Three cursed nations
Right now, three countries - Sri Lanka, Pakistan and Ukraine - are in the forefront of global attention due to wrong reasons. Sri Lanka is under acute financial crisis because of 'Self Destructive Syndrome', Pakistan as usual due to political instability, where no Prime Minister has so far been able to complete his or her full term. Both Sri Lanka and Pakistan seem to have paid the price for their overdependence on treacherous China and the Ukraine, also known as the land of Sunflower and wheat bowl of Europe, paid the price for NATO's overambitious game plan to surround Russia. The message is loud and clear for Nepal too. India, too, almost faced the very same financial crisis in 1990/91, but thanks to timely actions taken by the then Government under Late PV Narasimha Rao when economist Manmohan Singh was his Finance Minister.
We wish the three cursed nations an early recovery.
Dr Ashim Chowdhury,
Guwahati.
Absurd comparison
While taking part in a debate in the Parliament recently, the Union Petroleum Minister made an absurd comparison, in the rise of petrol and diesel prices, between India and developed countries. He said that there has been a mere rise of only 5% in India compared to the steep rise of petrol prices by 15 % to 25 % in the US, UK etc. The Minister has forgotten the fact that per capita income of our 60 % to 85 % Indians is quite meagre compared to the counterparts of developed countries, and so is their standard of living. The comparison would have been quite justifiable, had it been compared to that of Sri Lanka of today.
I would not blame the Minister for such a comment, since they do not need to visit petrol pumps and market places for essential commodities. They live in a much higher plane than us. It would be atrocious to compare His Highness with us. It is for sure that there are three sections of people in the society/country – viz., legislators, big and medium business men and corrupt individuals – who would never ever feel the price rise, even if it reaches Rs 1,000 per litre of petrol. Their shoes don't pinch them.
Prafulla Dowarah,
Guwahati.
Muskan's family and Al-Qaeda chief
The father and the family of BV Muskan Khan, a student of the Mandya district in Karnataka, must surely be applauded and complimented for their restraint and patriotic comments on the video purportedly circulated by Ayman al-Zawahiri, the supposed current chief of Al-Qaeda. The girl became famous because of the way she confronted a mob during the Hijab controversy in Karnataka recently.
However, the more important point here is that the acts (that includes lynching) of certain hooligans in the name of Hindutva and harassment of minority communities like the Muslims and the Christians have caught people's attention in different parts of the world, and now even the supposed terrorist outfits. The fact that adequate steps are not taken by the political class and the law enforcement authorities to restrain these hooligans is shameful to say the least. Vast majority of the populace in India want communal harmony and want to live peacefully, irrespective of their religious affiliations.
Recently, India signed a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with the United Arab Emirates (UAE), a first after many years. These are Islamic emirates. It also means that expats from UAE would frequently visit India. India is also in an advanced stage to sign FTA with the Gulf Co-operation Council (GCC) countries, comprising Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar and the UAE. All these are Islamic countries. The treaty would encourage travel between peoples of these countries to India, and vice versa. A very large number of Hindu Indians are already working in these countries. However, if India is perceived to be anti-Muslim because of acts of a few Indians, retaliation may be inevitable. The current President of Turkey, Recep Tayyip Erdogen, and the ex-Prime Minister of Malaysia, Mahathir Mohammad had frequently made adverse comments about India for Kashmir and the status of Muslims in India.
It is important for the political class and the police to apply and enforce law in the true spirit of the Constitution of India, before majoritarian acts of vandalism spiral out of control.
D Bhutia,
RGB Road, Guwahati-781024.
Sri Lankan crisis
From shortage of food, fuel and medicine to long daily power cuts, to cancellation of exams due to lack of ink and paper, the problems affecting Sri Lanka are myriad. Huge piles of foreign debt, soaring inflation and depleting foreign currency reserves - the island nation is a textbook example of a country that could ever go wrong and get into all sorts of trouble for not diversifying its economy.
Sri Lanka's economy is fundamentally flawed. It is a kind of a country that has been spending far more than what it actually earns. Its economy doesn't produce much wealth, but has the consumerist stomach of a rich and fertile nation. When the 2019 Easter bomb blasts and two rounds of the pandemic literally dried up Sri Lanka's tourism, the country had no cash. On top of it, the Government's flawed policy of organic farming cropped its meagre agriculture too. When you borrow in such ceaseless instability, there is certainly a huge risk of your defaulting and running up more debts because you will have to borrow more to pay off previous debts. It is a vicious cycle. And what has made the situation worse is the indiscriminate borrowing for vanity projects since 2009, when the Rajapaksas came to power on the back of war-triumphalism. In simple terms, Sri Lanka's present situation is a mounting crisis of balance payments that is similar to what India would have landed itself in 1991. But thanks are due to the former and Late Prime Minister PV Narasimha Rao, who along with the then Finance Minister Dr Manmohan Singh, recouped the country's economy from the brink of a major collapse.
Ranganathan Sivakumar,
Chennai – 600 091.
Ferry accidents
Various ferry accidents take place every year on the river Brahmaputra in Assam. Many passenger ferries ply at ferry ghats in Guwahati and a large number of passengers travel daily. Such accidents are more likely this year than in previous years, as the ferries are suitable only for 100 people but more than 100 passengers are picked up in the ferries. Commuters in ferries have to cross the river through a lot of hardships. The entire issue has to be well-addressed by the passengers. The Internal Water Transport Department of the State Government should also review the matter thoroughly.
Lakhyajit Phukon,
Cotton University.
Unhygienic city
Guwahati is well known for the flood problem or, we can say the "artificial" flood problem", faced by the people over a long time. The roads and the drains get filled with dirty water. We all know where the problem lies: the 'drainage system'. Due to lack of proper drainage and systematic garbage management in Guwahati, the city has witnessed a very bad condition. The authority has also not been able come up with a permanent solution to the problem. We don't have to go too far to see these problems because as a resident of Silpukhuri, I can see a big uncollected garbage dump in the middle of the GNB road, which creates problems for the citizens to even walk near the road or to breathe some air properly.
Moreover, along with that we can see garbage on the both sides of the small lanes or roads that connect it to the main road, causing inconvenience to the people there. This problem not only affects the people, but also affects the nature as well. As a prime example we can name the river Bhorolu, the present condition of which is pathetic. Thus, people living in those areas suffer from the problem of unhygienic environment, along with the threat to various diseases cause by the flies and mosquitoes - diarrhoea, dengue and malaria. Though it seems to be a common problem, but it plays an adverse role in shaping the health condition of the people living over those areas. In the present world, where people are fighting against the global pandemic situation, people of these areas are still fighting with the issues of garbage and drainage system over years and still have not get a remedy. The authorities concerned are seen less in actual practice and more in making policies which have barely helped to solve the problems of the people. Thus, we can say that people in those affected areas are living with the bare minimum interest given by the Government and are always fighting to live a decent, healthy and a hygienic life. Apart from fighting with corona in the recent times, most of the people here wear masks not to be protected from the virus but to be protected from the unhygienic condition around them, and wishing to get some pure and fresh air to breathe around them in the near future.
Sayanika Singha,
Cotton University.