Letters to the EDITOR: Where there is a will, there is a way

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Where there is a will, there is a way

Through your esteemed daily, I would like to share a few remarkable aspects of the works of Padma Shri awardee late Birubala Rabha, who rose to prominence through her extraordinary deeds as an anti-witch hunting crusader. Born on February 5, 1949, to farmer parents in the remote Thakurvilla village of Lakhimpur in Goalpara district, Birubala could only study up to the primary level, even though she was a regular and good student. At the age of 15, she was married off, but her husband died, leaving behind four children. In 1984, an incident happened that had a deep impact on her life and changed her belief system. When a famous deodhani's prediction that her mentally ill son would pass away after three days did not come true, Birubala realised the unauthenticity of the deodhani, bez, etc. who try to fool people for their own gains. She took a pledge to free society, which was at that time plagued by superstitious beliefs due to a lack of education and health care facilities. Another significant event occurred in her life when she stood up steadfast against the accusation against five village women as witches. Though her family was ostracized by the villagers, she finally succeeded, and the practice of ostracism was eventually lifted. A determined and confident woman, Birubala not only rescued the witch-hunting victims but also restored them to their homes and villages. When she lost her elder brother to witch-hunters, her fight against witch-hunting and other social evils became stronger and more widespread. She rescued and rehabilitated many victims of witch-hunting single-handedly and single-mindedly. She set up an NGO that rescued a large number of witch-hunting victims and organised awareness programmes in vulnerable areas across the state. There was a time when she came to be known everywhere as a fearless hunter who hunted down the witch hunters. She was felicitated with notable awards and recognition for her innumerable contributions to society. The Government of India bestowed on her the fourth highest civilian award, Padma Shri, in 2021. She kept on saying that her work for the rights of women and children must continue after she is no more. The late Birubala Rabha was indeed an epitome of courage. Her tireless efforts to instill a scientific temper in the minds of villagers in order to enable them to think through every issue of life rationally are really praiseworthy. It would be a befitting honour to her if the state government considered incorporating Birubala Rabha's life and work into the high school curriculum so that her legacy of selfless social services continues to inspire generations to come.

Iqbal Saikia,

Guwahati

Right time to

reclaim POK

POK is a legitimate and integral part of India, but unfortunately, it is illegally possessed by Pakistan. In 1948, just after independence, some tribals from Pakistani territory, aided by the Pakistani regular army, invaded Kashmir. The then king of Kashmir, Hari Singh, who initially refused to be a part of India, sought India’s help in pushing back the marauders. Accordingly, the then PM Nehru sent the Indian army to Kashmir, and they drove away the invaders from Kashmir, and subsequently, King Hari Singh surrendered his state to the government of India. But very surprisingly, PM Nehru, due to reasons best known to him, did not take possession of a part of Kashmir. Pakistan took full advantage of the situation and declared the said part of Kashmir as theirs and named it Azad Kashmir. Nehru, on the other hand, introduced Article 370 and gave Indian Kashmir a separate status, which further distanced ‘Heaven on the Earth’ from mainland India.

Later on, Azad Kashmir became a safe haven for Islamic terrorists and bled India dearly. Some loyalists of Nehru, namely the Abdullahs, became the rulers of Indian Kashmir for decades. Thankfully, with the abrogation of Article 370 by the NDA government, the situation in Kashmir has changed dramatically, and it has once again become a tourist paradise as the locals have started enjoying their daily lives without any bandhs or insurgencies. Very sadly, the issue of Kashmir even reached the UN, where India has to debate its legitimate right over undivided Kashmir. The current plight of the POK is very much there to see, and they themselves are demanding to be a part of India. Hence, it is the right time for the government to act, liberate POK from Pakistan, and reclaim their legitimate land.

Dr Ashim Chowdhury

Guwahati

Will Guwahati’s parking problem be solved?

Recently, vehicles were seen parked everywhere on the main roads of the city. Parking vehicles on the main road on both sides of the road on the pretext of a lack of parking facilities is unreasonable and causes considerable inconvenience to traffic along the road. There is a mentality to park near the shopping area instead of parking where there is a parking facility because it will cost money. At one time, white-clad traffic police cracked down on such irregularities. But today's smart police do not notice these things. Only in front of large hotels, shopping malls, etc. is traffic control more active to prevent vehicles from entering such establishments. It is difficult to understand why the police are so inactive in traffic control. The city residents would have been relieved of traffic congestion if proper action had been taken against illegal parking.

Chandasmita Kashyap,

Gauhati University

Is nature striking back?

There's no denying that nature is striking back through frequent natural calamities. It is nothing 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 a mention 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 percent 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 natural forces that we may not be able to control. We need to realise the fact that in our battle against nature, we will always find ourselves on the losing side.

Dipen Gogoi,

Teok, Jorhat

Subtle signals

It's said that the greatest mistake in international diplomacy is to assume that "your enemy is his enemy" or vice versa. Last month, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken met with Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing. On May 17, when Russian President Vladimir Putin completed his two-day visit to China, he wasn't as categorical to the extent of being blunt, but his statement that the "China-Russia relation was not directed against anyone" was extremely significant. Putin's remark is important because relations between two strong nations are aimed at mutual development and benefit. The Russian President's dig at the United States' monopoly in international matters was evident during his stress on an "emerging multipolar world."  It is clear that the Putin-Xi Jinping tete-a-tete has sent a clever signal to the West on an intransigent Eurasian equation. Both have been dominant leaders in their countries for a long time, and they know what it takes to keep misunderstandings and adversaries at bay. Be that as it may, both leaders appeared to have a substantive talk focused on strategic and personal ties, including the Ukraine war. Over a period, besides others, bilateral trade between Russia and China has improved by leaps and bounds. The latest meeting between the two should further cement the bond of trust and friendship between them.

Dr Ganapathi Bhat

(gbhat13@gmail.com)