Letters to the editor: Quiet revolution

Quiet revolution The underlying forces shaping politics in the post-Mandal,post-Mandir phase have been economic. Mulayam Singh Yadav,who once spoke against the English language and computers,is distributing free laptops; Narendra Modi is hardselling his primarily Gujarat model of development; Nitish Kumar,the face of Bihars development,has been trying to mobilise others on the issue of economic backwardness. hellip;

Quiet revolution

The underlying forces shaping politics in the post-Mandal,post-Mandir phase have been economic. Mulayam Singh Yadav,who once spoke against the English language and computers,is distributing free laptops; Narendra Modi is hardselling his primarily Gujarat model of development; Nitish Kumar,the face of Bihars development,has been trying to mobilise others on the issue of economic backwardness. The Naveen Patnaiks,the Raman Singhs and the Shivraj Chouhans,who have successfully combined government doles with enterprise-driven development,have all been speaking about economic change. Given the high growth achieved,the rise in school and college enrolment and the penetration of internet and mobiles in far flung areas,the quiet revolution launched in 1991 is finally making an impact on politics.

Manish Kumar

Patna

Phase two

The floods that struck the hills of Uttarakhand might be part natural disaster,part manmade tragedy. But the next disaster,which seems to be around the corner,could be fully manmade. Thousands have perished and much livestock has been lost. Unless the area is cleared and cleaned in time,devastating epidemics could break out Uttarakhand Flood: Mass cremation of bodies begins amid epidemic fears,IE,June 27. Perhaps non-governmental organisations should come forward at this point. Waiting for the government to act could prove to be a mistake. Politicians in general have the tendency to swing into action only after the mishap has occurred,and even then they seem more taken up with trading accusatins rather than doing things on the ground.

Abdul Monim

Vashi

No politics,please

The Uttarakhand disaster is a natural calamity and parties should not use it for political mileage Shocker in Uttarakhand: MPs almost come to blows over flood-relief work,IE,June 26. All political parties in the country should come together and help in the rescue operation. There is no need to flaunt party colours in this effort. Meanwhile,the military is doing excellent work in Uttarakhand. All Indians appreciate Indian military for its extraordinary effort and the sacrifices made by its jawans.

Balwant Ranade

Pune

Parrot speak

It IS good to learn that the cabinet has approved the recommendations of the GoM to free the CBI from government interference. But it remains to be seen how well this system works as far as transparency is concerned. The precondition that the CBIs investigations will be monitored by a panel of retired judges sends signals that it can still be controlled by the government at the Centre. Because this panel of retired judges will be picked by the government. Perhaps the CBI should be placed under the watchful eyes of the Central Vigilance Commission instead.

R.K. Kapoor

Chandigarh