Twitter
Advertisement

Farmer suicides not just due to erratic monsoon

There is enormous pressure on them to give money to government officers for fulfilling the demands of their higher officers.

Latest News
article-main
FacebookTwitterWhatsappLinkedin

Farmer suicides not just due to erratic monsoon
This has reference to ‘Erratic monsoon causes spike in farmer suicides’ (September 2). Our farmers are primarily dependent on the monsoon. Farmers commit suicide because they are unable to provide money to the government officers, and suicide is left as their last option. Add to this, there is enormous pressure on them to give money to government officers for fulfilling the demands of their higher officers. This is the reason throughout the country, but no one is ready to decide on some formula to balance this problem. Both parties would get satisfaction only after nature and monsoon become in favour of all the farmers.


Third front unrealistic
Apropos of ‘Mulayam’s front fails to take off’ (September 1), it is obvious that it is difficult to form a non-Congress andnon-BJP third front. Buoyed by the favourable assembly election results in Uttar Pradesh, Samajwadi Party (SP) supremo is hoping against hope that he can occupy the hot seat, running from pillar to post to form a third front. With the limited number that most of the parties likely to join the third front have in their kitty, it has to largely rely upon one of the principle political parties like the Congress or BJP. However, the crux of the problem is it will lack stability. At this juncture, the country needs a stable government and not the formation of assorted small parties coming together for the purpose of loaves and fishes, which will have an influence only in certain pockets. Mulayam Singh Yadav’s attempt to form a third front is nothing short of chasing the mirage. The national parties like Congress and BJP joining hands to form the government at the national level albeit is wishful thinking. Nevertheless, given that the country is going through a bad phase, is not impossible and it will lead to greater stability which will remain unshakeable for the years to come. This will also keep the regional and parochial outfits at bay which have no national outlook.
—HP Murali, Bangalore

BMC’s lame excuses
With the Ganesh festival starting from September 19, we will have a bumpy ride on roads as the condition of majority of the roads is very bad due to potholes. This is because of the total failure on the part of the civic body to fill it. The reason given by the BMC that the potholes are due to heavy traffic during the day and heavy rains for the last few days is utter nonsense and a lame excuse. The real reason is that the quality of the pothole-filling material is of a poor standard, as both corrupt officials and contractors are earning more money as commission and are working together by looting the taxpayers’ money for their own selfish personal gain. It is shameful and disgraceful that many Ganesh mandals in the city are taking up the responsibility of filling the potholes themselves during the procession. It proves that our civic body is the most corrupt and inefficient body in the world. The need of the hour is for city Mayor Sunil Prabhu to take immediate steps and see to it that all the potholes in the city are filled before start of the Ganesh festival, rather than sitting in an air-conditioned office and making foreign trips without any positive output, thus wasting time and money.
—Bhagwan Thadani, via e-mail

Godhra verdict’s timing
The verdict on the Godhra riots could not have come at a more appropriate time for the beleaguered Congress beset with all sorts of accusations about mass-scale corruption. It has also served as a much-needed respite to the “secular” UPA II government. It has helped them in diverting public attention from the massive coalgate scandal that has created an unprecedented logjam during the monsoon session of the Parliament. While it took one decade to bring the culprits of the Godhra riots to be handed out punishment, the masterminds of the November 1984 anti-Sikh riots are still roaming free. The “secular” press seems to be too pre-occupied, with no time left for families of the victims of this communal holocaust.
—Jorhat Singh, via e-mail

II
It seems that the government is out to appease the minority community, going by the way the Gujarat riot cases are coming up and the promptness shown in putting Arun Gawli and his gang members behind bars. The same seriousness and promptness has never been shown by the authorities while dealing with the gang members of Dawood Ibrahim, who are involved in anti-national activities.
—Sudhakar Shenoy, Mumbai

Why the different rules?
This has reference to ‘40 minutes of horror for Rane in lift’ (September 1). It was shocking to read that an officer and two technicians of Otis Elevators were arrested for not maintaining a lift in which state industries minister Narayan Rane was stuck during his private visit. This has never happened earlier, even when there were serious accidents leading to fatal injuries to occupants of lifts. Why this different set of rules for different people?
—Vanita Shenoy, Mumbai

Tendulkar should retire
Sachin Tendulkar’s recent string of low scores and his run of poor form has continued into the Test series against New Zealand and is proving to be an embarrassment for the Indian side and the national selectors. The greatest run-getter in the game’s history was quoted as saying that he would continue representing the country for as long as he enjoyed the game and that his fans would like to see him play in the 2015 World Cup. At the age of 39, the great man should realise that he is clearly over the hill and that his continuance in the team as a player is untenable. When was the last time he made a 50 of any conviction, leave alone a century? It took him 34 innings to move from 99 to 100 centuries, which is not a pleasing statistic. His last international hundred came against the lowly-ranked Bangladesh at Mirpur in the Asia Cup and even that seems eons ago. The critics have been vocal in calling for his head and this could only get louder with time. Sachin’s contemporaries, Anil Kumble, Sourav Ganguly, Rahul Dravid and VVS Laxman, have set a fine example by calling it quits and making way for the younger lot. The ‘Master Blaster’ would do well to emulate their example for the good of Indian cricket.
—NJ Ravi Chander, Bangalore

Find your daily dose of news & explainers in your WhatsApp. Stay updated, Stay informed-  Follow DNA on WhatsApp.
Advertisement

Live tv

Advertisement
Advertisement