Letters to The EDITOR: Demolish all illegal structures to save Guwahati

We have experienced many a time that in just five minutes torrential rain inundates many vital roads and places of the 'smart city, Guwahati. This, of course, brings the lives of the city to a grinding halt. In the real sense of the term, Guwahati no longer remains a place to live in! The situation is deteriorating every passing day. If this situation persists, the days are not far off when reverse migration from Guwahati to elsewhere will start.

The reasons are not far to seek. The situation has come to such a pass because of the disappearance of wetlands within and around Guwahati. Five-star hotels, palatial buildings, flats, industries and warehouses are being built in wetlands without any hindrance. As such the situation is likely to deteriorate further! All the powerful and rich are involved in occupying wetlands. These are egregious acts by any reckoning. They seemed to be above the law of the land! But the situation has changed dramatically with the demolition of the Twin Tower in Noida. This is an eye-opener for all and the State government in particular. Now taking a cue from the Twin-Tower demolition, the Assam government must act fast to demolish all structures big or small built in wetlands. That is not all; they should also be compelled to remove the debris of structures being demolished from wetlands as well. This is in my opinion the first step to saving Guwahati.

Prafulla Dowarah,

Guwahati

Save the heritage

Tezpur is one of the most important hubs of Assam and is known to all as the cultural capital of the state. The Britishers also paid huge attention to Tezpur for its beautiful geographical location. After the establishment of the Tezpur Railway Station in 1895, Tezpur also became a business hub. Through this service, the tea industry in the north belt geared up. British set it up to connect various tea estates like Sesa, Tezpur Ghagra etc. This station also experienced the different historic phenomena of Assam. But after introducing the Broad Gauge, this meter gauge railway station has been transferred to Dekargaon. Now the condition of the Tezpur Railway Station is worsening day by day. So, I urge the authority concerned to take the necessary steps to revive the past glory of this heritage. Yours etc.

Aditya Ankur Nath,

Tezpur

Welcome to IPL

Team India's run in the ongoing Asia Cup T20 is over after their back-to-back losses against Pakistan and Sri Lanka. But the exit from the Asia Cup T20 is not the end of the roads for Team India. The cash-richest IPL is waiting for them with an open arm with media at their disposal. It should be noted that IPL does not allow any Pakistani cricketer to take part since the Mumbai terror attack. The Pakistanis must have preserved their energies for the current T20 Asia Cup and rightly reaped the dividends.

Anyways with Team India's exit from the recently concluded T20 Asia Cup throwing thousands of their frantic supporters to utter depression, our Team India stars will soon be seen in various cricket grounds in action entertaining cricket-crazy fans across the nation earning lucrative MOM cash and other awards from the sponsors to be awarded by VVIPs, including film stars. The memory of the recently concluded T20 Asia Cup will be forgotten as the public memory is always short as the BCCI has already planned a few bilateral series this month.

Now, it is time for us to hope and dream about the coming T20 World Cup due to be held in Australia in October.

Dr Ashim Chowdhury,

Guwahati

Single-use plastics ban

Plastics and plastic items have been banned in Assam and all over the country. However, the implementation of the ban on single-use plastic has been ineffective in the state with the supply lines of carrying bags, and packing material for hotels and small restaurants/eateries continuing uninterrupted.

The lack of cooperation and behavioural change in the citizens has made this ban ineffective. The public is not ready to shop with their bags. Also, there is an absence of adequate alternatives which has left the shopkeepers and the customers bewildered. Supermarkets and departmental stores are selling cloth bags at a higher price which is not affordable for all and the jute bags that no one purchases are being sold for double the price even at wholesale bag shops. Simply banning plastic without monitoring the production of alternatives at an affordable price has only contributed to the failure of this ban.

Therefore, the Government need a concrete plan to make a 'plastic-free state' a success. Also, law alone can't go far, mass consciousness is necessary. People in villages and small towns should be made aware of the hazardous effects of plastics.

