Parliament paralysis
After watching Parliament function, one feels ashamed to call India the world's biggest democracy ("Jay Panda: India’s parliament is paralysed by 19th-century rules"). The world laughs at us when the prime minister fails to pass important economic reforms at home after visiting a number of countries to seek financial and technological support.
This sends a negative signal to investors abroad who want to be a partner in India's growth and development.
It is high time that certain constitutional amendments are enacted whereby members of the House are unable to torpedo important legislation aiming at the welfare of Indian citizens.
In addition, legislative measures need to be taken to ensure that criminals are barred from Parliament. Better late than never. Our countrymen are tired at seeing the drama and lack of legislation in Parliament. – Kewal Khanna
Politics of appeasement
The Congress' problem all along has been that it cannot perform on its own ("Women’s reservation bill: Congress finds an old stick to beat the Modi government with"). The party is dependent on gimmicks. The women's reservation bill is an eye sore not only for other politicians, but also for men who find themselves victimised by the biased laws formulated the Congress to appease women.
It's these actions that have spurred the men's rights movement in India. If they stick to this politics of appeasement, the Congress will only lose more votes. No self-respecting woman would want to beg for reservation. – Xavier
Decoding rationalists
Devdutt Pattanaik has written another brilliant and incisive article ("Superstition and the inherent cruelty of rationalists"). I know not the whole truth and no one does. Rationalism, ideology, religion, mythology and superstition are all ways to try and understand a complex reality that eludes us in our lifetime. If only each would try and understand the other it would lead to peace and greater understanding of the purpose of life. – sidkak on email
***
I found it absurd but not surprising that a mythologist would place superstition, myths, secularism and rationality in the same continuum.
In the modern age ,what is rational or secular can be observed or argued logically.The unknown can remain unknown without any myth-making required.
It's the pet project of the right, their supporters, ideologues and beneficiaries to support an agenda of glossing over India's past, but that will not solve the inherited problems of poverty, lack of social status and equitable political power.
The mythologist does not ponder about these real issues. – Sujit Verghese
***
Dear Mr Pattanaik,
The rationalists whom you so conveniently club with the Hindutva mobsters were more careful than you portray them to be. Narendra Dabholkar, for example, fought to bring a legislation – not to ban "superstition" completely, just its criminal aspects – against human sacrifice rituals and other harmful practices.
True, the line between religion and superstition can be thin, but religions have over time managed to suppress many hurtful practices that thrive in the superstition domain, which is more secretive.
You should appreciate that Jawaharlal Nehru, in spite of all his insistence on scientific rationality, never sought to suppress any religion or religious practices. What thus separates Narendra Modi and Nehru – whom you talk of in one breath – is the sensitivity to accept another point of view. Same is true of the rationalists – they have their ideas, they speak out, but do not hurt, intimidate or threaten. In simple words, they neither hate, nor are blind.
Your argument about Nehru maintaining a distance from Indian tradition – "especially if it was Hindu" – borders on the ridiculous. How much should the state borrow from the various religions/ancient philosophies in India?
Your appeal to not categorise human beings is a noble one. I would thus not club you with the soft Hindutva warriors. May be you are just a careless, ill-researched writer. – Apoorva Nagar
Education and elections
Are we going backwards or forwards ("The anti-democratic verdict of the unelected: The Supreme Court on the Haryana Panchayati Raj Act")? A democracy which restricts, bans, hinders and obstructs is definitely not going forward. The country is down to a condition in which an illiterate person with pending electricity bills and no toilets is eligible to become the president or prime minister but ineligible to become a sarpanch or panch.
The logic put forward by the supporters is that the law would "force" the people to get educated, build toilets, pay their bills and clear their arrears. This would, as they say, result in "Swacch Bharat", "Disciplined Bharat" and "Educated Bharat". These aims must not be forced down somebody's throat, rather they must be realised by noble means of communicating their true benefits to the masses.
Many experienced sitting panchs and sarpanchs who were representing their communities for many years would be disqualified from contesting elections.
To me, a person who has never gone to a school but has all the leadership skills backed up by years of experience is certainly more qualified than a Harvard graduate with no experience whatsoever. – Gaurav Singhal
***
I think the judgement is only partially correct. It was the wrong of the Haryana governmnt to include indebtedness in the criteria as many farmers are are in debt because of crop failure. However, an elected representative must be educated in order to solve understand complex problems. The government spends money for on schools and mid-day meals. If people are illiterate despite these efforts, then it is their own fault. – Nishant Kale
Language under threat
One of the three main positions of Hindutva ideologues is their attachment to Sanskrit as the source of Indian culture and language ("Intolerance debate: The single-source theory of Indian civilisation"). MS Golwalkar’s complaint that other languages were eclipsing, the Sanskrit from which they arose echoes the comments of the Petrarch, a 14th century Italian poet. Petrarch coined the term “Dark Ages” to refer to the post-Roman centuries in Europe as a complaint about what he perceived as the degeneration of Latin into the Romance languages after the fall of the Roman Empire.
