Letters to the EDITOR: Parking chaos and illegal food stalls

Parking chaos and illegal food stalls

Through the columns of your esteemed newspaper, I wish to bring to light a pressing issue concerning Kaliram Choudhury Road, Kumarpara. Over the past few months, this once peaceful road has transformed into a chaotic hub, primarily due to the haphazard parking and the unchecked establishment of numerous food stalls along the street.

The unauthorized food stalls occupy significant portions of the footpath and road, leaving little space for pedestrians to walk safely. Furthermore, the vehicles parked without any proper regulation cause heavy traffic jams, especially during peak hours. This has not only led to inconvenience but also posed serious safety risks for residents, particularly school-going children and senior citizens.

Despite repeated complaints from the local community, no concrete action has been taken to resolve the situation. We urge the concerned authorities to step in and restore order by regulating parking and ensuring that food stalls operate within designated zones. It is crucial to preserve the character of our neighbourhood while ensuring safety and accessibility for all.

Mowsam Hazarika

Kumarpara,Guwahati

The Living Legend

The recently concluded US Open Tennis Championship will be regarded and remembered by all tennis fans across the globe as the graveyard of most of the big guns of modern day’s tennis, both in men’s and ladies  events. The early exit of Carlos Alcarez, the new-found dynamite, unceremoniously in the early round opened the floodgates, followed by 24 Grand Slam winner Novak Djokovic. In the women's event too, the reigning French and Wimbledon winners made an early exit.

The reasons behind these upsets galore, according to tennis pundits, are the frequent change of playing surfaces from clay to grass, grass to clay, and from clay to hard court.

As an ordinary follower of the said game, I believe that there is one living legend for all courts named Rod Laver, who swept all the 4 Grand Slams starting from the Australian Open to the US Open 3 times in a row.

A LEGEND never dies.

Dr. Ashim Chowdhury

Guwahati.

Plight of tea garden workers

The 'glory of the 200-year-old Assam tea industry' since the discovery of tea  plants in 1823 AD is in shambles without paying a single moment of thought about the plight of the workers who have sacrificed their lives in the upbringing of their properties in good or the worst times of the yesteryears. Unfortunately today, they are deprived of minimum health-care facilities in the garden hospitals. The editorial 'Healthcare in tea gardens published in your esteemed daily on September 16 has rightly pointed out that unless the state government intervenes on the issue, there is no chance to bring the high maternity mortality rate (MMR) and infant mortality rate (IMR) under control in the tea gardens in the state. I thought it was the responsibility of the tea garden management to ensure proper health care facilities for their workers, but its lackadaisical attitude has led to the present pitiable condition of the tea garden hospitals. The worrying condition of hospitals has been revealed in the CAG team performance audit report, which is particularly distressing. The need for the industry is to revamp its hospitals with up-to-date facilities through a pragmatic initiative without looking too much towards the government. It is true that the state's age-old tea industry has been passing through a very critical phase at present, but that doesn't mean the management will compromise with the healthcare facilities of the tea workers. It is imperative that the state government and the Tea Board come up with some interventions to improve the health care facilities in tea gardens to curb the threat to sustainability of the tea industry of the state. Sooner some positive steps are taken, the better for the workforce, who are the future of Assam's pride--the tea industry.

Iqbal Saikia,

Guwahati.

Examination vis-à-vis internet suspension

Examinations are an indispensable part of our lives. Examinations in schools, colleges, and universities are an integral part of their curriculum. Job-related examinations like APSC, UPSC, SSC, TET, etc. are being conducted by different agencies to select the right candidate for the right jobs. Conducting examinations is not rocket science. It has all along been a normal affair. Now, in the digital era, it has come to such a pass that the government of Assam had to temporarily suspend mobile internet services for conducting Grade III recruitment examinations to stop adoption of malpractices by some unscrupulous candidates. As such, internet services remained suspended in Assam for 4 hours or so on September 15, 2024. However, this practice does not bode well for the future. In fact, such practices are generally put to use when law and order situations go haywire in a particular area or state. To set a precedent would become a rule of law unto itself.

In today’s digital world, suspension of internet services is totally uncalled for, unless it is very urgent and unavoidable. Consequently, all important activities under the sun come to a grinding halt. Losses apart, it did put many in difficult situations. In fact, the government has taken the easiest path. The state administration should use the know-how to move effectively in a critical path as well as to resolve difficult issues. Brainstorming would definitely produce a useful result. At the end of the day, it shows that the state administration has millions of miles to go to equip themselves to give good governance in the state.

Prafulla Dowarah

Guwahati

Ganpati visarjan

The festival of Ganesh Chaturthi is celebrated on a large scale throughout India. It is also celebrated by Hindus residing abroad.

The history of the Sarvajanik Ganesh Chaturthi in Maharashtra is centuries old. It was started by the late Lokmanya Tilak, one of India's freedom fighters.

According to Hindus, Ganesha is the remover of obstacles and all the problems in one’s life, as well as the creator of happiness in the lives of people. People in India worship Lord Ganesha before starting any new project. Ganesha is the eldest son of Lord Shiva and Goddess Parvati and is one of the five major Hindu deities. With his pot belly and elephant head, he is the god who removes all obstacles in the paths of those struggling to achieve both spiritual and worldly success. On the final day of the festival, the idol is immersed in water with full devotion and faith. This ceremony is called ‘Ganesh Visarjan’.

Jubel D'Cruz,

(jubeldcruz@yahoo.com)