PM must speak up

Of late, there have been many issues or incidents of national importance on which PM Modi has chosen to remain silent, be it the Hindenburg-Adani row, the renaming of places in Arunachal Pradesh by China, the terror attack on an Army truck in Poonch that claimed the lives of five soldiers, the dharna by wrestlers, or the death of 13 people due to a heatstroke in Maharashtra during an event presided over by Amit Shah. The PM must express his views on matters involving strong public sentiment. It is not possible for the PM to address every issue, but he can always delegate a minister to convey the government’s official stand on such matters. Speaking only during election rallies or blaming the Opposition for past situations is not a dignified way to operate for the person holding the Prime Minister’s office.

YASH KHETARPAL, PANCHKULA

Why Assam jail?

Apropos of ‘Amritpal in the dock’; arresting him proved to be a litmus test for the Punjab Police as it took them nearly five weeks, the period during which he extensively used various tactics to avoid the police dragnet. But better late than never. However, as a layman, one fails to comprehend the rationale behind all pro-Khalistan activists, including Amritpal Singh, arrested under the NSA, being taken to Assam’s Dibrugarh jail. Why put them all in one jail?

Kumar Gupt, by mail

Wasted youth

Today, the country’s youth has become aimless and indisciplined. ‘My life, my rules’ seems to be the motto of their life. Most of them are not serious about their careers. The policy-makers should take note of it. Earlier, the youth, especially of rural areas, used to choose a career either in the Army or the state police. But since various posts have been reduced, they have nowhere to go. They are frustrated and try to take refuge in smoking, drinking and taking drugs. Due to all this, crime is on the rise, too. If the policy-makers don’t pay heed to the problem, the day is not far when there will be chaos and anarchy in the country.

Kishan Chahar, Jhajjar

Work on storage

Refer to ‘Checking grain loss’; we are an agrarian country and the world’s most populous nation. Also, there is abject poverty. We can’t afford to waste foodgrains and incur huge losses due to poor storage capacity. Creating enough storage facilities with suitable silos and other effective means is a question of simple planning, execution and government foresight. We have had enough ‘mandir-masjid’ politics. India can ill afford to ignore the vital subject of saving our wealth earned through the hard labour of farmers. Before the Partition, India had an edge over China in every walk of life, but now China is five times ahead of us — in economy, defence, production, etc. Why so?

BM SINGH, AMRITSAR

Grain stocks

Refer to editorial ‘Checking grain loss’; the loss of grain stock every year due to unscientific storage conditions puts a huge load on government revenue. The Green Revolution increased the wheat productivity manifold, but poor storage facilities result in the wastage of stock piles. There is a need to construct scientific and temperature-controlled storage facilities. The facilities can also be made underground, below the mandis, to save space and transportation requirements. Shifting of grains immediately after procurement to other states, based on previous consumption, may help in reducing the wastage and losses. Preservation of grains through trained food safety personnel can increase their storage life.

Wg Cdr (DR) JS Minhas (retd), Mohali

Plan for future

Apropos of ‘Crunching the numbers’; India has the advantage of a young educated population, but the government must provide work opportunities. Besides employment generation, improvement in health facilities, shift from simple education to skill-based education and conservation of environment are much needed and women’s labour participation rates must be improved. Handholding the technology, agriculture and services sectors will ignite the required change.

Mukhtiar Singh, by mail

Substandard drugs

Reference to ‘12 made-in-HP drugs declared substandard’; it is not for the first time that drugs manufactured in HP have been found substandard. Drug manufacturers are playing with the lives of people sans exemplary action against them. It is rarely heard that the government has taken a drastic action against any manufacturer, including the cancellation of the licence. Drugs should be allowed to be marketed only after they are tested. The government should increase the number of labs so that drugs can be tested more frequently. The strength of drug controlling staff should also be enhanced for effective control.

ROOP SINGH NEGI, Solan

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