Those Romance languages – Italian, Spanish, French, Portuguese, and Romanian – flourish today. The first four of these were the languages of empires that arose after the Roman Empire had run its course.
Perhaps the Hindutva ideologues should simply allow Indian civilisation to continue its development. One wonders what karmic burdens these ideologues are accruing with their resistance and obstructions. – Peter Beacham
Combating air pollution
A good beginning that is to be hailed ("Supreme Court bans registration of diesel SUVs in Delhi till March 31"). The excellent job now being done in the capital should be extended to all other state capitals and big cities so as to limit the pollutants in the air within safe permissible limits. This will ensure that all stakeholders understand the importance of clean air required for a healthy life, and that everyone cooperates for a cleaner atmosphere. – Nagarajan
Climate justice
Very well researched and written ("Why Indians need to closely examine our government's sanctimonious rhetoric on Climate Justice"). Congratulations. Yes, India’s attempt to hide behind politically convenient metrics will not help. We need to reduce the carbon footprint in this country. As you have correctly pointed out, the way forward is through new technologies like LED lamps, developing renewable energy sources, Euro6 motor emission controls and giving a major thrust to wind and solar energy generation. – narahari.ks55 on email
Public responsibility
Congratulations and well done, Shreya Sen Handley ("How to become a UNESCO City of Literature: What Indian cities can learn from Nottingham"). Just shows how much can be done with very little, if diverse people pull together for the common good.
In India we have so much talent, so many resources – yet we produce so little for public benefit. That’s because we are too busy squabbling about who wins – and that squabble is because we still have, from our caste system, a “winner takes all” mentality.
The arrival of modernity, first because of the British, and then in the struggle against British rule, began to give our culture a sense of public responsibility. But that culture is still not sufficiently widespread, as reactionary forces still strike back powerfully.
Thank you for your inspiring story. I hope it will contribute to the continuing change of values in India. – Prabhu Guptara
Reservation road
It is surprising how united our political class is when it comes to defending their "home turf" – the tools with which they have managed to divide and rule independent India ("58 MPs want to impeach a Gujarat High Court judge for speaking against reservations").
Most educated, middle-class, right-thinking Indians would immediately agree with what Justice Pardiwala has said. But our political class is still looking at India as a collection of vote banks. How could they let Indians think as Indians? That would be a disaster for their politics, wouldn't it? – Surajit Paulroy
Change on wheels
Truly heartening to read about empowerment through skateboarding ("Why kids are zooming about on skateboards in this sleepy Madhya Pradesh village"). It is refreshing to read about a positive initiative that is really having an impact on the next generation of a small village. The best part is that it has brought the girls out of their homes to play alongside the boys. I commend the writer for a story that is a change from the negative happenings and news from around the world. – P Vibhakar
Respect the forces
Honestly, Scroll staff, would it hurt you not to be so critical about a song ("Ahoy Hello Namaste: Watch the cheesy theme song of event that will display the power of the world's Navies in India")? I'm really disappointed with the article. It's the Indian navy after all. Unlike other countries where there is immense respect for the armed forces, our media hardly cares to show respect until we hear news about a fallen hero.
It may just be a song that we are talking about, but it really shows the level of respect that the men and women of the armed forces get from media houses.
And just to clarify, it's not a show of "military might" – it's about the coming together of the navies. No is trying to one- up anyone. – Sukriti Pandey
The tennis experiment
Wrong! I have watched tennis for 50 years and have seen all the greats from Rod Laver to Roger Federer
("Let’s face it, the IPTL simply isn’t tennis as we know and love it"). The IPTL is designed for people who haven't had the opportunity to watch the best players. Now, in one fell swoop, are able to see the best of the present and of the past, which is a pleasure. It should be seen in the same light as cricket's Indian Premier League, which has the same format and has been a great success. – Chris Castelino
***
When I saw the empty stands during the Dubai leg of the IPTL, I wondered what ailed this new tennis venture. Is it the lack of interest in an elitist sport, the radical change in format, no prizes or ranking points at stake or high ticket prices?
IPTL has all the big names of the game. So apart from the Roger Federer-Rafael Nadal match in Delhi, why hasn't it been a crowd puller?
One reason perhaps is that unlike in other franchise-based sports such as kabaddi, football and cricket, the IPTL does have top film stars as team owners. Seeing them in flesh and blood in the stands is a big draw for crowds in India.
It will be sad if this venture does not gather momentum and has a premature demise. – Koshy Philip
We welcome your comments at
letters@scroll.in.
