Wrath
of nature
There’s no denying that nature is striking back through frequent natural calamities. It is none other than humanity’s destruction of biodiversity that has incurred the wrath of nature. We can see this in the form of floods, a failed harvest, droughts, heat waves, intense hurricanes, typhoons, tornadoes, derechos, wildfires, famines, etc. It hardly needs mentioning that global warming, an increasingly human-driven phenomenon, is increasing the frequency of these weather- and climate-related natural disasters. Data from the India Meteorological Department show that the cumulative rainfall in the monsoon season has reached 243.2 mm, which is two per cent above the normal of 239.1 mm. Ongoing floods in Assam have affected 20 districts and over 100,000 people since June 14, 2023. It’s high time we stopped clearing the wetlands and vegetation for buildings or farms, fouling up the air with CO2 or else, it’s quite likely that we will encounter more and more unexpected biological forces that we may not be able to control. We need to realise that in our battle against nature, we will always find ourselves on the losing side.
Dipen Gogoi,
Teok, Jorhat.
Expensive medical tests
Through your esteem daily, I would like to express my concern about the high rates of medical tests. Even though you ask for a discount, most labs charge excessive prices for the tests in most diagnostic centres and hospitals as well. All examinations are expensive since a certain portion must be paid to the doctors. On the other hand, people are selling all their property for the sake of the treatment.
In order to give consumers some relief with regard to doctor fees, the government should fix the costs of tests and consultations. Also, the state government should stop the private practise of government doctors who are working in government hospitals so that they can get some relief and spend more time in government hospitals. As the present government is coming up with new rules and regulations, they should come up with new laws regarding this issue.
Samar Deb,
Chandan Nagar, Guwahati.
Awards debate
The practise of returning awards and titles in protest against the state is not new in India. Rabindranath Tagore returned his knighthood in 1919 to protest against the British massacre in Jallianwala Bagh. More recently, Olympic medal winner Mirabai Chanu wanted to do so following ethnic violence in Manipur, and India’s star wrestlers attempted the same to push their campaign against sexual harassment of women in the Wrestling Federation of India. In between, there have been many cases of writers, filmmakers, and artists returning state and national awards, causing embarrassment to those in power. A parliamentary standing committee’s recommendation that those receiving national awards give a written undertaking that they will never return the prize acquires political overtones in this context. The concept of no return is far from cheerful, and celebration is the last thing associated with it. The precondition that the government wants to impose on recipients of national and state awards smacks of obduracy. It also implies that it does not allow free speech in the country.
MJ Azizi,
Guwahati.
Mysore Pak gets international acclaim
It is a proud moment for South India’s culinary legacy, as Mysore Pak, the celebrated sweet, has been endowed with international acclaim by Taste Atlas, an empirical travel online guide for traditional food renowned for its comprehensive street food reviews from around the world, which has ranked this scrumptious sweet at an impressive 14th position in its coveted top 50 list of the finest street food sweets. Mysore Pak’s journey from the royal kitchens of the Mysore palace to global recognition has been phenomenal. The reputation of Mysore Pak on the world stage not only celebrates India’s diverse gastronomic culture but also highlights the universal fondness for Indian street food sweets across the globe. In a lighter vein, netizens found a humour element in Mysore Pak on social media, requesting the central government to rename the sweet by replacing the word ‘Pak’ with ‘Ind’, so that it sounds more Indian.
Ranganathan Sivakumar,
(siva19kumar@gmail.com.)
Rudderless Karnataka BJP
Even three months after the formation of a new government in Karnataka, the absence of the leader of the opposition in the state assembly is intriguing. This state of affairs is not good for a strong and vibrant democracy where the ruling party has to be put on the mat by the opposition on serious issues affecting the common man. The BJP, with 66 legislators, is looking rudderless without a leader in both houses of the legislature. Party legislators in the assembly, many of whom were important members of the previous cabinet headed by Basavaraj Bommai, are having a say in their own way. Nonetheless, that spark of imaginative leadership from an officially selected leader is palpably missing.
Is the BJP central leadership so busy with other matters that it is unable to pick the party leader in an important state? It has to act fast because a vocal and able legislative party leader can do wonders for the party’s morale. There are 27 seats to fight for for the party in the state in next year’s general elections. Moreover, many party leaders ridiculed the Congress’ high command’s dilly-dallying in picking its chief minister in Karnataka. Earlier, it was said that former chief minister Basavaraj Bommai, former minister R Ashoka, and senior leader Basavaraj Yatnal were the frontrunners for the opposition leader’s post. But nothing much happened, leading to unnecessary speculation.
Dr Ganapathi Bhat
(gbhat13@gmail.com)