Path towards equality

Apropos of ‘Dissecting toxic masculinity’, asked for a synonym for ‘man’, most would use words like ‘brave’, ‘fearless’, ‘powerful’, ‘bold’. With respect to ‘woman’, the words would be ‘docile’, ‘submissive’, ‘polite’. It is time to stop considering females as puppets in the hands of a patriarchal society and to stop considering men as the sole breadwinners of the family. Society needs to undergo tremendous change to alter its mindset towards women. Women should not be bound by restrictions imposed by men; she should not remain caged. She is free to achieve her ambitions. Grandfathers, fathers and brothers should set an example that is free from toxic masculinity and both parents should work together towards the goal of equality.

MANVI MALHOTRA, AMRITSAR

Local quota

Political rhetoric is not new in India. But what the government of Haryana is doing by passing Bills of employment for local candidates is wrong. This was also done by Andhra Pradesh. What type of hypocrisy is this that the BJP-led Central government is pushing farmers to sell their crops anywhere in the country, and on the other hand, they are stopping migrants to work anywhere in the country?

Ramanjot Kaur, Sultanpur Lodhi

Battleground Bengal

Apropos of ‘Electoral battle in Bengal’, soaring political rhetoric has already set the tone for an intensely competitive Assembly election in West Bengal. The BJP has been trying to overcome its leadership deficiency by recruiting defectors, primarily from the TMC. CM Mamata Banerjee has rolled out new welfare schemes and reached out to regions and social groups that tilted towards the BJP. If the Left-Cong-ISF alliance claims a segment of the anti-incumbency votes, it will weaken the BJP; if it splits TMC votes, it will help the BJP. Mamata faces a fierce contest.

SS Paul, Nadia

Budgetary astuteness

‘Poll-year populism’ conceptualises the financial needs of the state in an economically and politically restive environment. In the prevalent scenario, the FM has done a tough job reasonably well, given the limitations and nature of electoral politics. The government needs to create conditions where the innate spirit of the people of the state finds expression to reverse the adversarial trend. The total outlay for Punjab should test the mettle of the political leadership and dutifulness of the sections of people in their assigned domains to produce desirable results efficiently.

Jagvinder Singh Brar, Patiala

Reinforcing prejudices

Apropos of ‘Trolley suitcase, what a blessing!’ as much as it brings into perspective the alleged unpleasantness of being harassed by porters, the writer goes too far in saying that trolleys were invented because of ‘greedy porters who were overcharging for a very long period’. The Middle speaks of suffering at the hands of a very marginalised section of society, reminding one of conversations about transgenders, where victims are portrayed as oppressors. The writer’s comments generalising that ‘their families never benefited from their earnings’ reinforce prejudices, making it look as if people take up these jobs out of choice. The essence could have been conveyed in a more nuanced manner.

Ankita Chakravarty, Delhi

Matter of privilege?

‘Privileged to take Covid-19 vaccine…’ raises pertinent questions. Those living in metropolitan areas will be vaccinated but what about the 70% population living in villages? Will they have to trudge to cities and how long will the immunity last? The nation of over a billion population has to be covered. Have the authorities given it a thought?

Gursharan S Narula, Ludhiana

Remembering Sahir

With regard to Sahir Ludhianvi’s birth centenary celebrations, step-motherly treatment is meted out to our icons. On the literature front, Sahir had made Ludhiana proud, but there are little efforts to revisit the memory of the legendary poet. Our society has failed in recognising the contributions made by our heroes in every field. Sahir lives on in the hearts of peasants, the working class and the downtrodden.

Jasvinder S Humsafar, Maloudh

Glued to entertainment

Entertainment is become a daily need of our life. We are not giving ourselves time and we are forgetting the value of boredom. By watching movies all the time, we are losing the ability to do our best. In free time, we become more creative. Today, we are not making weekly plans with friends to go somewhere. We are, instead, making plans to watch a web series together. We are not playing outdoor games, but are indulging in mobile games together. This is not good. We should focus on creativity and read more books.

RISHABH RANA, Chamba

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