Letters to the Editor: Drugs: A Global Crisis

Drugs: A Global Crisis 

Since this matter darkens my heart, I have written to express my ordeal of drug abuse in our society. While medical drugs have made wonders in the field of healthcare, their misuse with respect to prescription drugs as well as recreational ones is taking a toll on the lives of individuals, families, and broader communities.

Drug addiction only destroys lives—it fuels crimes, weakens the workforce, and indeed burdens healthcare systems. Though still popular, many people, especially youth, fall prey to drug abuse due to the education level of peer pressure and stress-related issues.

We are called upon here to fast-track the prevention by open discussions, wider access to mental health support, and a strict regulation against illegal drug trading. We can build a society that treasures health and wellness over short-term highs. 

Sukanya Bora

(kashyapsukanya3@gmail.com)

Embracing the alchemy of the winter season

The winter season has finally illuminated its finest colour; the nipping cold has exquisitely enshrouded the world and prettified the litmus. At times, the biting cold makes us sneeze and decry the season and sometimes prompts us to extol it from the core of the heart. The cosiness it concocts is just ethereal, and the best part of this season is how it pulls the loved ones together as they orchestrate bonfires and play tuneful music that embellishes the milieu as well as bolstering the endearing relationships between friends and families. 

There is no qualm that the season brings a lot of felicity in the hearts of individuals with a slew of festivals like Christmas and the New Year. However, it is indispensable to bear in mind the ramifications of this season as it brings a litany of predicaments for those who are underprivileged as they grapple for their lives in need of staying warm and safe. Through this column, I would like to enthuse the country’s denizens to coalesce and aid the people who are in utter need so that no one is left vulnerable in the face of severe weather conditions. 

Winter is a season of alchemy and never-to-be-forgotten thrills. We shall embrace this preternatural season wholeheartedly and storm the fortitude of fear that envelops us at times. With a new year, let’s pledge a resolution to be more optimistic and exuberant about life.

Joydeep Paul,

Cotton University 

Industrial revolution in Assam

The most popular esteemed daily of your January 7 issue headline: ‘Mumbai hosts Roadshow in lead-up to Advantage Assam 2.0’ must delight every individual of the state in particular, as for the first time in the history of Assam, a colourful Roadshow was organised by Assam Industrial Development Corporation Ltd. (AIDC) in the financial capital of India, Mumbai, to generate momentum for the upcoming Advantage Assam 2.0 summit in the state. The CM deserves overwhelming appreciation for his untiring effort to transform the state into an industrial hub of the Northeast and the country. The state government’s key aim to promote sectors like hydrocarbon, green power, defence manufacturing, and tourism in the state is the right step in the direction as the state is having plentiful hydrocarbon and natural gas reserves. Since there is a heavy deployment of security forces all around the Northeast region with international borders on all sides, Assam can easily claim to be a natural defence manufacturing hub. Under the dynamic leadership of the state CM, there is a need for a transparency- and investment-friendly customised environment in the state. The state government’s commitment to maintaining a single-line investment policy will fulfil the different needs of every industry. Now urgently needed, tough and time-bound action against infiltrators is to ensure the employment opportunities only for the indigenous people of the state. The setting up of solar plants for the generation of 5,000 MW of solar power on the fallow land of the state’s tea gardens will remove the hindrance of the power problem for the upcoming industries. The state’s good tourism policy needs no introduction. It has already attracted investors like Tata Group, considering a five-star resort in Haflong. If Assam is to be a hub for future industries, the state’s skilled and talented youth working outside the state must look back to their home state to contribute their mite towards achieving the goal. The time is not far off when the state government will be compelled to consider investors proposals on a ‘First-Come, First-Served basis. Let this long-awaited auspicious time come, and this could be possible only when there is complete peace and stability, law and order in the state.

Iqbal Saikia,

Guwahati. 

Unnecessary panic

A few cases of human metapneumovirus (HMPV) have been reported from parts of India. While the common man is worried, there is absolutely no need to panic because the infection is similar to influenza-like infections that are commonly seen in India in early summer and winter. Since COVID-19 originated from China and the first cases of HMPV have come from China, people are worried. This is winter, and symptoms of the common cold are most likely to be confused with HMPV. Of course, fever, sore throat, cough, and shortness of breath mimic COVID-19 symptoms, but these are also manifestations of influenza-like infections. That being said, children below the age of 5, pregnant women, the elderly, and the immunocompromised are susceptible to HMPV. 

It is equally important to not self-medicate when symptoms appear. Excessive self-medication may worsen the symptoms; there is no vaccine for HMPV. Respiratory infection experts say that HMPV infection has been present across the globe for more than two decades—the first case was documented in the Netherlands in 2001—and it is only that specific cases are being detected now because more and more testing is being done. It is pertinent to note that the WHO has not issued advisory of any sort on HMPV. COVID-19 has taught a telling lesson to the world: personal hygiene cannot be compromised at any cost. Pandemic or not, wearing masks and regular washing of hands are basic health necessities that can protect an individual from a viral infection.

Dr. Ganapathi Bhat 

(gbhat13@gmail.com)