• I am a graduate. I have been in Delhi for the last seven years and have noticed poor rickshaw pullers from Bihar being treated shamefully by the traffic police. They are often slapped and beaten. Who is to blame for these erring rickshaw pullers? The demagogues who have been ruling Bihar for decades. By delivering dialogues in a rustic way and politicising casteism they have spoilt the state to such an extent that only unemployment, mismanagement, nepotism and disorder grows in a state that was once the icon of progress (‘They vote with their feet’, IE, July 16). This situation compels a majority of the state’s population to consider migrating to other parts of the country. What a dilemma! What a terribly pathetic situation! How long will Biharis be used as raw material for the industrialised cities of India? — Dhananjay K. Singh New Delhi Nuclear power • Apropos of the article, ‘A power less exotic’ (IE, July 27), it is true that the long term marginal costs of a nuclear power plant is low; but its fixed O&M costs tend to remain high due to the cost of security and maintenance. In the long run, though, the cost of nuclear energy is definitely lower to society if you bring in to consideration the lower pollution, and less reliance on fossil fuels. But then let’s look at it from another perspective by asking a more precise question. Is it viable for a merchant generation? The answer in India, at least, is no. Nuclear generation is not a commercially viable option for individual generation companies, because of the lack of better governmental regulation, not to mention the fact that it is also technologically unviable. — Kris Mumbai Timely warning • In your editorial, ‘Secure Punjab now’ (IE, July 28), you reminded our politicians of the dangers facing Punjab and the nation as a whole. When unity is the most important element to defeat terrorism, Punjab politicians blame each other for the re-emergence of the Babbar Khalsa terrorists. — Arvind Amin On e-mail Bad apples • I sympathise with the Goan cab driver (‘Taxi-cab home-truths’, IE, July 28). It is up to Muslims in England to point out the terrorists and bad apples of society, otherwise they become part of the bad apples in the box. — Chandru Narayan On e-mail None above law • The larger than life image of the ex-super cop, K.P.S. Gill, has been cut to size by the Supreme Court, which found him guilty of sexually harassing Rupan Bajaj. The lady must be commended for persisting with the case right up to the Supreme Court. The only saving grace for Gill is that the court exempted him from undergoing imprisonment. The verdict shows that the courts have upheld the dictum that none is above the law. — V.P. Damodar Pune Give them a Padma • The Mumbai deluge and the earnest activity (pun intended) of the administration have shown us how far we have reached in our quest to turn Mumbai into Shanghai. I think we now need to identify which of the politicians and bureaucrats we need to nominate for the Padma Shris, Padma Bhushans and the Padma Vibhushans. Oh! How can I forget about the Bharat Ratna! I am sure at least one of the jokers who run Maharashtra and Mumbai could qualify for that as well! — Ashutosh Malik New Delhi
