EVER since the economy was liberalised in 1991, the working class has been at the receiving end be it in the matter of jobs or social security (Unkind cut, April 20).
EPF has seen a steep fall in interest rates from the initial 12 per cent. The government has turned a deaf ear to the request of Left parties and trade unions to enhance the wage ceiling of Rs.6,500 for EPF, and increase the interest rate. Many employers do not provide the EPF facility to their staff claiming that they pay a salary of Rs.6,500 or more. Only about 4.7 per cent of our population have EPF cover. The government, which refuses to give a decent interest rate to workers, offers many subsidies, tax holidays, exemption from certain labour laws to big industrialists.
Such practices can lead to political unrest.G. Anuplal BangaloreLinking riversTHE river interlinking project is too big to be successfully executed in a country like India (Mission Impossible, Cover Story, April 20). There are too many hurdles in the way huge costs, land acquisition issues, displacement of millions of people, and so on.
The big question is whether the government will take such an anti-people stand. When the National Highways Development Project entailing lesser costs could not achieve the desired results, how can the government achieve success with an ultra-mega project such as ILR. And if past records are anything to go buy, such projects result in huge corruption.
Bal Govind NoidaTHE problem of water deficit can be solved by rainwater management and economical usage of water. The water quality of one river is different from that of another. Interlinking rivers cause severe damage to biodiversity.
Dr Hem Srivastava Ranchi, JharkhandTHE Cover Story was very informative. It helped the lay reader understand the reasons behind the delay in the project's execution.
Sujit Ugale Nasik, MaharashtraWHEN Justice B.N. Kirpal proposed the interlinking of rivers in 2002, he said that it was just a recommendation. But the latest in the string of judgments on this issue does not open even a small window for debate and discussion. Interlinking of rivers is a highly technical matter that needs to be debated by a panel of philanthropists, social scientists, engineers, and so on. It is not something that can be decided by a Bench of judges alone. The Supreme Court has also not taken into consideration any literature on the subject other than the NCAER report.
It has to be seen if the Ministry of Environment and Forests will give the go-ahead for this bizarre project, considering its environmental implications. How can the country even think of embarking upon this project when States are yet to settle river water disputes?
Ritvik Chaturvedi New DelhiTHE Supreme Court has thrown its weight behind a decade-old project, which is being opposed by some States, environmentalists and social activists. In fact, interlinking the country's river system to transfer surplus water to deficit areas through a network of canals was first conceived by the visionary engineer K.L. Rao, who had served in the Cabinets of Jawaharlal Nehru, Lal Bahadur Shastri and Indira Gandhi.
Of India's annual surface water resource of 69,000 tmcft, only 8,800 tmcft is utilised. The rest drains into the sea. Interlinking rivers would help generate more than 40,000 MW of clean and green electricity.
K.S. Jayatheertha BangaloreINTERLINKING India's rivers is not feasible. Ever since former President A.P.J. Abdul Kalam highlighted the need for such a project and former Prime Minister A.B. Vajpayee popularised it, people began to dream that the nation would be relieved of the problems of floods and droughts and be able to also increase foodgrain production. What they did not realise was that the government announces many plans just to fascinate people and win elections.
Sushil Kumar Aurangabad, BiharProvident FundUNLIKE deposits in banks and other financial institutions, the Employees' Provident Fund is a social security measure (Unkind cut, April 20).
Keeping the interest of workers in mind, the fund was introduced soon after Independence through an Act of Parliament. The employees' money remains with the government during their long periods of service. Since the government invests EPF funds in development schemes, they deserve a higher rate of interest than the usual fixed deposits. The government has hiked the interest rates on post-office small-savings plans by up to 50 basis points for the new fiscal year. In view of the social security of employees, especially in old age, the government must restore the 9.5 per cent interest rate on EPF.
J.S. Acharya HyderabadBY reducing the EPF rate to 8.25 per cent, the Union Finance Ministry has dealt a severe blow. It has broken the morale of the poor non-government employees. The Labour Ministry's silence over the issue is intriguing. Hopefully, the Finance Ministry will revoke the notification.
Jayant Mukherjee KolkataNuclear powerTHE Tamil Nadu government's consent for the immediate commissioning of the Kudankulam nuclear power project in Tirunelveli should be respected and welcomed by all (Full steam ahead, April 20). Unnecessary criticism and protests against industrial projects should not be allowed to ruin the growth of the country. Everyone has a right to protest against any project, but there should be no place for false propaganda. As poet Rabindranath Tagore said, Science has given man immense power. The golden age will return when it is used in the service of humanity.
P. Senthil Saravana Durai Vazhavallan, T. N.AS long as politicians are not ready to discard parochialism, stage-managed agitations are bound to happen. In Kudankulam, vested interests have exploited the sentiments of the local people. More than the threat of nuclear leak or radiation, what worries some people is the round-the-clock presence of Central security forces in the Kudankulam belt, which will deter the unlawful activities that have been going on in coastal areas around the project site for years together with the blessings of some influential people.
Instead of invoking NSA in September 2011 itself, the Centre chose to remain a mute spectator and unnecessarily allowed the issue to escalate beyond control. This helped the State government to take control of the situation on the grounds that law and order is a State subject.
The agitation exemplifies the rising clout of States against a weakening Centre, which does not augur well for the federal polity.
Ettirankandath Krishandas Kinassery, KeralaSri LankaINDIA made a wrong diplomatic move by voting in favour of the U.S.-backed resolution at the UNHRC against Sri Lanka (Lessons leant?, April 20). This distortion of India's foreign policy at the behest of the DMK may backfire.
