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Rising prices

Refer to “Inflation raging, can Modi tame it?” by Sanjeev Sharma (Sunday Tribune, July 6), Indian economy is growing at a much faster rate than the rest of the world. The number of rich middle class families has gone up. One reason for inflation is that too much money is in circulation — demand is more than supply. Another reason is intermediaries who add heavy margins to the purchase price. They make a good profit in the short term, but they too suffer in the long run. Strict action must be taken against those who create artificial shortages.

Mahesh Kumar, email

Space time

Apropos “Mr PM, how about a manned space mission” by Raj Chengappa (Ground Zero; Sunday Tribune, July 6), decades ago Squadron Leader Rakesh Sharma went into space onboard a Soviet rocket. It is time for India to send Indians onboard an indigenous rocket. ISRO has demonstrated that Indian space science is not far behind. Since Modi has given a nod for the development of a SAARC satellite, it is time to do so. Keep it up India!

RK Kapoor, Chandigarh

II

India is fifth among the top 10 nations in space technology, ahead of the UK, Japan, South Korea, Iran and Israel. It would be wise to make the most of the momentum that our space programme has gained over the past half century. Modi would be a visionary if he sees space technology as an instrument for safeguarding India’s national interests vis-a-vis China. By supporting the Mars mission he has shown his intentions. But he has to take bolder steps if ISRO has to make India a superpower. At the moment, we are unable to even attract SAARC countries which are following China for services in their space programmes.

Ravinder Kumar Udha, Jalandhar

Faith call

Reference to “War within: The battle for control of gurdwaras” by Naveen S Grewal (Sunday Tribune, July 6), politicians remain on the look out to appease sections of the minority communities for electoral gains. But the people should understand their designs and not get carried away. The differences on religious matters should be resolved within the community without any political interference. People's representatives should focus their attention on the welfare aspect of all citizens and not try to divide society for selfish motives.

SC VAID, Greater Noida

The queen

Congratulations on an excellent issue (“More than a relic of the Raj”; Spectrum, July 6). I particularly liked Dinesh Kumar’s article “Shimla kept its date with history”. However, it is an irony that all three major political events mentioned in the article eventually failed to achieve their objectives. One wonders if there is something in the climate and atmosphere of Shimla which hinders resolution of complex problems! Nevertheless, for old Shimla lovers like me, it will always remain the glorious “Queen of Hills”.

MM Mathur, Delhi