letterstoeditor
MANEKA’S REMARKS
HT has rightly castigated Maneka Gandhi for her regressive views on imposing time limit on mobility of girls in university hostels (‘Zero tolerance for such views’, March 8). The Union minister’s remarks about ‘hormonal outbursts’ are an insult to their very femininity. A girl cannot be denied development to her full potential. It is heartening to see girls making their presence felt in all walks of life. They are no longer resigned to be tethered to grooms picked up by their parents. They assert choice. There is no reason for society to discriminate against its daughters. Beant Singh Bedi, SAS Nagar
Maneka Gandhi is not all wrong in suggesting time limits in hostels. A country where policing is so poor that rapes happen at an alarming rate, it’s a sane advice. Also, it’s true that many teens, both boys and girls, end up spoiling their life by making wrong choices. Amarjit Singh Josan, SAS Nagar
WOMEN’S EMPOWERMENT
Women are the real architects of society. But as our world becomes more unpredictable and chaotic, women rights are being restricted. Women are routinely intimidated and harassed in cyberspace and in real life. We must change this by empowering women at all levels, ensuring their voices are heard and giving them control over their own lives. Gender equality has a transformational effect on communities, societies and economies. Bhavika Jain
Women’s empowerment is all about her freedom to make her own decisions, without any societal compulsions. It’s up to her to be career-driven, competing with men at workplace, or to stay at home and care for her family. There is so reason to pity a woman who chooses to be a homemaker, as long as she is not forced to do so. Muskaan Lakhmani
PLEASE BOSS!
The Jalandhar police commissioner overstretched his gratitude towards the Punjab director general of police by naming a renovated park in his name. The name was changed after the news was shared online, and the headquarters intervened. There is no such precedent of naming a park after a serving officer. The commissioner perhaps wanted to earn some extra brownie points, but the exercise has only proved counterproductive. Dr Devinder Garg, Chandigarh
PUNJAB POLL RESULTS
Who will get people’s mandate in Punjab is anyone’s guess. All three major parties are eyeing the March 11 results eagerly. For Akalis, it might be the last election under Senior Badal. The Congress, having remained out of power for 10 years, is itching to return. As for the Aam Aadmi Party, a win can prove to be a big boost to its national ambitions. Anuragdeep Singh, SAS Nagar
No party is expected to get majority in Punjab. In such a situation, the BJP government at the Centre will not hesitate to impose the President’s rule in the state on the pretext of deteriorating law and order. There is already much unrest in Punjab due to Akali-BJP misrule. For saving Punjab, the Congress and AAP will have to join hands and form the government. Jaswant singh, Chandigarh
ELECTION ANTICS
The assembly elections in five states, which concluded on Wednesday, will be majorly remembered for politicos’ jibes at each other. By spending most of their time during roadshows and rallies in abusing each other than in presenting their road map for development, the political leaders have gone down further in the electorate’s estimation. Tarsem Singh, Mahilpur
SERVICE CHARGE
Despite the Centre’s notification asking states to ‘advise hotels and restaurants to disseminate information through display at appropriate places... that the service charges are discretionary and voluntary’, the malpractice continues with impunity. Recently, at a dhaba in Murthal, this flagrant fleecing of a tourist was experienced. Despite my protest, the owner refused to budge. The government must crack down on the offenders. Deepak Kaushik, Kurukshetra
WORLDCLASS ATHLETES
Why does it take a medal on an international platform to recognise the talent of any sportsperson in India? Medals are followed by monetary rewards, jobs and wide media coverage for the winner. Instead, what the government and civil society needs to do is recognising budding athletes early on and providing them enough incentives to hone their skills. With this, India, with its teeming population, will be able to produce more world-class sportspersons. Himakshi Batra, SAS Nagar
HARYANA BUDGET
Allocation of ₹15,546 crore (14.24%) for all categories of education in the recent Haryana budget was necessary, but not sufficient. To bring efficiency, sufficiency and equity in universities, Haryana needs to link user charges and fee structure with prevailing rate of inflation based on consumer price index (CPI), as employees get additional dearness allowance based on CPI twice a year. Colleges in the state are getting 95% grant, whereas there is no fixed percentage for universities. Therefore, we need to enhance spending on higher education infrastructure. Prof MM Goel, Kurukshetra