Eliza Nath,

Cotton University

Queen Elizabeth II

Queen Elizabeth II, Britain's longest-serving monarch, has died at 96. She reigned for 70 years and saw 14 Prime Ministers of the UK during her reign, from Winston Churchill to Liz Truss. Incidentally, a first, she appointed Liz Truss in Balmoral in Scotland as she was too ill to return to London. Though for most of her subjects, she was the only monarch they had ever known, featured on stamps, banknotes and coins, and immortalized in popular culture. But in India, what a coincidence today Rajpath has been renamed Kartavya Path and the British one of the greatest enemies Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose finally gets his rightful place in the Capital of India and Queens depart this earth.

Who forgets, that Queen Elizabeth II, always cherished the "warmth and hospitality she received during her three State Visits to India throughout her reign in 1961, 1983 and 1997? Among these three visits, her final visit in 1997 to India was to mark the 50th anniversary celebrations of India's Independence and for the first time, she referred to "difficult episodes" of colonial history. In her banquet address, the monarch noted "It is no secret that there have been some difficult episodes in our past. Jallianwala Bagh is a distressing example". Even Queen Elizabeth II and her husband later paid a visit to the scene of the 1919 Jallianwala Bagh massacre in Amritsar to place a wreath at the memorial, amid widespread calls for an apology for the thousands killed at the orders of a British General during the Raj era.

I am sure Charles is sad not at her mother Elizabeth Alexandra Mary Windsor passing away, but at becoming a king at 73. It is high time the United Kingdom (UK) abolished the monarchy and the UK became a Republic. My condolences to the Queen's family. May her soul rest in peace.

Bidyut Kumar Chatterjee

Faridabad 121005.

Crimes against women

Through the column of your esteemed newspaper, I would like to draw the attention of every citizen and also of the authority concerned about the increasing crime against women. No woman in the city is safe outside their home. This worry has spread all over the country.

Every day, we get to know about numerous horrific incidents taking place, not only in Guwahati but all over the country. Women hesitate to walk alone on the road, even during the day. When we turn the pages of a newspaper, we come across many headlines reporting cases of sexual assault, molestation, sexual harassment, rape, trafficking, the ill-treatment of women in houses, violence against women in remote areas, etc. It seems that criminals are no longer afraid of the law. The law should be strong enough so that nobody could ever imagine doing such crimes.

Dhiraj Borah

(dborah131@gmail.com)

Pollution in Bharalumukh

I am Ishan Talukdar, a resident of Bharalumukh. I am writing to you to bring to your notice the increasing effect of air pollution in our neighbourhood and the surroundings.

Bharalumukh, Machkhowa and Fancy Bazaar have seen a rapid increase in the use of private transportation and the number of commercial vehicles like tempo, autos etc., for transportation of commercial products that have come up in recent years. It has increased the risks of serious health hazards, including breathing difficulties, chronic diseases, lung damage, nausea, fatigue, etc. The hospitals around the area have already seen an unexpected rise in the number of patients showing symptoms of chronic illness, and people and government authorities must be made aware of this dangerous situation at the earliest.

Owing to the seriousness of this situation, I request you to kindly highlight the issue so that some action can be taken to curb the effect of air pollution and decrease the risk of people being affected by it.

Ishan Talukdar,

Cotton University.

Adieu Ganesha Bappa

The festival of Ganesh Chaturthi is celebrated on a large scale in several parts of India. The history of the Sarvajanik Ganesh Chaturthi in Maharashtra is centuries old. It was started by the late Lokmanya Tilak.

According to Hindus, Ganesha is the remover of obstacles and all the problems in one's life as well as the creator of happiness in the life of people. People in India worship Lord Ganesha before starting any new work. Ganesha is the eldest son of Shiva and Parvati and one of the five major Hindu deities. With his pot belly and an elephant head, he is the god who removes all obstacles in the paths of those struggling to achieve both spiritual and worldly success. Almost every Hindu home has an image of Lord Ganesha over the doorway, and he is worshipped at the beginning of every important undertaking, whether it is the building of a new house, the beginning of a marriage, or the opening of a new account book.

Adieu, Ganesh Bappa. Pudhchya varshi lavkar ya!

Jubel D'Cruz,

Mumbai