Letters to the Editor

Not an Assamese

It will not do for ULFA(I) boss Paresh Baruah to take responsibility of the brave police officer Bhaskar Kalita and remind the people of Assam that the outfit had taken a decision about five years back not to attack any police personnel of the State. The fact that the brave Bhaskar was killed by ULFA(I) bullets is enough for the people of the State to yet again call a spade a spade: that ULFA(I) is purely a terrorist outfit, not any insurgent group fighting for any people. If Paresh Baruah has the guts, he should come out and convince the people of the State of his agenda. Of course, no one will be convinced. The people of Assam have seen enough of bloodshed ordered by him and him alone. He has forfeited his right to be called an Assamese. 

Suman Sarma,

Tezpur.

Bonanzas and Reality

From time to time, we the people of Assam have had the fortune of learning about certain spectacular bonanzas from either our State ministers or from some Union ministers. For instance, Union Surface Minister Nitin Gadkari on several occasions declared lakhs of crores of rupees for the development of roads and other infrastructure for Assam in particular and the rest of the Northeast in general. But reality speaks otherwise. These political leaders, like their counterparts of the Congress, take immense pleasure in befooling the people by their lip service.

Such high-faulting speeches declaring big bonanzas are also heard from the Health and Family Welfare Department, and the Assam PWD Minister recently announced that 19 cancer hospitals are all set to be set up in different places of the State and that the cancer patients of the State need not have to go outside for better treatment. This is, no doubt, an ambitious announcement, and if this is executed, a long-cherished demand of the people would be fulfilled.

But the crux of the question is: is everything alright in the existing medical colleges of Assam? We heard of the news about the resignation of a good number of specialist doctors but we are yet to learn about their suitable replacement. The infrastructure of certain government hospitals in the State is yet to receive either facelift or renovation.

Let new medical colleges or cancer institutes come up as per announcement of the minister concerned, but not at the cost of the existing ones. We understand that still the game of patching up in different medical colleges goes on whenever the Medical Council of India's (MCI) officials visit a particular medical college so that the accreditation is not lost. This is an odd-looking exercise which should be stopped once and for all. Now, here is an appeal to the minister concerned to pay more attention to PWD.

Ashok Bordoloi,

Dibrugarh.