Just a
few thoughts
There is vast difference between the Trump and Biden administrations or, to be precise, their way of functioning. Under the previous Donald Trump regime in the USA, the UNO arranged peace pacts with North Korea, signed the Serbia- Kosovo peace deal, UAE, Bahrain, Sudan, Morocco normalized relationship with Israel. But after the assumption of power by Joe Biden, the Taliban occupied Afghanistan, terrorists are using US weapons left in Afghanistan against India and finally, it has failed to resolve the Ukraine-Russia crisis. The NATO has become toothless. Meanwhile Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan has a nagging habit of finding various means to humiliate himself and his pauper nation. The world laughed when he visited Russian in the midst of the ongoing crisis, but was greeted by a junior Minister of Russia at the airport. Poverty-stricken Pakistan is at a desperate stage as we often find its Prime Minister Imran Khan going to China and some Islamic countries with an empty bowl in his hands.
Julie Bhuyan,
Gaurisagar.
Big powers' fight
This time the whole world is again going to witness a 'big powers' fight'. The Ukraine-Russia conflict has become a serious issue in contemporary world politics. Russian President Vladimir Putin has threatened Ukraine and has ordered his army to invade the eastern part of Ukraine .He also has made it clear to other nations that they should maintain distance from this crisis. On the other hand, the big brother of the NATO and also the prime enemy of Russia, the USA has made it clear that it will take action against the power which tries to invade NATO's area. With such a statement, the USA has indirectly threatened Russia. On the other hand, the United Nations has again played a passive role on this issue. It can be assumed that this crisis may lead to a conflict between First World countries and Second World countries. In the UN Security Council meet, India called for immediate de-escalation. We, the people of the rest of the world, now can only pray that the peace comes back to the world soon.
Aditya Ankur Nath,
Tezpur.
Power-hungry Pawar
We understand that there is a semi-national political party named NCP (Nationalist Congress Party), mainly dominant in Maharashtra, formed by Sharad Pawar and Late PA Sangma. Sharad Pawar, the Maratha strong man, once a very powerful Cabinet Minister under Late Indira Gandhi, left the Congress on the issue of Sonia Gandhi's foreign origin along with PA Sangma, whom he ditched later by again joining hands with Sonia Gandhi's party, leaving Sangma high and dry. That is history. In the current context, Pawar's NCP has became an important partner of Shiv Sena-led Uddhav Thackeray's coalition government along with the Congress. Once being part of the coalition government, he started dictating terms and as a result that two of his party's MLAs, namely Anil Deshmukh and Nawab Malik, were given important berths by Chief Minister Thackeray. Interestingly, both Deshmukh and Malik are under the custody of ED in money-laundering cases. Nawab Mallik is even alleged to have links with the D (Dawood gang) Company in the money-laundering issue. These are some lawmakers who swear by the Constitution to bleed the nation. Pawar, at the fag end of his political career, cannot breathe without power. I feel NCP should change its abbreviation to National Corrupt Party.
Lanu Dutt Chowdhury,
Guwahati.
Rare Disease Day
Rare Disease Day is observed every year on February 28 to promote awareness for nearly 7,000 rare conditions that impact over 300 million people globally. The day represents a special opportunity to hear the voice of rare disease patients across the world and to highlight the burden and impact of living with a rare disease. Lack of efficient treatment and accurate diagnosis for the majority of rare diseases represents an enormous unmet medical need and a major public-health challenge. India has an increased frequency of rare diseases when compared to the rest of the world. The Ministry of Health and Family Welfare has declared that 450 rare diseases have been identified in India. A disease is defined as rare if it affects fewer than one in 2,00,000 people. The Government has launched a digital portal for crowd-funding and voluntary donations for the treatment of patients of rare diseases in accordance with the mandate of the National Policy for Rare Diseases 2021. Under the policy, the Centre provides financial support of up to Rs 20 lakh for the treatment of those rare diseases that require a one-time treatment. There is a need to raise awareness among the local communities and in the world. With rare diseases, the big problem today is in diagnosis, which is required for effective treatment. The Government has to recognize the challenges face by those afflicted by rare diseases; it should start mass awareness campaigns, especially in rural areas. Better awareness leads to a faster diagnosis of the disease, better treatment options, and comparatively early interventions.
Krishna Kumar Vepakomma,
Hyderabad - 500045.