Letters to the Editor: Yearly Literary Grants to Authors

Yearly literary grants to authors

I pen this missive to implore the authorities concerned, through your esteemed daily, to consider a vital initiative: the establishment of yearly literary grants for active authors of the state whose writings get published in regional as well as national print media. Publication of a book should not be a criterion for those writers. Such a measure would acknowledge a vibrant, yet often unseen, stratum of our literary community, fostering its continued growth.

This proposed grant is not merely financial aid but a pivotal investment in nurturing nascent talent and preserving future literary heritage. It would empower dedicated wordsmiths, alleviating economic pressures that often stifle creativity and prevent potential masterpieces from reaching fruition. By recognising and supporting these voices, the government could significantly enrich Assam's intellectual fabric, safeguarding the future vibrancy of our unique literary tradition.

Bibhash Deva Nath,

Vice-President,

Nath Sahitya Sabha, Assam.

Darkest chapter

The recent acquittal of 11 accused in the Malegaon Bomb Blast case by the NIA court can be termed as the end to the darkest chapter in the nation’s judiciary, once known for its uprightness, where we, the common people, put our judiciary in high esteem. We are usually told that our judiciary is never influenced by politics. The Malegaon verdict was otherwise, where 11 innocents were convicted under political pressure and put behind bars for 17 long years due to political pressure from the then UPA government, which was in power in Maharashtra as well as at the centre.

The slogan ‘Saffron Terror,’ as coined by UPA leaders, namely Digvijay Singh, Mani Shankar Iyer, PC Chidambaram, etc., should be held entirely responsible for politically pressurising the judiciary for committing this heinous crime, which cost the 11 innocents 17 years of their lives.

Yes, the Malegaon verdict was, is, and will be the darkest chapter in the nation’s judiciary.

Dr. Ashim Choudhury,

Guwahati.

Deforestation and its impact on climate change

Through the columns of your esteemed newspaper, I wish to express my concern about the growing issue of deforestation and its serious link to climate change. Trees play a vital role in maintaining ecological balance, yet forests are being cut down at an alarming rate for urbanization and commercial use.

This large-scale deforestation is contributing significantly to rising global temperatures, erratic weather patterns, and loss of biodiversity. It is high time that strict laws were implemented to protect forests and promote afforestation.

I hope this letter will draw attention to this urgent issue and encourage both authorities and citizens to take immediate action.

Karanjit Das

Gauhati University

Diabolical character

Raijor Dal chief Akhil Gogoi has emerged as a character who can stoop to any extent to please the illegal occupants of the government land. His past records are an indicator that he is the most unstable and unreliable person in the state’s politics. Being a son of the soil, he should have welcomed the eviction drive being carried out by the government, but it is absolutely the other way round. While various dols/sanghathans of his constituency have supported the eviction drive, Akhil Gogoi is voicing concern for the suspected Bangladeshis. He went to Goalpara to meet the evictees and promised to return the land to them. This is a direct indication that the Sivasagar MLA has lost his footing in his constituency, so he has borrowed the appeasement formula of Congress to secure his future in the 2026 assembly elections. There is a strong chance that Akhil Gogoi might contest from any Miya-dominated seat in the upcoming state polls. That may be the reason why the Gaurav Gogoi-led Congress is unwilling to have an alliance with Raijor Dol, as both parties are banking on the minority votes. Any alliance with Akhil Gogoi’s party might cost some seats for Congress in the seat-sharing agreement if the alliance is sealed. So, there is a direct fight between Raijor Dol and Congress to garner maximum seats from the minority-dominated constituencies. Akhil Gogoi’s threat to launch a massive protest involving illegal occupants/linguistic minority people against the government’s eviction drive is another pointer that he supports the blueprint of converting Assam into an Islamic state.

Pratap Chandra Dutta,

Silapathar.

Recklessness of Opposition leader

The most inconvenient and bizarre comment made by the opposition leader Rahul Gandhi against the Election Commission of India reflects his utter shallowness and total immaturity, making him unfit to be leader of the opposition, not to speak of his cherished desire to be India’s PM. A leader having no intellect and respect for India’s constitutional authorities and used to making such indiscreet and baseless comments off and on has turned himself into a laughing stock.

Tanuj Goswami

Jorhat