The U.S. has often described India as a Muslim-baiter, citing the Babri Masjid issue. We have unwittingly toed the American line. The country has the habit of bullying its friends and respecting its opponents.
India should have adopted a non-interference policy in the Sri Lankan Tamil issue. If we supported Sri Lankan Tamils to appease the Tamil politicians, then we should concede Pakistan's right to help the Muslims of India. The LTTE was more cruel than the Sri Lankan army personnel. It mercilessly killed former Indian Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi and many Sinhalese leaders as well as Sri lankan Tamil leaders of moderate groups.
The U.S. backed the resolution not out of any sympathy for Sri Lankan Tamils but out of its need to stop Sri Lanka's efforts to move closer to China. The U.S. also wants to get a foothold in Sri Lanka.
S. Raghunatha Prabhu Thiruvampady, KeralaVodafone caseMOST review petitions are dismissed by the Supreme Court without assigning any reason, although many of them indeed have valid legal points (A new look at capital gains, Update, April 20). The government may get the better of flawed' court orders by amending the law, but what option is left with the ordinary citizen? The review petitions should be heard by a different Bench in the interest of justice.
Satish Kumar Gajbhiye NagpurSachin's centuryLIKE Donald Bradman's Test average of 99.94, Tendulkar's record of 100 centuries in Test and one-day internationals might never be broken. (Tons of passion, April 20). We must enjoy his twilight years because there might not be another Tendulkar in the foreseeable future.
Dr Sanjiv Gupta Perth, AustraliaAFTER an agonising wait of 12 months, Sachin finally reached the milestone of scoring a century of centuries. It is a moment of pride for every Indian. We salute the little master for this phenomenal feat and for giving us some extraordinary moments in cricket.
K.R. Srinivasan SecunderabadON his 100th hundred, Sachin said that after achieving it he was really thrilled and looked at the dressing room and pointed my bat to the players and also to the Indian flag that I have on my helmet. This statement reveals his love for the country and his sense of camaraderie with his teammates.
N.C. Sreedharan Pallikunnu, KeralaSACHIN admits that the obsession of others had made his hundredth century very difficult to score. The fact that he scored it against one of the weakest sides in the world did not diminish its significance.
P. Arihanth SecunderabadTHERE have been many Indian cricketers who had passion, hunger and motivation, yet were prematurely and unceremoniously retired or rested during the peak of their careers from different formats of the game. The list is long Anil Kumble, Sourav Ganguly and Rahul Dravid, to name a few. The current IPL series confirms that they still have spark in them.
Sadly, things have boiled down to Let Sachin play for the sake of individual records in a team game, and the rest for the nation. Any other player taking 14 innings to score his first Test century, 76 to score his first ODI century and 33 to go from the 99th to the 100th century, would have been dumped. Sachin could reach this number only because of the selectors' benevolence. In fact, Sachin had equalled Sri Lanka's Aravinda de Silva's world record of appearing in the maximum number of lost matches (163) in 2006 itself.
Varin Dhir Ahmedabad, gujaratIT is sad that Tendulkar did not come for Dravid's farewell function organised by the BCCI in Bangalore and that Dravid did not attend the felicitation of Tendulkar in Mumbai.
Dravid, who voluntarily quit Test cricket but is ably captaining Rajasthan Royals, and Tendulkar, who does not want to call it a day from first-class cricket and continues to play for Mumbai Indians in IPL-5, are two of India's all-time greats.
S.V. Venkatesh BangaloreNorwayTHE column Dangerous Altruism amplifies the concerns expressed through the ongoing shrill public debate on the Bhattacharya children in Norway (April 20). There is an old saying that if you save a life, you remain responsible for that life forever. That premise guides the global child protection plan, which began to be constructed in South Asia in the immediate aftermath of Partition.
In the incredibly more complicated case of Rahat Ara and her children, Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru had suggested steps to be followed before handing over children but also made it clear that the state was not and could not be a substitute for a family. Before we decide anything, I should like you to write to our Deputy High Commissioner, . Ask him to make discreet enquiries about these people, Tell him we want to have as much information as possible so as to enable us to decide. We should look at this question from the human point of view. If both the father and mother want these children, I see no justification to keep them here. We may look after them well now, but how can we guarantee any future for them.
Norway, as every other country which has signed the Convention on the Rights of the Child, is duty-bound to protect every child who comes into its care. We now know there are flaws in the way its system operates.
The question that remains unasked is why the Indian Embassy, which is duty-bound to support all Indian nationals, both adults and children, in their time of need, came into the picture only after the President of India called the External Affairs Minister of India, who then called the Norwegian Foreign Minister, to request the return of the children to their family.
If the Norwegian authorities did not do their jobs well, neither did the Indians. We have a family torn, children disconnected from their parents and the relationship between two countries stressed. No one comes out a winner in this.
Vijayalakshmi Balakrishnan New DelhiFukushimaPRAFUL BIDWAI has said that the world must embrace another energy paradigm (End of an illusion, April 6). But until viable alternatives emerge, developing countries should not abandon the existing energy paradigm. After all, 400 million people in our country do not have access to electricity even today.
Bidwai's conclusion that the Fukushima accident was the most serious ever cannot be accepted. According to AEC Chairman Srikumar Banerjee, not one person died or was affected by radioactivity on account of any nuclear blast in Fukushima. Only a hydrogen blast had taken place owing to coolant failure. It was the combination of a tsunami and an earthquake that claimed thousands of lives in Japan.
K. Ravindran Goundampalayam, T.N.ANNOUNCEMENTLetters, whether by surface mail or e-mail, must carry the full postal address and the full name, or the name with initials.
