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

Are anganwadis required any more?

The concept of setting up anganwadis was visualised more than 30 years ago to provide child and mother care to the poor sections of the society, which includes providing nourishing food, helping mothers with prenatal and postnatal care and giving pre-school training and counselling to village children. This scheme, partly funded by the World Bank, did prove beneficial during the initial years, but with the passage of time it has become redundant.

Items and eatables are being supplied as per old records when many children, pregnant women and nursing mothers used to attend anganwadi centres. I am an eyewitness to at least 4-5 such anganwadis functioning in my gram panchayat where hardly nobody visits anganwadis. However, anganwadi workers continue getting salaries for zero work output.

A well-organised racket of misuse of public money is going on with impunity right under the nose of the respective state governments. Funds meant for poor families are going to the pockets of anganwadi workers and corrupt government officials.

The government must revise the anganwadi rolls, return unused funds and reassess their requirement to overhaul the present system.

K K MISRA, Kangra

Strange U-turn

The nasty twist to the release of Sarabjit Singh was quite shocking for the family and the entire country. Pakistan President’s spokesman had officially confirmed that Sarabjit was to be released. This case has a direct bearing on Pakistan-India relations. Further the Pak blunder raises some big questions which can create a misunderstanding between the two nations. Why did the Pak spokesperson first claim on Pakistan television that Sarabjit would ill be released? What took 5 hours for the Pakistan government to deny it on Pakistan television? As far as India is concerned, it has never indulged in terrorist activities of any kind against hostile neighbours. Despite being a victim of terror sponsored by the ISI and Pak Army in collusion with the government, India has always been soft and accommodating with Pakistan.

PREET AMOL SINGH, Patiala

Unwarranted protest

It is wrong to say that provisions of the Clinical Establishments (Registration and Regulation) Act,2010 or the proposed National Human Resources for Health Bill are contrary to the Consumer Protection Act,1986 (news report “Private hospitals remain closed on IMA’s call”, June26).

Rather, most of the provisions being made are in conformity with the Consumer Act as interpreted by the consumer courts. For instance, it is mandatory for a doctor to have an informed consent of the patient before starting any medical procedure; it is mandatory to maintain medical records and it is a patient’s right to be treated and stabilised when seeking emergency service of a doctor or a hospital. Failure to do so has been held to be a case of negligence/deficiency in service. All these things are now proposed to be provided specifically.

It will save the doctors from facing unnecessary litigation and paying huge amount of compensation. The doctors’ protest is absolutely unwarranted and untenable which also lacks public support.

HS WALIA, Mohali

Shameful acts

While the corrupt politicians pamper themselves luxuriously, crores of people despite sweating blood live in terrible deprivation even after 65 years of Independence. Is it not a national shame?

The news reports “Boy tied with mesh grill” and “Couple held for torturing domestic help” (June 15) made me shudder. Instead of dealing with the minor boy to recover the things allegedly stolen by him, a factory owner in Jalandhar ruthlessly got violent as if the boy was a hardcore criminal.

A Gurgaon couple not only thrashed their domestic help, but also denied him proper food and did not pay him either for work done. At the age when they should be going to school, poor parents force their children to work as bonded labourers, pick rags from dumps as do menial jobs in hotels and houses of affluent people to eke out a living. Some parents even sell their new born children to avert starvation.

Jab tak insaan kee jeib khaali hai / zindagi ik ghaleez gaali hai

(Till the pocket of a person is empty, life is like a filthy abuse).

BHAGWAN SINGH, Gurdaspur

Efficiency makes touts lose out  Earlier getting a passport made was a Herculean task, made difficult through official formalities and filling of forms with photos alongwith testimonials. One had to stand in long queues to have an interview with the passport official. But now it has been made easy due to computerisation. Issuing of passports has been outsourced to a private firm. Good infrastructural facilities like lift, canteen and AC have made the wait easy. After scrutiny of relevant documents, a token number is issued after which one has to wait in the waiting hall. Thereafter, persons are led to various counters for taking photos, impressions of fingers, deposit of fee, etc. Senior citizens are given due preference and respect. The process is supervised by a senior official to make it smooth. The touts of the past who used to exploit people have been  eliminated. I got my passport reissued after getting the case registered through the computer at Sector 34A, Chandigarh. The entire process was over in a record time of 45 minutes and the passports were with us within a month after due police verification without any hiccup. Col ANAND KUMAR ANAND (retd), Panchkula