The Hindu : New Delhi News : A shame

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Monday, Jun 30, 2008
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New Delhi

A shame

The life sentence awarded by a court of law to a Member of Parliament, Suraj Bhan, this past week in a murder case should make every Indian pause and ponder. It is a matter of shame for the country that such criminal elements can get elected to Parliament. Why, there have even been cases of convicts contesting elections from prison managing to win and becoming law-makers of the world’s largest democracy. The political parties that hand out tickets to such criminals should also be ashamed as much as the voters who cast their ballot for such elements.

The Supreme Court would do well to impose effective checks in the scheme of things to prevent criminals from becoming law-makers.

Since convicts with political backing manage to get luxurious treatment inside the prisons in their home states, they should be compulsorily lodged behind bars in prisons far away from their states.

Madhu Agrawal,

1775, Kucha Lattushah, Dariba, Chandni Cowk, Delhi – 110 006.

Railways’ ways

We have been using the Indian Railways for the past 20 years and the service so far has been quite satisfying. However, recently when my wife and child along with another family undertook a journey from Kannur to Hazrat Nizamuddin by the Mangala Lakshdweep Express, their experience was horrifying.

When they boarded the train around 5-30 p.m. on June 23 and were about to occupy their allotted seats, they found that their berths were already occupied. By then the train had already left the station and there was complete chaos as these people were travelling without any male companion and found it very difficult to manage the luggage and the children together. To add to this, the TTE when approached told them that their tickets booked three months earlier stood cancelled as of June 22 and asked them to get off at the next station! He refused to explain why.

Subsequently when the Railway authorities were approached for help they too refused to help. Can we expect the Railway Ministry to take some action to prevent such incidents?

Manoj Kumar V. M.,

160, E-Block, SFS Flats, Astha Kunj, Sector 18, Rohini, Delhi – 110 089.

Traffic woes

I stay in the Delhi University hostel at Mukherji Nagar. The route from the University to the hostel passes through the Kingsway Camp area where metro railway construction work is under way. This makes it difficult for commuters during the day when the traffic flow is considerably light. The conditions get much worse post 5 p.m. when the traffic flow starts to increase.

Between 5 p.m. and 9 p.m. there is utmost chaos and commotion. Many a time I have seen rickshaw-pullers getting stuck and the traffic coming to a standstill. It is very common to see truck and car drivers getting into scuffles and holding up the rest of the crowd. All this while there is no traffic policeman in sight. There is every possibility of a major mishap on this stretch in the near future unless the traffic police authorities come up with a quick solution.

Saumya Pandey,

Ambedkar Ganguly Students’ House for Women, Banda Bahadur Marg, Mukherji Nagar, New Delhi – 110 009.

Lucknow calling

I live in Narhi, Lucknow. My home is among the numerous houses that stand on either side of Saketpalli Road which serves as a short-cut between Hazratganj and Dalibagh. As a result, it is flooded with vehicles throughout the day.

Despite repeated complaints over the years the authorities have paid no heed to the problems of the residents. There are frequent traffic jams on this road and the resulting noise pollution causes utter nuisance. Many of the local residents are senior citizens and infants who are inconvenienced by all this. But the traffic authorities apparently couldn’t care less.

It is time the higher authorities stepped in and put an end to this recurring menace.

Siddharth Chaturvedi,

42/86, Brij-Vimla Sadan, Saketpalli, Pirpursquare, Narhi, Lucknow – 226 001.

Nehru Planetarium

I visited the Nehru Planetarium in Teen Murti Bhavan recently at the insistence of my son after a gap of nearly two years.

I was surprised to see the sorry state of the planetarium which attracts a large number of visitors daily. The condition of the theatre where the show takes place is very bad. Most of the chairs are broken, with cushions torn and very inconvenient to sit in.

A lot of exhibits kept inside the hall are in a dilapidated condition and do not function. My son inserted a one-rupee coin into a weighing machine to find his weight on Jupiter, but the machine did not function properly. Many other enthusiastic children were disappointed to find other exhibits not functioning.

The authorities in charge of the planetarium must take steps quickly to improve the state of affairs and make the place more attractive for children and their visit meaningful and worthwhile.

Medepalli Seshu,

Quarter No. X-240, Sarojini Nagar, New Delhi - 110 003.

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