After watching Parliament function, one feels ashamed to call India the world's biggest democracy ("Jay Panda: India’s parliament is paralysed by 19th-century rules"). The world laughs at us when the prime minister fails to pass important economic reforms at home after visiting a number of countries to seek financial and technological support.
This sends a negative signal to investors abroad who want to be a partner in India's growth and development.
It is high time that certain constitutional amendments are enacted whereby members of the House are unable to torpedo important legislation aiming at the welfare of Indian citizens.
In addition, legislative measures need to be taken to ensure that criminals are barred from Parliament. Better late than never. Our countrymen are tired at seeing the drama and lack of legislation in Parliament. – Kewal Khanna
Politics of appeasement
The Congress' problem all along has been that it cannot perform on its own ("Women’s reservation bill: Congress finds an old stick to beat the Modi government with"). The party is dependent on gimmicks. The women's reservation bill is an eye sore not only for other politicians, but also for men who find themselves victimised by the biased laws formulated the Congress to appease women.
It's these actions that have spurred the men's rights movement in India. If they stick to this politics of appeasement, the Congress will only lose more votes. No self-respecting woman would want to beg for reservation. – Xavier
Decoding rationalists
Devdutt Pattanaik has written another brilliant and incisive article ("Superstition and the inherent cruelty of rationalists"). I know not the whole truth and no one does. Rationalism, ideology, religion, mythology and superstition are all ways to try and understand a complex reality that eludes us in our lifetime. If only each would try and understand the other it would lead to peace and greater understanding of the purpose of life. – sidkak on email
***
I found it absurd but not surprising that a mythologist would place superstition, myths, secularism and rationality in the same continuum.
In the modern age ,what is rational or secular can be observed or argued logically.The unknown can remain unknown without any myth-making required.
It's the pet project of the right, their supporters, ideologues and beneficiaries to support an agenda of glossing over India's past, but that will not solve the inherited problems of poverty, lack of social status and equitable political power.
The mythologist does not ponder about these real issues. – Sujit Verghese
***
Dear Mr Pattanaik,
The rationalists whom you so conveniently club with the Hindutva mobsters were more careful than you portray them to be. Narendra Dabholkar, for example, fought to bring a legislation – not to ban "superstition" completely, just its criminal aspects – against human sacrifice rituals and other harmful practices.
True, the line between religion and superstition can be thin, but religions have over time managed to suppress many hurtful practices that thrive in the superstition domain, which is more secretive.
You should appreciate that Jawaharlal Nehru, in spite of all his insistence on scientific rationality, never sought to suppress any religion or religious practices. What thus separates Narendra Modi and Nehru – whom you talk of in one breath – is the sensitivity to accept another point of view. Same is true of the rationalists – they have their ideas, they speak out, but do not hurt, intimidate or threaten. In simple words, they neither hate, nor are blind.
Your argument about Nehru maintaining a distance from Indian tradition – "especially if it was Hindu" – borders on the ridiculous. How much should the state borrow from the various religions/ancient philosophies in India?
Your appeal to not categorise human beings is a noble one. I would thus not club you with the soft Hindutva warriors. May be you are just a careless, ill-researched writer. – Apoorva Nagar
Education and elections
Are we going backwards or forwards ("The anti-democratic verdict of the unelected: The Supreme Court on the Haryana Panchayati Raj Act")? A democracy which restricts, bans, hinders and obstructs is definitely not going forward. The country is down to a condition in which an illiterate person with pending electricity bills and no toilets is eligible to become the president or prime minister but ineligible to become a sarpanch or panch.
The logic put forward by the supporters is that the law would "force" the people to get educated, build toilets, pay their bills and clear their arrears. This would, as they say, result in "Swacch Bharat", "Disciplined Bharat" and "Educated Bharat". These aims must not be forced down somebody's throat, rather they must be realised by noble means of communicating their true benefits to the masses.
Many experienced sitting panchs and sarpanchs who were representing their communities for many years would be disqualified from contesting elections.
To me, a person who has never gone to a school but has all the leadership skills backed up by years of experience is certainly more qualified than a Harvard graduate with no experience whatsoever. – Gaurav Singhal
***
I think the judgement is only partially correct. It was the wrong of the Haryana governmnt to include indebtedness in the criteria as many farmers are are in debt because of crop failure. However, an elected representative must be educated in order to solve understand complex problems. The government spends money for on schools and mid-day meals. If people are illiterate despite these efforts, then it is their own fault. – Nishant Kale
Language under threat
One of the three main positions of Hindutva ideologues is their attachment to Sanskrit as the source of Indian culture and language ("Intolerance debate: The single-source theory of Indian civilisation"). MS Golwalkar’s complaint that other languages were eclipsing, the Sanskrit from which they arose echoes the comments of the Petrarch, a 14th century Italian poet. Petrarch coined the term “Dark Ages” to refer to the post-Roman centuries in Europe as a complaint about what he perceived as the degeneration of Latin into the Romance languages after the fall of the Roman Empire.
