M A I L B A G

Building on mother’s learning

THIS refers to Kiran Bedi’s article, “Let’s build on mother’s learning” (Sunday Oped, Aug 28). Sages opine that a mother’s exalted position is judged from the fact that a soul enters this world only from her to perform karmas.

More than formal education, it’s the mother’s upbringing that shapes one’s personality and character, which is our true inheritance. Henry Ward Beecher has correctly observed: What the mother sings to the cradle/ Goes all the way down to the coffin.

It is mother’s selfless love that strongly bonds her with children. So the umbilical cord is cut not on doctor’s table, but finally when a mother dies. A befitting tribute to a mother is: A perfect woman, nobly planned./ To warn, to comfort and command,/ And yet a spirit, still and bright,/ With something of an angelic light.

ROSHNI JOHAR, Shimla

II

The mother’s tremendous managerial and administrative skills have never been recognised properly. Her skills of doing balancing acts in varied fields to keep the family going well have been fairly described. No wonder, the term ‘housewife’ has deservedly been replaced by ‘house administrator’ or ‘house manager’ in many advanced countries. Above all, a mother is the only sincere wellwisher and adviser, without any personal motive.

The whole world may desert someone, but the mother will never. She is an apostle of selflessness and sacrifice. Someone very aptly said, “God could not be present everywhere, so he made mothers”. Three cheers for the mother and my salute to the writer for highlighting this vital phenomenon.

Lt-Col BHAGWANT SINGH (retd), Mohali

III

I would appeal to all educated women to read this article and feel elated and encouraged. Even a housewife is an administrator in her own enterprise, the family. A woman plays multiple roles and spends the whole life in nurturing her unit. She instills ethical, aesthetic and traditional values in the members of family. If the so-called unit family is in safe hands, then only society shall become better. This potential (latent) of woman should be acknowledged and encouraged.

The need of the hour is to enhance this capability by giving due recognition to woman in various spheres of life. A lot has been and is being done in our country, but still this awareness has not reached every corner of this vast land. Let us all do our bit to propagate this in the right spirit.

ANITA KATARIA, Patiala

Need for awareness on mental disabilities It is evident that Sukhdeep Kaur has put in a lot of time and labour to write “Down, Not Out” (Saturday Extra, July 9) in easily understandable language and touched on many important and informative points, which are not mentioned in medical encyclopaedias. The most tragic part is that there is not much awareness among the people, especially in rural areas and townships, about mental disabilities like autism, cerebral palsy, mental retardation, Down’s syndrome, etc. the reasons are late diagnosis of such ailments and lack of availability of medical specialists. Such medical expertise is available only in metros. As a result, is a lot of precious time is lost to the disadvantage of the suffering child. In the beginning, the parents, relatives and friends of such children treat the symptoms of disability as natural which will disappear on their own with the passage of the time. Often they do not, and then panic sets in. Against this background and as a guardian of a special child, you should publish similar articles on autism, cerebral palsy and mental retardation explaining their main features, diagnosis, management and distinguishing traits of one aliment from another etc. B.S. SAINI, Gurgaon

Lashkara’s glitter

I refer to Randeep Wadhera’s “Lashkara Hasn’t lost its glitter” (Saturday Extra, August 20), this channel has been a smash hit with the viewers. The credit goes to DD Jalandhar’s pioneering work.

Jaswinder Bhalla presented Lashkara aesthetically. Viewers eagerly waited, week after week, it lost its sheen because the other anchor blurted out her own rhymes rather than regaling the viewers with songs. Private channels churn out song-based programmes by putting quality on the back-burner. Songs, rather than provide wholesome entertainment, aim at titillating the viewers by showing videos with skimpily-clad dancing girls. They have nothing new to offer but nudity.

TARSEM S. BUMRAH, Batala

Misleading serial

The serial Raaz ki ek baat, telecast on August 15 from Jalandhar Doordarshan shows the father had written a will transferring his property to the eldest son, Dhiraj. Later, feeling disgusted with the misbehaviour of the latter’s wife, he rings up the lawyer and instructs him to change the will. The lawyer gives a funny reply that the will can’t be changed because it has been taken away by Dhiraj. On the basis of this “will,” Dhiraj’s wife orders her in-laws to get out and they meekly obey and live in the house of the domestic servant.

A serial can have a fictitious story but the director should not be allowed to give misleading and illegal advice to numerous viewers. A will can be enforced only after the executor’s death. It is the latest will that is deemed as the ‘last will’ and it is to be honoured. In the above mentioned serial, the legal position depicted is wrong. I have written to Director, Doordarshan Jalandhar. Sound legal advice should be obtained in such matters so as to make the serials authentic. n

DEVINDER SINGH, Amritsar