tilt to every economic policy of the government seems an imperative of the situation obtaining in the country at the moment. Even the much-trumpeted economic reforms need to be given a human face, failing which the freeplay of ruthless market forces would crush the poor.

Thus, to my mind, the party would be well-advised to hasten in the delicate matter very slowly and cautiously lest it should be accused of leaving the hapless multitudes in the lurch.

TARA CHAND
Ambota (Una)

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Police torture cases

Apropos of the news item “Couple ends life after torture”, the harrowing case highlighted by your Jaipur correspondent is really heart-rending. The victim of the police torture, Ram Chander, and his wife Aasha finished their life after strangling their kid to death. However, this is not an isolated case; everyday a number of people face police atrocities.

The Sanganer police station cops humiliated the victim to the extent that he could not tolerate the highhandedness without any reason. As a result, he decided to end his life. The story given by the victim in the suicide note indicates that another key person involved in the altercation was close to some of the police personnel and was allowed to go scot-free.

Although after the formation of the National Human Rights Commission there has been a decline in police atrocities, people at some places are still ignorant about the autonomous body. Their cases should be dealt with by the NHRC itself.

The Centre should set up a cell to investigate the incidents of police atrocities and the NHRC should intervene in such matters.

DINESH KUMAR SHARMA
Dera Bassi