Football legend

Reference to ‘Messi wins World Cup’; the chief architect of the victory was Messi who has carved a niche for himself in the annals of football legends such as Pele and Maradona. It was also a contest between 35-year-old Messi and young star Mbappe of France. Messi’s inspiring spirit to win, combined with his stamina, defied the age barrier by demonstrating an incredible performance for his country and millions of fans the world over. He can now retire in glory and continue to motivate the new generation of players throughout the world.

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GURPREET SINGH, MOHALI

Messi’s done it

At the age of 11, Messi was diagnosed with hormone deficiency and he was shorter than children his age. He was told that he could never become a footballer. Today, we take his name in the same breath as the greatest footballers, Pele and Maradona. What an inspiring story! This was indeed football’s greatest World Cup final match, with the magic of both Messi and Mbappe on full display. But it seemed that even God wanted to help Messi have a dream end to his great career.

Bal Govind, Noida

Mediatory role

Refer to ‘Modi-Putin talks’; although India is on the side of peace, it hasn’t condemned Russian aggression on Ukraine unequivocally. On the other hand, Modi’s regular calls to Putin must be reassuring to Putin that he is not completely isolated. Continued procurement of oil by India reinforces this belief. The US has asked India to talk to the Ukrainian President as well, but India doesn’t have his ear. All this dents India’s potential for mediation, notwithstanding its G20 presidency. However, the significance of the talks lies in the fact that it took place in the wake of the India-China skirmish near Twang. Continued cooperation in various fields, including security, is reassuring. However, one wonders if Russia has any leverage over China in the present geo-strategic environment.

Lt Col GS Bedi (Retd), Mohali

One-man show

Apropos of ‘Who will take on Modi?’; in the days to come, we will see Bharat leading the world. How much time it will take is unknown, but we are moving in the right direction. At the same time, there are many challenges. How the Opposition converts them to its advantage in 2024 remains to be seen. Our democracy is becoming a one-man show, but collective efforts of the Opposition can bring about changes in the face of many public-oriented issues, like security, food for all and jobs. The charisma of a leader does work in the Indian political tradition, but hollow slogans will harm the masses.

Jasvinder S Humsafar, by mail

Pressure on students

Refer to the article ‘Pressure to perform taking a toll on students’; in a highly competitive world, pressure and stress cannot be avoided. Parents do not want their children to lead the kind of lives they did, and see the education of their children as a passport to a better quality of life. Parents often tend to take an exaggerated view of their children’s intellectual capacities when they perform well at school. At higher levels, the students realise the folly of their decisions, but it is too late to back out and some take the convenient way out. Blaming coaching centres is not correct. As long as there is demand, such centres will exist in one form or another.

ANTHONY HENRIQUES, MUMBAI

Foreign campuses

The write up ‘Strengthen our institutions to curb students’ exodus’ reveals startling statistics of the number of students migrating to foreign universities and the huge expenditure involved. The government is contemplating to rope in foreign universities of repute for establishment of their campuses on Indian soil. Two pertinent questions arise. Firstly, will our Indian universities be able to compete with these foreign centres of excellence; and secondly, why does the Indian Government, with foreign consultancy, not qualitatively strengthen reputed Indian universities that have due to varied factors started shrivelling?

VK Anand, Chandigarh

Hostile neighbours

India is facing its two hostile neighbours Pakistan and China, who are sheltering and protecting terrorists. Pakistan is the hub of most-wanted international terrorists while China is protecting these dreaded terrorists hiding in Pakistan at the United Nations by using its veto power. Both are also engaged in anti-India activities. While Pakistan is breeding terrorism in Kashmir, China is eyeing the territories of Ladakh, Arunachal Pradesh and Sikkim. One is supplying arms and ammunition and the other is using them for cross-border terrorism in Kashmir.

RK Arora, Mohali

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