:: Letters to Editor

India must not trust pakistan

Oct 03 : Sir, Every day the newspapers are filled with stories of how Pakistan is dilly-dallying on the 26/11 investigations, and how ceasefire violations from across the border have increased, helping terrorists infiltrate into India. On the other hand, we talk of dialogue with this rogue state. Given the history, we should be very clear about Pakistan’s true intentions. It has been making a fool of "Big Daddy" America by diverting military and financial assistance received from it for use against India. All our interaction with Pakistan has to be based on the principle that no lasting peace is possible with this country.

Udita Agrawal

Mayur Vihar, New Delhi

Advani: best leader in bjp

Sir, This refers to the news report ‘Tired’ Advani seeks swami’s help on sanyas (September 29). Like many other politicians, L.K. Advani is no doddering old man. Former Goa chief minister Manohar Parikar’s remark that he is a rancid pickle is hasty and ill-advised. To paraphrase and borrow the right words from Edmund Burke, Mr Advani should be pickled in the preserving juice of his own experience and laid by for the Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) future use. However, at the end of the day, Mr Advani is still the best man who can arrest the BJP’s slide into chaos. Rather than take sanyas from active politics, he should continue at the helm till such time the succession battle in the BJP is satisfactorily resolved.

Kangayam R. Narasimhan

Via email

Clean drains can avert floods

Sir, This is with reference to the news report Philippines flood toll hits 140 (September 29). It is one of the worst floods to have hit Manila, the capital of the Philippines. The haphazard growth of cities has blocked routes of water due to concretisation of the earth. Poor maintenance clogs the drainage system, making the flooding worse. Similar type of flood occurred a few years ago in Mumbai. Proper maintenance of drainage systems during the monsoon and not occupying the routes of water will definitely help avert such tragedies.

Mohammed Sadullah Khan

Via email

Berlusconi’s racist streak

Sir, Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi apparently forgot the name of the President of the United States and then referred to him as the "tanned" guy. More than the insult to Barack Obama or the US, this is a reflection on the incredibly insensitive nature of Italy’s leader and an insult to that country’s people, culture and tradition. The Italian Prime Minister’s supposedly jocular reference to the skin colour of the American President reveals his racist streak, and deserves to be condemned in the strongest terms. Already a laughing stock over his self-confessed fondness for young women, the ageing Italian premier should have kept in mind the dignity of the office he occupies.

Amitabh Saxena

Dubai, UAE

Babus REQUIRE better facility

Sir, It is shocking that bureaucrats are obsessed with Central deputation, as Dilip Cherian points out in his column Delhi syndrome (September 30). This trend has led to acute shortage of efficient babus in the states. The government should do something soon to stop this overflow of civil servants. The government should ensure this through appropriate training and also better facilities for babus outside Delhi.

B.L. Subramaniam

Via email