Opinion - Letters to the Editor   

Operation Prince

The editorial "A rescue and some issues" (July 25) rightly insists on the need to ensure safety of workers and their unattended children. The Hindu did a commendable job by covering the rescue operation of five-year-old Prince without losing its core journalistic values. Prince also deserves to be congratulated for his courage and resilience. That a child survived the trauma for two days is indeed praiseworthy.

J. Dorairaj,
Chennai

Hats off to the media which made Prince's ordeal a national issue. Whether it was one of those exclusive instances of breaking news or the face of a socially responsible media is debatable. Nonetheless, their agenda-setting capability was there for all to see.

But for the live coverage, Prince might not have been saved. The operation arguably brought the whole nation together for the first time in the recent past. Operation Prince reminded us that we are human beings with emotions and tears.

Nitin Upadhyaya,
Uttarkashi, Uttaranchal

The defence and fire service personnel deserve to be congratulated for rising as one man to rescue the child. It was their untiring determination that brought the boy back from the brink.

R. Ramachandra Rao,
Hyderabad

The editorial, while saluting the army for the splendid rescue operation, rightly sounds a word of caution on the possibilities of accidents such neglected pits can cause. The observation that workplace safety is still a distant dream for most workers in the unorganised sector and their children deserves utmost attention and remedial action. The cartoon appearing alongside the editorial (cartoonscape) draws our attention to the neglect and exploitation faced by children employed as domestic hands. The irony is striking indeed.

N.K. Vijayan,
Kizhakkambalam, Kerala

While all concerned must be complimented for the efforts taken in rescuing the five-year-old from the 60-foot pit, one wonders whether so much concern for life would have been forthcoming had the incident not been picked up by the media. Scores of children die every day of malnutrition, poverty, diseases, insufficient medical attention, and so on. The government machinery fails to reach them in time.

A. Mohan,
Ruwi, Muscat

Was the hype really worth it? The media created the illusion that except the rescue mission, nothing else happened in the country. The comment of a `sympathiser,'"woh to Abhimanyu hai" (he is Abhimanyu), sums up the exaggeration.

M.V. Sindhu & Sandhya D'souza,
Mangalore

The live coverage was shocking. After all those resources spent on the story, the most important questions remain unanswered. Who left the borewell uncovered? Who is accountable? We see such open holes all the time in cities like Hyderabad. Someone digs a pit in an open area and the rest is left to god. School children routinely fall victim.

Padmaja Shaw,
Hyderabad

Too much was made of the issue — no one said this better than The Hindu cartoonist.

J. Mahesh Kumar,
Tirupur, T.N.

The cartoon portrayed the social responsibility or the lack of it in a nutshell.

P.N. Balasubramanian,
Chennai

One of the best cartoons in recent times! The upper class elite watching the Prince episode like a horror movie while a little girl serves them tea — what a message!

V.G. Bhat,
Hyderabad

The cartoon has hit the bull's eye! Snigger as you may, this was reality TV or what the industry prefers to call `popular factual TV' at its best.

S. Hemavathi,
Hyderabad

Some have argued that the Haryana Government should not have announced a grant of Rs.2 lakh to Prince. The Government is morally responsible for the turmoil caused to the boy. The monetary compensation is absolutely right under the law of torts.

N. Nagesh,
Chennai

Had Prince's family been an educated one, it could have claimed a higher compensation for the carelessness of the authorities.

R. Ganesan,
Chennai

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