Letters to the editor

See Sao Paulo8226; NOW that the government has appointed Air Marshal Fali H. Major as the next air chief, the discussion on whether a helic...

See Sao Paulo

8226; NOW that the government has appointed Air Marshal Fali H. Major as the next air chief, the discussion on whether a helicopter pilot can be made chief has been settled 8216;Enter chopper fighter as chief8217;, IE, February 1. However, for the benefit of the public, I request the media to get details of the gallantry awards won by fighter and helicopter pilots and publish them. It will be found that the latter have more than matched the former. Given the type of conflicts that we are fighting and the terrain, fighter pilots have a limited role unless we venture into enemy territory. Further, it is helicopter gunships air artillery that can provide real time support as force multipliers to the army. Helicopters are also the best, most convenient and fastest mode of transport, when natural disasters strike.

Very soon we would also require helicopter taxi services for both intra and inter-city transport. Take a look at Sao Paulo 8212; the helicopter capital of the world.

8212; T.R. Ramaswami, Mumbai

Straw in the wind

8226; MOST readers may agree with Shekhar Gupta8217;s statement, in his article 8216;National straw in Punjab wind8217; IE, March 10, that the definition of what is secular and who is communal is changing. This provokes me to make the point that those who wish to have reservations on the basis of religion are communal. No doubt, backward communities should be given reservations, but this can be done without taking religious background into consideration if we are really secular. The figure Gupta cites 8212; 76 per cent of the electorate voted; the Akali Dal fielded seven Hindus while the BJP fielded four Sikhs 8212; prove, in my view, that most people in the strategic border state of Punjab are determined to teach the Congress a lesson that it cannot now divide Hindus and Sikhs further to get power, and that people have realised its game. Now other social groups should start voting rationally as in Punjab, and the country will see better days.

8212; K.G. Acharya, Mumbai

Democratic dividend

8226; THIS is to praise Vandita Mishra8217;s,8217;The Game8217;s in the Middle8217; IE, March 8. It conveyed our concern over the increasing resort to judicial intervention as a quick-fix solution to all the problems in our parliamentary democracy. What we do need is to have political parties interact with the people, especially with respect to government programmes. One of the singular weaknesses of our delivery system is the lack of awareness among the intended beneficiaries of the very existence of schemes to help them. A healthy competition between parties to ensure delivery will have the dual effect of uplifting the overall standard of delivery for any government scheme, as well as ensure that budgetary and others benefits are not cornered by vested interests.

8212; Vineet Nair, Jamnagar

Cricket crazy

8226; I AM sure I am not the only Indian, or the only Indian Express reader, appalled by the hysteria over world cup cricket. Is there nothing else happening in the world? Why do we as a nation let go of our senses completely when it comes to cricket? A Martian watching Indian TV channels might have returned home under the impression that Sachin Tendulkar is more important than Manmohan Singh.

8212; V. Kaura, Nagpur