The Hindu : New Delhi News : Readers' Mail

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Monday, Dec 13, 2004

New Delhi

New Delhi

Readers' Mail

No, MCD

Sir, -- The Municipal Corporation of Delhi has allowed the Noida Toll Bridge Corporation Limited (NTBCL) to construct a link road to its toll bridge more to facilitate the Corporation's toll collection than to help the residents of Mayur Vihar.

To help the NTBCL, the MCD has removed the pontoon bridge connecting Mayur Vihar to Serai Kale Khan which used to help a large number of commuters, especially cyclists and scooter riders, to reach Ring Road by the shortest route free of any charge. The MCD seems more anxious to help the NTBCL than the people of East Delhi.

The need really was to construct a regular bridge where the pontoon bridge existed, for which the road infrastructure is already in place. This would have helped thousands of commuters from East Delhi and relieved the traffic on Nizamuddin Bridge and Okhla Barrage. Now the construction of such a bridge has been stalled by allowing the NTBCL to construct the link road and making the East Delhi people pay for it.

The whole plan should be reconsidered and construction of a bridge linking Mayur Vihar and Serai Kale Khan should be undertaken at once.

N. Kunju,

42-B, Pocket I,

Mayur Vihar Phase 1,

Delhi - 110 091.

Boys and girls

Sir -- I wish to make a point regarding women's empowerment that was written about so impressively by Sneha Banerjee ("Boys and girls", Readers' Mail, November 29). I respect her opinion about the need for non-gender specific treatment of women as "individuals". But I think the present socio-political scenario demands complementary roles for man and woman so that they can work in harmony towards betterment of society. A radical feminist approach of confrontation and power-jostling very often pushes society into retardation.

Praveen Ranjan,

(Shaheed Bhagat Singh College, B.A.(H) Pol. Sc. 1st yr.), 8, Jia Sarai,

Hauz Khas,

New Delhi - 110 016.

Only IIT

Sir, -- While reading your recent report on `Pan IIT 2004' to be held in Delhi on December 24 and 25, I, an alumnus of IIT Kanpur, became emotionally nostalgic about the years I spent there about two decades ago. Today, after all these years, the show goes on. At a time when most of our socialistic era institutions are finding it difficult to withstand the litmus test for efficacy, one institution that stands out tall and bright is the Indian Institute of Technology.

Simply how do the IITs all over India continue to offer world class education which makes them competitive in any job market? There are a few things that can be attributed to the abiding brilliance of the IIT system. One, the IITs are autonomous bodies and this provides them with considerable immunity against political interference which has eroded a lot of other institutions. The other is their knack for selecting raw talent across the country through a strictly competitive entrance exam where no amount of string-pulling helps. But the most important aspect is the enormous freedom that the institution provides to its subjects. Freedom to the extent that the institution does not lay undue emphasis on percentage of attendance for a student in the class. Not only do the teachers evaluate students for their performance, the students too are asked to make an appraisal of their teachers at the end of the course.

The IITs' deep-rooted sense of egalitarianism is not confined to sex, religion or caste but extends even to seniority and juniority. You will find a senior professor or even Director IIT sitting in the same row with students and enjoying the drumbeats of percussionist Shivamani at an IIT cultural festival.

Freedom not just for the sake of freedom but the sort that inculcates a deep sense of self-imposed discipline. Even during the days when the fair sex was overly guarded in our society, IIT girls and boys could be seen freely mingling in the hostel canteen without any case of indiscipline ever heard on the campus.

This openness spills over profusely on academics as well. A B.Tech in Aeronautics switching over to a doctorate in Sociology or an Electrical Engineering graduate taking up further study in Physics is not quite uncommon. The unwritten motto is: "Explore your own aptitude and IIT is there to nurture it". A guy with an aptitude for engineering will be groomed into a thinking engineer whereas someone with a philosophic bent of mind, though studying technology, will find himself contributing papers on theology.

If only we had more such institutions all over the country!

Rakesh Bhasin,

J-1, Andrews Ganj Extension, Pinjra Pole,

New Delhi - 110 049.

Shed biases

Sir, -- In response to the letter by Sneha Banerjee in these columns (November 29) about biases in our attitude towards girls and boys, I totally agree with her. These biases are so inherent that it is taken as natural to have different values for different sexes. It is considered very natural for a father to think of his daughter getting into a good marriage as the best career option for her. No matter how well-educated she might be or whatever position she might be holding, she is regarded as "incomplete" till she has entered into matrimony.

It gets worse when such views are endorsed by leading media houses and aired by TV channels. We need to find ways to change this mind-set and give the girls and women their due identity. We need to toughen our resolve to fight these biases.

Mirza Amin Ali,

Student, M.A. Final Year,

Delhi University,

Delhi- 110 007.

Road sense

Sir, -- Traffic violations and poor road discipline have become the order of the day, thereby leading to accidents and jams. To enforce road discipline, may I suggest a few far-reaching steps.

To begin with, driving licences should be issued only after a proper driving test, and a genuine medical fitness certificate.

An analysis must be made of troops to task -- that is, the number of traffic police personnel required to cover the given area of responsibility. Accordingly, the manpower for the traffic police must be catered for.

There is need to clearly identify the critical areas which warrant supervision. These must be manned.

It will help to have roving police patrols to nab traffic offenders. A good communication system and thorough coordination among the various patrols is necessary.

The two most common traffic violations are overspeeding and wrong overtaking, causing accidents and traffic jams. These need to be particularly curbed.

All sorts of vehicles with varying speeds, including bullock-carts and cycle-rickshaws, even stray cattle, ply on the same road, leading to traffic violations and accidents. Have lanes marked for different speeds if possible.

Last but not the least, let us reduce the number of vehicles on the roads. Promote cycling culture to cover short distances. It will not only reduce road accidents but also ensure good public health, a neater environment, and less tension in life. For this, let us develop cycling tracks.

And most important, traffic discipline can be enforced only by a disciplined and honest traffic police. They must be upright and strict across the board.

Colonel R D Singh,

P4, Patterson Square,

Staff Road,

Ambala Cantt (Haryana) -- 133 001.

Fighting AIDS

Sir, -- The recent report, "Manmohan for national movement to check AIDS", was thought-provoking. In fact, the call given by the Prime Minister is the need of the hour. Today the youth are the most vulnerable lot due to the freedom they enjoy. Not only this, a majority of them do not know whether they are infected.

Among the world's young people, some are more exposed to HIV than others. As per the latest reports, of a total of 30 million people with HIV/AIDS infection, at least one-third are youth aged 10-24. Every day 16,000 newly-infected patients are added to these numbers which include nearly 7,000 young people. It is a matter of great concern that this disease is spreading so rapidly among the youth. Luckily our young generation is also our best bet to tackle the crisis. India has 200 million young people today. Using them to fight AIDS can be a novel idea. The youth are a great force for change because they are resilient and open to change. They can be motivated to help in changing the sexual mores of society for the better.

P.K. Jaiswal,

Flat No.82, Road No.2,

Andrewsganj,

New Delhi.

* * *

(Letters for this column may be sent by e-mail to wsins@thehindu.co.in. They must carry the full postal address of the writer and should be marked "Readers' Mail".)

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