Not Left out
This refers to Minus the Left (IE,March 12). Post-Independence,the Left could find common ground with the Congress on the socialist content of Nehruvian policies. Thus,till the beginning of economic reforms,the Left had been adding content and relevance to an evolving
Indian polity. The Left had also established governments in some states and it was expected to play a substantial role nationally. Slowly,their impact on national politics became minimal,if not
absent. Bigger regional parties are growing in stature and,to counter them,the Congress is left with no worthy regional satraps though the BJP can boast of a few. This is where the Left is far better placed to regain lost territory given the advantage of its committed cadre,provided it evolves a more modern vision of national growth with inclusiveness.
R. Narayanan
Ghaziabad
More homework
The explosions in Japans nuclear power plants are alarming (Japan N-plant explosion raises fears,IE,March 13). If Japanese plants,built with super safeguards,can fail to withstand natural calamities,a similar situation will be a certain disaster in countries like India. All countries and the IAEA need to examine their nuclear power programmes for safeguards.
M.C. Joshi
Misplaced generosity
Apart from the demerits of enhancing the amount of MPLADS,the surprise element is its timing (Splashing out,IE,March 14). Since the CAG has already submitted the report on the working of this scheme,it would have been better had the guidelines for its effective implementation been updated before the hike. The present guidelines date back to 2005 when fund allocation was Rs 2 crore. The MPs discretion was expanded by replacing the list of items on which they could spend with a smaller list on which they couldnt. While the district authority is accountable for implementing the schemes chosen by MPs,they cannot be questioned on the need for choosing them. Besides,the timing smacks of keeping the opposition in good humour in the context
of the charges of poor governance the ruling coalition is facing in Parliament.
Y.G. Chouksey
Pilot project
The revelation on fake pilots is extremely disturbing (Pilot held for forging papers,DGCA will now check all,IE,March 10). Such revelations demand that airlines be very scrupulous in scrutinising the documents submitted by
pilots at the time of recruitment. Airlines must send officials to their educational/ vocational training institutes to verify the genuineness of the documents. This can also later become a serious security threat. The aviation ministry must issue a strict notification to this effect.
Harischandra Parshuram
