Cut the deadwood

Shekhar Gupta 8216;One gold, two bronze...8217; rightly says that Indian sport has begun to climb out of the barrel.

8226; Shekhar Gupta 8216;One gold, two bronze8230;8217; rightly says that Indian sport has begun to climb out of the barrel. He is also right in pointing to the link between economic prosperity and good performance in sports.nbsp;However, it is clear that the sports ministry and the Sports Authority of India are white elephants, existing only to create cushy jobs for politicians and bureaucrats. They have contributed nothing to the Beijing achievements. These bodies need to be wound up to stop the waste of taxpayers8217; money.nbsp;

8212; Devendra Narain

Gurgaon

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At the rehearsals

8226; Shekhar Gupta8217;s Walkthe Talk with Abhinav Bindra was interesting . Abhinav rightly said that when it comes to preparing for the Olympics, we are preparing not for success but failure. Muhammad Ali once said that medals are won in gyms and training fields long before the Olympics. Our sportsmen should take heed of those wise words. Then perhaps we can win many more medals in London in 2012.

8212; S.N. Kabra

Mumbai

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Rotting at the top

8226; This refers to the article 8216;Objection, counsellor8217; by Soli J. Sorabjee. It is indeed very embarrassing for the judiciary that two of our senior advocates, R.K. Anand and I.U. Khan, have been convicted for obstructing the course of justice in a BMW hit-and-run case. When people wait for several yearsnbsp;to get justice in India, obstructing the administration of justice is a very serious offence. There are many cases pending, while this one drags on. What will happen to the poor if those in the judiciary so unabashedly indulge in corruption?

8212; K.S. Shankar

New Delhi

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Bengal8217;s suicide

8226; This refers to your editorial 8220;Na8217; to Nano8217; . Ratan Tata has shown enough patience with the Buddhadeb-Mamata brand of politics. Mamata Banerjee should realise the economic importance of industrialisation and its capacity to generate employment. For the Tatas, it makes little difference as manufacturing units can be located elsewhere. Bengal will be the real sufferer of Mamata8217;s myopic vision. The Tatas will manufacture and market the Nano no matter what. It8217;s just that they will say 8220;Na8221; or 8220;No8221; to the Bengal tag.nbsp;

8212; Deepak Chikramane

Mumbai

Necessary sacrifice?

8226; The author of 8216;J038;K divide: diplomacy versus democracy8217; deserves congratulations for the correct assessment of Indians8217; views with regard to the secessionist activities. If there are some people who do not believe in a secular and democratic India and would rather livenbsp;in a country supposedlynbsp;based on a particularnbsp;religion,nbsp;their emigration should be facilitated.nbsp;However,nbsp;it should be made clear that thenbsp;integrity and borders of this country are inviolable.nbsp;The secular foundations of this country cannot be allowed to be disturbed by a handful of secessionists.

8212; Satish Dayal

New Delhi