Letters

Deprivation

As the lead article points out, unemployment, deprivation, and corruption are the biggest challenges we face today as a country (Cover Story, May 17). The so-called “Modi ki Guarantee” that the Prime Minister keeps harping on about seems flawed, considering our imperilled economy. The story of people being compelled to accept jobs in war zones like Israel is not a stray case that demonstrates the economic disparity in Indian society. Look at India’s ranking in the Human Development Index, the Press Freedom Index, and the Global Hunger Index, to name just three.

Even as the BJP manages to divert public attention from these facts and figures by playing the Hindutva card and targeting the opposition each time, one hopes the people will hold the ruling government to account at least in this election, with these three key issues in mind.

Kirti Wadhawan

Kanpur, Uttar Pradesh

Inequality is an issue that puts the future of India’s economy in peril. Globalisation and technology have not only taken away jobs but also favoured those at the top of the economic ladder. Thomas Piketty rightly said that the income from economic reforms trickles up, not down. Moreover, the tax breaks to the corporate sector and the huge write-offs on bank loans have taken their toll on the economy.

India’s economy is still reeling from the after-effects of demonetisation, the hasty implementation of GST, and the COVID pandemic. The gulf between the rich and the poor grows wider every day. If inequality is to be tackled seriously, then there should be progressive taxation to redistribute wealth for the benefit of everyone. There should also be a tax on extravagant marriages and parties and stringent measures to root out black money and corruption.

Kangayam R. Narasimhan

Chennai

Election 2024

The cacophony of voices of the BJP and the Congress seeking votes by amplifying the girl student’s death in Karnataka and the Prajwal Revanna sex scandal in the same State only reveal that all politicians are alike in their eagerness to grab power.

The only difference this time is they have raised the pitch with the choicest expletives, unheard of earlier. This only goes to show that Indian politics has taken a turn for the worse, and that this election is more chaotic than ever before. Notwithstanding this, the BJP is fighting hard, leaving no stone unturned in this swirling vortex of allegations and accusations to win the confidence of the electorate, but this is not going to be an easy task.

K.R. Srinivasan

Secunderabad, Telangana

Wetlands in peril

It was shocking to read that Kerala has lost 98 per cent of its mangroves in the last 50 years thanks to unplanned industrialisation and urbanisation (“Silent SOS”, May 3). Cattle foraging for food from garbage heaps is not an uncommon sight in any Indian city. Many cows die from consuming plastic. The indiscriminate dumping of plastic waste in the ocean also impacts sea life, ultimately affecting the health of the people who consume seafood. Unless every citizen realises the dangers of polluting rivers with plastic and medical waste, no rules, laws, and regulations will bring in the desired result.

I have pasted copies of this photo essay on the notice board of my apartment in order to spread awareness about our endangered ecosystem.

R.V. Baskaran

Chennai

Neighbourhood first

In a clear departure from Nehru’s “China first” policy, India has moved with the “neighbourhood first” policy, as is evident in Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Bhutan and S. Jaishankar’s visit to Nepal (“Neighbourhood niggles”, May 3). Modi’s visit to Bhutan underscores the growing importance accorded to Bhutan at a time when China is mounting pressure on Bhutan for a favourable border settlement and demanding bilateral ties despite having no formal diplomatic relations with Bhutan.

The joint statement issued after Modi’s visit to Bhutan, “Bharat for Bhutan and Bhutan for Bharat”, is an example of India’s “Neighbourhood First” policy and how it addresses the elephant in the room in order to exorcise the ghost in the neighbourhood.

Sudipta Ghosh

Jangipur, West Bengal