Mere tokenism

Apropos of the article ‘What it is to be outnumbered’, it is an irony that the man who coined the word pseudo-secularism is now sidelined and rendered irrelevant by the very party he nurtured. The narrative that the majority community was tyrannised by the minorities has been gaining currency and resulted in the BJP becoming the dominant party. The bid to impose the ‘Hindi, Hindu, Hindustan’ template is bound to fail because of the sheer diversity of India. Having a Dalit, tribal or Muslim President is mere tokenism and does not solve anything. It is better to empower these communities.

ANTHONY HENRIQUES, MUMBAI

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To be a minority

Refer to ‘What it is to be outnumbered’; according to the Constitution, the government is committed to the rights of Dalits, tribals and minorities to ensure their safety and security. If minorities are left behind in the areas of education or employment opportunities, and financial inclusion, they are given assistance. For the interest of minorities, policy formulation, planning, coordination, evaluation and regulatory framework and development programmes must be promoted.

Sikandar Bansal, Shimla

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State of schools

Refer to ‘Staff crunch, 3 teachers for 350...’; the sorry state of our government schools, wrestling with acute staff crunch, especially in rural areas, reveals how these schools are fighting a losing battle due to the apathetic attitude of those at the helm. The rundown condition of our education system has adversely impacted careers of teeming millions of education seekers. The condition of a majority of schools in other parts of the country is no different, which raises serious concerns. The government needs to take an urgent call on state-run schools so that no one is denied the right to education. It is now or never as students have already suffered due to the Covid pandemic.

RAMESH K DHIMAN, Chandigarh

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Privatisation not solution

Apropos of ‘Tread carefully on privatisation of banks’, the role played by PSBs in taking banking to uncovered areas and neglected sections of society is praiseworthy. Financial inclusion, which has been implemented mainly by PSBs, has to be taken beyond just opening of Jan Dhan accounts and providing insurance cover and pension through social security schemes by providing affordable credit to the vast excluded section of the economy. The banking system, especially PSBs, recently witnessed stress which has roots in the lack of governance due to the overlapping regulatory role of the GoI with the RBI. Risk assessment abilities should be enhanced by skill building/upskilling of existing bank staff and recruiting specialised staff in the areas of IT, risk management (credit risk, market risk) and economic research. Enhancing efficiency via competition among PSBs and private banks, checks on overlapping regulatory role of government functionaries in PSBs and capacity-building of staff, as per the present needs of the sector, and aspirations of the customers looks to be a better solution rather than going for privatisation.

KB Singh, Ludhiana

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Crack in unity

The People’s Alliance for Gupkar Declaration (PAGD) had signed a joint resolution in 2019 to oppose the Centre’s decision on the abrogation of Article 370. Consisting of five political outfits, it has been opposing the policies of the Centre, besides hinting that it would contest the Assembly elections together. But the sudden announcement of the National Conference (NC) that the party would contest all seats on its own has given a jolt to Opposition unity, at a time when J&K is approaching elections. The NC, the biggest party of J&K, needs to reconsider working together and the PAGD should fight the elections unitedly for peace, tranquility and overall development of J&K.

SK Khosla, Chandigarh

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Another one falls

Refer to ‘Bid to stifle media’, many people regarded NDTV as the only channel in India that has actively taken a critical stand on many of the ruling government’s policies and functioned to establish a balanced view in news reporting. The acquisition of NDTV by the billionaire conglomerate, known for its tilt towards the ruling party, is the last nail in the coffin of India’s independent journalism.

Balbir Singh Kakkar, Jalandhar

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Harsh punishment

Refer to ‘Missile probe’; the punishment given to the officers seems very harsh. The missile was fired accidentally and due to the lacunae in the available SOPs. Such punishments are given only to soldiers because they cannot open their mouth, agitate or protest under the Armed Forces Act. The authorities should review the order to maintain the morale of soldiers.

Wg Cdr Jasbir S Minhas (retd), Mohali

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