Harmful foods
Many years ago iodized salt was forced on us, presuming that the entire population suffered from iodine deficiency. Now, our government is bent on force-feeding us Bt brinjal. The Indian guinea pigs will not even have the freedom of choice, because the Bt brinjal will not be labelled. Why does our government want to poison our food, when GM foods’ long-term impact on health is still unknown?
—VV Vijayan, Mumbai
In Kipling’s memory
I’m with Farrukh Dhondy in his effort to preserve a bit of Kipling (‘Preserving Kiplings legacy in Mumbai’, DNA, March 5). It was a cavalry general who as commandant put Kipling’s ‘If ‘ in front of the nose of every wouldbe defender of faith and country at the National Defence Academy. A humbly framed version of ‘If’ hung in every cabin occupied by the likes of a future president, chief minister, cabinet minister, governors, chiefs of staff, humble subaltern whose tenure was cut short by injury or death on the battlefield and every officer in-between. Nobody though reflected with the cadets on the meaning in those lines. Along with a memorial, Kipling deserves to be promoted as
alternative reading in institutions.
—Raj Dhillon, via email
No proxy power
The women’s reservation bill currently in Parliament when passed will be the biggest joke (‘Congress goofs up on women’s bill’, DNA, March 9). How many honestly feel it will fulfill the intended aspirations of those behind it? If the Indian women are to have their due share in the country’s political life, the problem has to be approached from a different angle. Passing a bill in Parliament will not assure real power to women. The process of greater women’s representation has to come from the political parties adopting greater women representation as their cardinal principle. No amount of thrusting it through a constitutional amendment from the top will bring in the desired result.
—K Venkataraman, Mumbai
II
Much is being made of women’s reservation bill in the Parliament without realising that any sort of quota in legislatures restricts people’s right of freedom of electing the most able as their representative. If quota was the instrument to empower any section of society, then why after sixty-years of quota-regime the situation of the SC/STs is the same except of those who were resourceful and never needed quota? There is no dearth of women achievers in India. Quotas are not the way for
empowering sections of the society.
—MC Joshi, Lucknow
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