L E T T E R S    T O    T H E    E D I T O R

Irresponsible MPs delay crucial Bills

The editorial 'Shaming unruly MPs' (August 10) has rightly deplored the MPs' unruly behaviour in Parliament. Surely, Parliament has not functioned in a proper manner at all. It is astonishing that only one Bill was passed during the first four days of the current session whereas 110 Bills are still pending. The BJP has been irresponsible and careless during the last few sessions, which were completely whitewashed by them.

It's regrettable that important Bills like the Women Empowerment Bill, the Judicial Accountability Bill and the Land Acquisition Bill are going to be delayed again. I agree with the editorial that the "pictures of unruly MPs should be frequently displayed on TV channels, at least those run by the government, so that voters can identify and punish them during elections for wasting public money". As per a study, every minute of the functioning of Parliament costs the exchequer Rs 2.5 lakh. Shockingly, our leaders do not take its proceedings seriously.

R K KAPOOR, Chandigarh

Inclusive growth

This is refers to the news item 'RS passes new Companies Bill) (August 10). Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) — the new avatar of 'trusteeship' of Mahatma Gandhi and 'creative capitalism' of Bill Gates — is necessary and a sufficient condition for inclusive growth. The provision of 2 per cent of the average net profit (with a rider of Rs 5 crore or more profit in the past three years) of companies is required to be spent on CSR with self-regulation, transparency and compliance may be acceptable to the stakeholders.

DR M M GOEL, Kurukshetra

Driving age

We are all well acquainted with the fact that the minimum driving age in our country is 18. No child below 18 is fit enough to drive a vehicle all of his own. It is so because science claims that a person below this age is immature and his brain is not yet developed. Thus he has no right to drive a vehicle.

Well, if so, then what about old people driving vehicles. In old age, a person's brain begins to decline and he turns immature again. Our country provides only the lower age limit and not the upper age limit for driving. So, accordingly what our country says is that one must be 18 to drive a vehicle and can drive till the time one dies. Given an 80-year-old person driving a car, are there not chances that he might sleep while driving, leading to an accident? Since both adolescence and old age unfit for driving, the government must give it a thought.

SHIVANGI SHARMA, Palampur

Rural postings

This refers to the editorial 'Rural health care' (August 10). The government should incentivise rural posting of the doctors. Doctors who serve in rural areas should be given advantage during admissions to PG courses over their urban counterparts. Then, we will observe that most of the doctors will not object to rural postings.

ANIL K JASWAL, Una

Fitness a must

Stress among today's teenagers is common as they are overburdened with studies. So, physical activities are a must. Besides, people want to live an easy life and for that they purchase every item like washing machines and engage servants to get rid of household chores, thereby reducing their physical activities. As a result, most people are becoming victims of obesity and suffering from various diseases and physical fitness problems. Computers, mobiles and other gizmos are also a factor for having diseases in one's youth. Students as well as the aged must take time off their busy schedules and do walking and exercises to stay fit.

ARSHDEEP SINGH, Mohali

Girls' safety

During my recent stay in Panchkula, I found that in many a school bus, a lone girl or a couple of them have to commute in the bus in the company of the bus driver and the conductor. It is particularly so when they (girls) are the last ones to be dropped on their return from the school. I believe that a school teacher, who is required to accompany the bus, is often not there till the end of the journey. So, I ask the school authorities and the administration what steps they are taking in this regard.

V R SETHI, Shimla

Monkey menace

Residents of Sectors 25 and 26 of Panchkula are facing lots of problems due to monkeys who invade their houses in groups, take away clothes and damage household goods in search of eatables. All their efforts to scare them away have met with little success. The authorities concerned should take this problem seriously.

VINOD SHARMA, Panchkula

Misuse of RTI Act The RTI Act, 2005, is the most useful tool for the public to get the required information within 30 days. The Punjab government aided schools are covered under the RTI Act. In case of non-compliance, the complainant can appeal to the State Information Commission of Punjab, Chandigarh, which is fully competent to summon the respondents or in non-compliance it has the powers to penalise the defaulters. Some cases of misuse of the Act have come to light. A retired headmaster has been misusing it by applying again and again to harass a school management and putting extra financial burden on the school for attending to the Information Commissioner. His 22 complaints out of 25-26 received by the commission so far have been disposed of. The matter was brought to the notice of the commission which is of the view that it has no powers to penalise the complainant misusing the Act. The authorities should amend the RTI Act and include a new clause to penalise those whose motto is only to harass the public authority and the party and waste their precious time and money. P C JAIN, Sangrur Letters to the Editor Letters to the Editor, typed in double space, should not exceed the 200-word limit. These should be cogently written and can be sent by e-mail to: Letters@tribuneindia.com — Editor-in-Chief