M A I L B A G

Case for total nuclear disarmament

G. Parthasarathy's article "The threat from N-weapons: India has to face the situation" (Dec 2) suggesting that India should indicate its readiness to join any meaningful time-bound process of universal nuclear disarmament is sound and informative.

He has rightly emphasised that India is the only country which has announced a universal "no first use" nuclear weapons doctrine. It is of paramount importance to desist from assisting other countries in the development of nuclear weapons if we sincerely desire a universal nuclear disarmament.

NPT can also be facilitated if all countries, like India, declare "no first use" of nuclear weapons. Disarmament is in the interest of all nations as everyone realises that the scarce resources can then be diverted for economic development rather than wasting them on military equipment.

If more countries commit themselves to disarmament, there will be much less need for military preparedness, self-defence, and bilateral defence ties.

Dr SUBASH C. JAIN, Gurgaon

II

The writer always attempts to give India a very godly, saintly and holy image, a country that is always morally correct and done in by its neighbours which are more crafty and Machiavellian. This is good patriotism but bad misinformation to fellow Indians who get caught believing such virtues as expounded by him.

The right-wing Indian state follows realpolitik, deceit, craft as any other state which the writer mentions in his article. If Pakistan has acquired nuclear know-how from "Holland, Switzerland, UK, Germany" because of their "lax export controls and security arrangements", India has also acquired such know-how by cheating Canada which gave India a nuclear reactor for peaceful purposes. The Indo-Canadian relations remained at a low key for many years because India had defrauded Canada in its agreement that India would not use the reactor to make nuclear weapons.

If Pakistan has offered Iran nuclear secrets, so has India, as to counter-balance the growing might of Pakistan, which is mainly Sunni and Iran is the only Shia state in the Islamic world. India broke off its nuclear relationship with Iran when it formed a secret military alliance with the theocratic state of Israel.

From the Shiromani Akali Dal (Amritsar) point of view, for everlasting peace in South Asia, the ideal solution would be to denuclearise both Pakistan and India. America, NATO and the European Union should offer them a nuclear umbrella against any nuclear incursion by a third power in the sub-continent. India and Pakistan should make rapid economic progress to alleviate their masses from extreme poverty and ignorance and not waste their respective wealth on meaningless competition in nuclear armed strength.

SIMRANJIT SINGH MANN, President, Shiromani Akali Dal (Amritsar), Quilla S. Harnam Singh, (Fatehgarh Sahib)

Enforce two-child norm Population explosion has become a major problem for India's planners and policymakers. It negates all goals and objectives of growth and development. Effective family planning and population stability are the need of the hour. The present fertility rate is quite high and must be brought down drastically. Illiteracy and poverty are two great hindrances in family planning. The states with low literacy have the highest birth rate. Literate women make good use of family planning and birth-control devices. The two-child norm should be enforced strictly. There should be more incentives and disincentives to make the family planning programme a success. The alarming population trends will have to be reversed. VARINDER KAUR, Abohar

Endless litigation

Apropos V. Eshwar Anand's article "Scourge of litigation: Punjab HC ruling should act as a deterrent" (Nov 27), the Punjab and Haryana High Court Bench comprising Justice S.S. Nijar and Justice J.S. Narang aptly indicted the Punjab government for endless litigation against the poor and helpless employees. The ruling not only highlights waste of public money due to the adamant behaviour of the officer who dismissed the employees but also due to the cantankerous attitude adopted by those responsible in prolonging litigation.

Very often, the state government makes it a prestige issue as to how a weak employee can defy its fiat in a court of law? The fight goes on with endless litigation. Justice comes very late in most cases. Though the court has indicted the government in this case, the young widow can never get her husband back who died while fighting against injustice. That is why, speedy justice is indispensable.

If the state thinks that by using unnecessary litigation as a weapon against the weak serves the purpose of justice, then it is mistaken. In this context, the words of Justice V.R. Krishan Iyer are noteworthy: "The time conception of the administration of justice is that the lowly concern of the least person is of the highest consideration to the state and the courts".

P.L. SETHI, Patiala

In bad taste

The portrayal of Sikh Army officers in the Bagpiper advertisement is in bad taste. It has left us to introspect whether the marketing strategies adopted by the Bagpiper and superstar Amitabh Bachchan are because of the spirit of liquor. In fact, Sikh's purity and spirit are not related to whisky. Those concerned should take note of it and respect the sentiments of society.

Lt-Col G.P.S. VIRK (retd), Mohali