Numaligarh-Golaghat highway
The NH-39 connecting Numaligarh and Golaghat has been potholed up to one foot deep due to the daily movement of heavy goods vehicles. The blacktopping of the road is dilapidated. There are more than five hundred vehicles travelling daily on the NH39. The road has become very dangerous, especially for two-wheeler drivers . Accidents are sure if the wheels of scooters and bikes get into the deathtrap potholes on the road. There are more than 100 deep potholes in the 25-km-long road from Numaligarh to Rangajan. During the rainy season, these potholes are filled with rainwater, and vehicles lose control if their wheels accidentally fall into the potholes. Therefore, there is a risk of serious accidents on the road at any moment. The NH-39 connects Numaligarh, Telgaram, Porabangla, Doigrong, Morongi, and Rangajan. There have been several fatal road accidents in the past few years. The road is used by hundreds of motorcycles, buses, dumpers, tankers and travellers daily to Golaghat town and Numaligarh refinery. I request the Public Works Department to take necessary measures to repair the road as soon as possible in view of the students, patients and possible accidents.
Sanjay Robidas,
Doigrong, Golaghat
India’s leap into global leadership
India becoming the world’s fourth-largest economy is not just about numbers. It reflects the nation’s determination, clear vision, and steady progress. Overtaking Japan is a strong sign that India no longer just dreams—it knows how to achieve those dreams. This milestone shows what’s possible when a country moves forward with focus and purpose. It reminds us to trust our potential, improve our systems, and use healthy dissatisfaction as fuel for growth. Today’s global and political climate favours India, but the real challenge is to maintain this pace. If we continue with the same spirit, India can lead not just economically, but also socially, educationally, and technologically. This is more than just development—it’s the making of history.
Mohammad Asad,
(muhammadasadkabirnagri@gmail.com)
State vernacular
medium schools
In the article ‘Challenges of vernacular-medium schools’, published in your esteemed daily on 25 May, the writer, Dwaipayan Dasgupta, has made no mistake in highlighting various aspects that lead to the ramshackle conditions of government-run schools today. The poor student enrolment and lack of high-quality teachers are two major challenges, compelling the government to adopt a policy of “school rationalisation”, which means merging schools with low enrolment to save resources. Today, what we see are over-crowded classrooms in the public schools with students, most of whom have dull brains, and teachers looking at them helplessly as they cannot do anything to improve their academic performances owing to being already burdened with other assignments. There is a need for giving greater emphasis on the issue of pupil-teacher ratio, as a balanced PTR contributes to ensuring a close relationship between student and teacher, which is a much-needed requirement for a productive learning environment. If we really want to save the future of students from families with poor financial backgrounds, for whom vernacular-medium schools are the only option, the government should bring about a revolutionary change in the state’s school education. The state government’s policy of free textbooks, uniforms and mid-day meals, etc., is no doubt a praiseworthy initiative, but it has failed to yield desired results. Today, most parents’ first preference is better infrastructure and availability of modern teaching tools, of course, better results of the schools for their wards. What free facilities are provided by the schools is not in their preferred list, as they don’t want to play with the future of their wards. The ongoing teacher recruitment drives are appreciable, but they should be coupled with frequent up-to-date teacher training programmes so that they can impart better and practical education to students. Just like dwelling houses, school buildings also need repair and renovation. So, releasing necessary funds to schools for the fulfilment of their basic needs in a reasonable time frame is the most important responsibility of the government. Unless the standards of vernacular-medium schools are improved on a war footing, the purpose of granting classical status to the Assamese language will not be fulfilled. Therefore, there is a need for active participation of parents, teachers and other stakeholders in the matter of the state’s educational development. Preparing students for future challenges and opportunities in the increasingly digital world in an enabling environment should be the key objective of the state’s educational policy.
Iqbal Saikia,
Guwahati.
Jatayu conservation scheme
Apropos the editorial “The Silent Disappearance of Vultures from Assam: An Ecological Catastrophe” by Heramba Nath (May 23, 2025), the dwindling silhouette of vultures over Assam’s skies is the unravelling of a sacred environmental covenant. In mythology, Jatayu, the vulture, sacrificed himself to save Sita; today, we watch silently as his descendants perish due to our own negligence.
Despite the 2006 ban on diclofenac, commonly used as a pain reliever in livestock, its misuse persists, endangering vultures who feed on contaminated carcasses. Promoting and subsidising meloxicam—the only vulture-safe NSAID—must become state policy. In rural Assam, myths portraying vultures as inauspicious often lead to the destruction of nesting trees, rewarding monetary benefits to those households. These superstitions demand urgent counteraction through grassroots awareness and school curricular activities.
Assam must emulate Nepal’s success: declare Vulture Safe Zones in districts like Rani (Kamrup), Sivasagar, Karbi Anglong, and Golaghat; expand the Rani Breeding Centre; and crucially, establish Vulture Restaurants—feeding sites offering diclofenac-free carcasses from nearby forest areas, maintained through collaboration among farmers, forest, and veterinary departments under a proposed Jatayu Conservation Scheme.
Let us not allow another elegy in our environmental history.
Shahin Yusuf,
(shahinyusuf21@gmail.com)