Those Romance languages – Italian, Spanish, French, Portuguese, and Romanian – flourish today. The first four of these were the languages of empires that arose after the Roman Empire had run its course.
Perhaps the Hindutva ideologues should simply allow Indian civilisation to continue its development. One wonders what karmic burdens these ideologues are accruing with their resistance and obstructions. – Peter Beacham
Combating air pollution
A good beginning that is to be hailed ("Supreme Court bans registration of diesel SUVs in Delhi till March 31"). The excellent job now being done in the capital should be extended to all other state capitals and big cities so as to limit the pollutants in the air within safe permissible limits. This will ensure that all stakeholders understand the importance of clean air required for a healthy life, and that everyone cooperates for a cleaner atmosphere. – Nagarajan
Climate justice
Very well researched and written ("Why Indians need to closely examine our government's sanctimonious rhetoric on Climate Justice"). Congratulations. Yes, India’s attempt to hide behind politically convenient metrics will not help. We need to reduce the carbon footprint in this country. As you have correctly pointed out, the way forward is through new technologies like LED lamps, developing renewable energy sources, Euro6 motor emission controls and giving a major thrust to wind and solar energy generation. – narahari.ks55 on email
Public responsibility
Congratulations and well done, Shreya Sen Handley ("How to become a UNESCO City of Literature: What Indian cities can learn from Nottingham"). Just shows how much can be done with very little, if diverse people pull together for the common good.
In India we have so much talent, so many resources – yet we produce so little for public benefit. That’s because we are too busy squabbling about who wins – and that squabble is because we still have, from our caste system, a “winner takes all” mentality.
The arrival of modernity, first because of the British, and then in the struggle against British rule, began to give our culture a sense of public responsibility. But that culture is still not sufficiently widespread, as reactionary forces still strike back powerfully.
Thank you for your inspiring story. I hope it will contribute to the continuing change of values in India. – Prabhu Guptara
Reservation road
It is surprising how united our political class is when it comes to defending their "home turf" – the tools with which they have managed to divide and rule independent India ("58 MPs want to impeach a Gujarat High Court judge for speaking against reservations").
Most educated, middle-class, right-thinking Indians would immediately agree with what Justice Pardiwala has said. But our political class is still looking at India as a collection of vote banks. How could they let Indians think as Indians? That would be a disaster for their politics, wouldn't it? – Surajit Paulroy
Change on wheels
Truly heartening to read about empowerment through skateboarding ("Why kids are zooming about on skateboards in this sleepy Madhya Pradesh village"). It is refreshing to read about a positive initiative that is really having an impact on the next generation of a small village. The best part is that it has brought the girls out of their homes to play alongside the boys. I commend the writer for a story that is a change from the negative happenings and news from around the world. – P Vibhakar
Respect the forces
Honestly, Scroll staff, would it hurt you not to be so critical about a song ("Ahoy Hello Namaste: Watch the cheesy theme song of event that will display the power of the world's Navies in India")? I'm really disappointed with the article. It's the Indian navy after all. Unlike other countries where there is immense respect for the armed forces, our media hardly cares to show respect until we hear news about a fallen hero.
It may just be a song that we are talking about, but it really shows the level of respect that the men and women of the armed forces get from media houses.
And just to clarify, it's not a show of "military might" – it's about the coming together of the navies. No is trying to one- up anyone. – Sukriti Pandey
The tennis experiment
Wrong! I have watched tennis for 50 years and have seen all the greats from Rod Laver to Roger Federer
("Let’s face it, the IPTL simply isn’t tennis as we know and love it"). The IPTL is designed for people who haven't had the opportunity to watch the best players. Now, in one fell swoop, are able to see the best of the present and of the past, which is a pleasure. It should be seen in the same light as cricket's Indian Premier League, which has the same format and has been a great success. – Chris Castelino
***
When I saw the empty stands during the Dubai leg of the IPTL, I wondered what ailed this new tennis venture. Is it the lack of interest in an elitist sport, the radical change in format, no prizes or ranking points at stake or high ticket prices?
IPTL has all the big names of the game. So apart from the Roger Federer-Rafael Nadal match in Delhi, why hasn't it been a crowd puller?
One reason perhaps is that unlike in other franchise-based sports such as kabaddi, football and cricket, the IPTL does have top film stars as team owners. Seeing them in flesh and blood in the stands is a big draw for crowds in India.
It will be sad if this venture does not gather momentum and has a premature demise. – Koshy Philip
