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

LPG subsidy

On August 1, I received an SMS on my cell phone sent by Indane, asking me to give up my LPG subsidy and be a part of the nation-building movement of providing subsidised cooking fuel only to the needy. May I ask the government and the gas companies as to what the definition of needy is. Also, will they explain as to why should a common man bear all the burden and responsibilities that the government is supposed to take on?

When the present government came to power, the Prime Minister said: “Achhe din aane wale hain.” But soon after, the prices of all essential commodities touched new heights. Rail fare increased, air fare went up, bus fare soared, petrol prices rose, vegetables prices are touching the sky, pulses rate saw an increase. There is not even a single thing which has seen a downward trend as far as prices are concerned. It is only the common man who has to bear the brunt.

There are so many facilities which the governments abroad are providing to their citizens which are a dream here in our country. Our government believes only in looting ideas and does not even remotely think of doing something positive for the development of the nation.

Now, under the guise of nation-building movement, we are being told to surrender our subsidy on LPG. Why? Tell all former ministers involved in scams to return the money for nation-building. Bring back the money stashed by Indians from Swiss banks. Take back the undue favours given to Ambanis and other such industrialists.

When all this is done, only then should the government and gas companies send such messages to the consumers of LPG. First, do your duty towards nation, Mr Modi, and then we will follow you.

GURPREET S. MALHOTRA, Kansal (Mohali)

Surinder Kumar Mahna, Karnal

MBBS seats

Health Minister Dr Harsh Vardhan has slammed the Medical Council of India for rejecting the plea of medical colleges for more MBBS seats as they failed to fulfil the basic norms. He termed the move as anti-student. He said the MCI should first allow the colleges to admit the students and then ask the colleges to take steps for upgradation. But the question is when these colleges are not able to provide basic facilities before getting the approval of seats, how could they provide them after the approval? This would lead to poor medical education and, ultimately, to the production of poor quality of doctors.

The best solution is that both the union and state governments assist the medical colleges in improving their candition and making them suitable for accomodating the maximum students and forming a transparent process for the approval of MBBS seats.

kunal gupta, Mandi Gobindgarh

Testing time

This refers to the editorial “Testing time for UPSC” (July 28). The politicians have made a mess of the Union Public Service Commission and reduced it to the level of a third class examination centre. First of all, the decision of writing the UPSC exams in regional languages apart from English is shameful.

Surely, its position has been rendered equivalent to that of the train stopping at places of MPs’ choices. Every politician wants to have his say or wants to get implemented the wishes of those who could not learn or speak English and are, thus, unable to clear the prestigious UPSC exam.

The result is that one can write the exam in any of the 22 recognised languages. All this just for ensuring that their seats are secure. Instead of raising the standard of the services, our selfish politicians are lowering it to the disgraceful level.

R K KAPOOR, Chandigarh

Update SHOs’ skills

The working of police stations in Himachal Pradesh leaves much to be desired. The hapless common man who has to bear the brunt of the situation is a harried lot.

The following suggestions might help improve matters:

i) As the station house officer is the kingpin of the police set-up, a little extra caution should be exercised while selecting police officers to man the key office. ii) Refresher courses should be organised periodically for the SHOs to update their skills. iii) The district police chief must be held accountable in case of misconduct on the part of the SHO under his jurisdiction. iv) The police stations must be insulated from political interference in their day-to-day functioning. The matter can be allowed to linger on unnoticed only at our general peril.

Tara Chand, Ambota (Una)

Part-time leader

This has reference to the article “Coping with a part-time leader” by Zahid Hussain (July 31). In a country where the levers of power do not rest with the head of the federal government and the government of the day plays second fiddle to the Army, the Prime Minister has hardly any role to play. My statement portrays the reality in today's Pakistan. The foreign and security policy is the sole prerogative of the Pakistani Army. There is a popular joke in Pakistan: “Every country has an army, but here, an army has the country.”

As far as internal security is concerned, it is controlled by the regional satraps and extremists. The writ of the federal government hardly runs in the provinces. Perhaps with the exception of Punjab, all provinces are “not on the same page” with the federal government. Feudal lords still enjoy unchallenged authority in their pockets of influence.

Brig Anil Gupta, Jammu

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