•Pratap Bhanu Mehta’s ‘Do something, Mr Speaker’ has raked up an important issue. It is indeed a travail for students of classes 10 and 12, since they suffer from the phobia caused by these two exams, which form the understructure of their careers. Mehta has rightly observed that the UPA government has concentrated more on “university buildings and not building universities”. In fact, there is a need to take a holistic view of our education system that is based solely on exams, which defeat the very purpose of education. Can’t we rework this system to protect them from monstrous worries about getting admitted to good quality institutions? The Union government must ensure that there is no dearth of such institutions in the country, as the students of today are our investment in the nation’s future. — S.K. GuptaDelhiSelf-destruction•It appears that Pakistan has enmeshed itself in the quagmire of terrorism and violence. Ironically, the terrorism victimising Pakistan today is a device that it designed against India. It is time somebody iterated for the Pakistani leadership the old adage that one reaps as one sows. Perhaps Pakistan can now better understand that investing in evil is bound to boomerang. — M.J.A. Ansari AligarhGreen cred•Bibek Debroy’s ‘What aam kisans want’ offers extensive facts and figures and a deep insight into the rural economy and the condition of our farmers. I believe that today the Indian farmer doesn’t need freebies or alms but a long-term national agriculture policy that would blend our traditional wisdom, modern scientific know-how and contemporary technologies. Such a visionary policy would make agriculture profitable again. Without the revival of agriculture, India’s growth rate cannot be sustained on the strength of industrialisation or information technology alone. — Vitull K. Gupta BhatindaLower House rules•The Lok Sabha speaker was upset enough to tell MPs that they were “working overtime to destroy democracy” because of the regular disorder in the Parliament as members shout and rush to the well of the House. Our honourable MPs are behaving in a rather dishonourable manner, hindering the proceedings and wasting public time and money. Democracy doesn’t give MPs a mandate to misbehave. When will our MPs learn to be sincere about the great responsibility vested in them? Observance of the code of conduct meant for them is an important indicator of that sincerity. As of now, unruly scenes in Parliament tarnish the image of that institution and the country. — Sudhir TrivediAhmedabad Forgotten plateau• The report ‘Tibetans losing their identity: Dalai Lama’ , on the 49th anniversary of the Tibetan uprising, reflected the anguish and helplessness of the Dalai Lama. The Chinese leadership’s desire to obliterate Tibetan cultural and religious identity is reprehensible. The Dalai Lama insists only on local autonomy and not independence, although he has a case for the latter. The Chinese have granted autonomy only in name. Unfortunately, the world, particularly the West, has forgotten Tibet. The West has strongly backed the unilateral declaration of independence by tiny Kosovo despite its commitment to the contrary but can’t care less about the tragedy of Tibet. — M. RatanNew Delhi
