LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
elegates from over 60 countries have convened in Kochi, Kerala to attend the 46th Antarctic Treaty Consultative Meeting (ATCM) that is expected to go on until the month end. An annual aair, this is in essence a meeting of the ‘Consultative Parties,’ or the 29 countries that have a right to vote on aairs concerning the management of the continent. Other attendees are countries with a non-voting ‘observer’ status as well as independent experts and invited functionaries. One of the interesting points on the agenda this time relates to tourism. A group of ‘like-minded’ countries, that includes India, pressed for a proposal to introduce a regulatory framework governing tourism in the continent. Unlike other continents, the Antarctica does not have its own indigenous population.
With millions of hectares of untrammelled ice and its geographical isolation, it is not a tourist’s everyday jamboree or the elite’s regular privatejet getaway. This makes it irresistibly alluring. In this day and age, where every navigable square inch of land is up for eeting, visual consumption, the Antarctica is the only continent that can be described as wild, its secrets buried under kilometres-thick blankets of ice. Given that the creation, capture and marketing of the ‘exotic’ experience is an industry that guarantees exponential returns, the Antarctica is now the ‘wild south’ that the wealthy traveller aspires to. A recent joint study by universities in Tasmania, the U.K. and Australia said that the number of tourists rose from 8,000 in 1993 to 1,05,000 in 2022. This does not include all the scientic expeditions and the long-term presence of scientic personnel at research stations maintained by dierent countries. Reports now suggest that the number of tourists exceeds scientists. To be sure, concerns about rising tourists have been expressed since 1966 at the consultative meets, with the attendant worries that more ships and more people mean more man-made pollutants and rising instances of accidents and disasters that lead to upsetting the unique biodiversity of the region. This urge to preserve the pristine purity of the continent — estimated to be the size of the United States and Mexico combined — however conceals the underlying anxiety of all nations. Will, despite the treaty’s commitment to disallowing territorial claims, unexpected future circumstances eect a change in terms? Will the presence of more people from one country inuence terms in their favour? Though India’s Antarctica-bound tourists are minimal, this could very well change in the days to come, thanks to growing lop-sided prosperity. While a proponent of the proposal, India must be wary of any deal that could undercut future opportunities from tourism.
DECI and election
The manner in which the Election Commission of India has functioned in the general election so far is very disappointing. From not pulling up the political class, especially the top leader, for divisive speeches to other lethargic responses involving discrepancies in the voting process, one wonders whether the ECI is merely functioning as an extended arm of the ruling party.
Without prompt and decisive action, doubts in the minds of the masses are only going to linger. Ratheesh Chandran,
Thiruvalla, Kerala
Missing MP
It evokes one’s curiosity how the law-enforcing agencies in the country did not budge an inch to arrest the Janata Dal (Secular) Member of Parliament from Hassan, who is alleged to be involved in the crime of assaulting women (Page 1, May 24). What is the underlying cause for this Himalayan lethargy? Who are those powerful persons ‘taking care’ of the MP?
It is a disgrace that the MP was nominated to stand for election. One is at sea wondering why the Prime Minister campaigned for him. It goes without saying that some godfathers do exist. The MP deserves severe and stringent punishment that is in consonance with law.
Mani Nataraajan,
Chennai
The incident of the MP escaping after committing heinous crimes is not an isolated one. Even after months of protest by the women wrestlers of harassment, an MP who is alleged to be involved in the case still goes around free. In Manipur, no one knows how many women have suered assault. The tall talk by political leaders about their respecting women and ensuring their safety is just part of election campaigning which is eventually forgotten.
A.G. Rajmohan,
Anantapur, Andhra Pradesh
Deficiency in service
I am an octogenarian and a consumer activist well before the Consumer Protection Act came into force in 1986. The ‘Parley’ topic (Opinion page, May 24) is what makes me share my experience when I had a sudden “stroke” on the eve of Republic Day, in 2012. I was to have unfurled the national flag at a function. I was taken to a hospital, but the doctor, a ‘beginner in neurology’, came from his home after three hours despite the duty nurse explaining to him the urgency. After being in the ICU for 36 hours, he advised me to go to a “better” hospital. On consulting an expert doctor, I was told that I could have been saved had I been attended to within the ‘golden hour’. I remain paralysed. Who cares?
C.K Prem Kumar,
Palakkad, Kerala
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