War or peace, what’ll it be?

IT is disheartening that over the last few years, a large number of Indian soldiers have lost their lives on the border, even as the ‘warning’ issued by the Home Ministry has proved ineffective (‘Toll 7 as soldier’s body found’, February 14). The then prime-ministerial candidate, Narendra Modi had said: Samasya border per nahin, samasya Delhi mein hai. People of India have every right to question the Prime Minister; how have things changed now? It appears that the government has failed to diffuse the situation, either through armed action or diplomacy. As there is no third alternative, the government must choose one among the two alternatives.

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Roop Singh Negi, by mail

Let the coin decide! 

Apropos the report ‘Minister’s transparency attempt goes for a toss’ (February 14), Punjab Technical Education Minister Charanjit Channi’s bizarre decision to select the ‘right’ candidate for the post of a lecturer by flipping a coin betrays his superstitious beliefs. Significantly, on an earlier occasion, he rode an elephant in his courtyard in Kharar on the advice of his astrologer, purportedly to get a plum post in Capt Amarinder Singh’s Cabinet. On becoming a minister, he constructed a road in the middle of a park in front of his official residence. What is happening?        

SS Paul, Nadia 

Learning to teach right 

Apropos the incisive article ‘Tsunami of the barely-read’ (February 14), despite increasing school enrolment in rural and urban areas, much remains to be done in improving the quality of education. Reasons for low quality are many, the notable being the absence of good and devoted teachers, poor infrastructure and the divide between the privileged and non-privileged students. Many young minds leave school midway due to existential pressures at home. It is the government’s duty to see that no child is deprived of basic and secondary education. The government must think about greater allocation of budget and spend funds judiciously in areas which need emphasis to uplift needy children. Systemic reforms alone can lead to a transformation.

PARTHASARATHY SEN, New Delhi

Essence of education 

Reference to ‘Tsunami of the barely-read’ (February 14); quality education is the basic need for a developing country to become developed. We should take proper steps to improve the quality rather than quantity. But we don’t seem concerned about it. We only talk about how to boost our literacy rate, economy, military power and other trivial things. The government has established many universities and launched many projects to increase literacy, but the quality of education has actually worsened. American politician Sherrod Brown states: ‘When the government invests in education, it should support quality education and career readiness rather than institutions that make empty promises.’ Only quality education can work as a better safeguard for liberty than an army.

Rahul Goyat, Jind

Daring, but unconvincing 

Written daringly, though under a pseudonym, against a court verdict, the article ‘The Suresh Kumar precedent’ (February 9) fails to plead a convincing case. ‘In common law legal systems, a precedent or authority is a legal case that establishes a principle or rule’. Thus, in the law-making process, some well-intended precedents do pave the way to turn them into laws, but not all. Wrong precedents need to be checked, as has rightly been done in this particular case by the court. While on the one hand, the writer swears by democratic norms and the Constitution, he/she delves the case on autocracy. The writer being a retired bureaucrat pictures only one aspect of the case, seemingly unaware of the general public hatred of such wrong precedents that have been continuing, in a colonial fashion, in our diseased bureaucracy for long. How come bureaucrats, except a few who do not fall in line with the political whims of their masters, never retire, despite a fixed retirement age? Also, how do the modern masters in a democracy distinguish some as loyal, efficient and trustworthy and the rest as inefficient? It is generally assumed that these so-called ‘loyalists’ are chosen by political masters only to keep a lid over their misdoings! 

BALViNDER, Chandigarh

A jinx is broken 

It is a matter of pride for the entire country that Virat Kohli and his team have won the first-ever ODI series against South Africa on their soil, defeating SA in the fifth match to create history (‘Mission accomplished’, February 14). With this victory, the men in blue have broken the jinx that India is weak on foreign grounds as the pitches are very quick and unplayable by them. The team was in good form. Batting, particularly by Kohli, Shikhar, Rohit; bowling by Chahal and Yadav; and top-class fielding by all players contributed in the overall performance of the team. 

SANJAY CHOPRA, MOHALI

Can’t wish away Nehru 

Refer to ‘The other side of Nehru’ (February 13); despite the many sacrifices during the freedom struggle, and later Nehru’s earnest efforts to shape Independent India, his contributions are downplayed by a handful of fanatics. He envisioned an electronic age and supported gender equality. He wrote to chief ministers on January 4, 1950, on less representation of women members as legislatures. After the general election of 1952, he regretted that few women were chosen for Parliament. He painfully remarked that laws were made by men and, therefore, limited representation would go against women. Even though he had a thumping majority in Parliament, he inducted people like BR Ambedkar and Syama Prasad Mukherjee into his Cabinet, despite having differences with them. This was again a classic example of acceptance of dissidence. Nehru made efforts to make secularism a basic structure of the Constitution. His contribution for the making of modern India will never be forgotten.

Akshay Singh Dadhwal, Kangra

Make PPF attractive

Post office savings schemes like PPF, NSC or KVP have been made unattractive by the frequent slashing of interest rates, pushing people to the uncertain share market (‘Bloodbath after bull run’, February 8). The interest rate on these schemes should be suitably raised. Further, the upper limit for deposit in PPF, etc. should be enhanced to Rs 15 lakh-20 lakh. This will help curb the hoarding of black money by putting it into circulation. There is no rationale behind having an upper ceiling since additional money thus received can be put to good use. Even NRIs should be allowed to invest in PPF. Additional funds coming in won’t hurt us.

WG CDR CL SEHGAL (RETD), Jalandhar 

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