Jarring
We cannot bring back the dead, but the least we could have done was to grieve for those who lost their precious lives (“Hathras stampede toll hits 121; organiser pins blame on ‘anti-social elements’” (July 4). The large-scale T20 World Cup celebrations at this moment are cause for introspection. Have we lost sensitivity and compassion towards our own countrymen? Could not the victory celebrations have been low key?
Balasubramaniam Pavani,
Secunderabad
Railways and safety
There have been many train accidents in India in the near past. The recent one in which a goods train collided with an express train near West Bengal’s New Jalpaiguri is gruesome. When Lalu Prasad Yadav was the Union Minister for Railways, accidents were very rare. Further, he was able to ensure that the Railways became a good and profit-making entity. He never hiked passenger fares except for a small hike in goods train utility. Moving to the issue of safety, the protective system of automatic brakes, known as the Kavach system, seems to be the most effective solution. It is unfortunate that such a safety system was not available in the recent accident. It is sad that the Railways which manages one of the largest rail systems in the world no longer has a separate Budget. The allocation for the Railways is measly now.
M.L. Raghavan,
Tiruppur, Tamil Nadu
Parliament functioning
In Parliament recently, some in the Opposition complained that their microphones were switched off. The Speaker and the Chairman were quick to say that they had no hand in it. Given that this is a brand new building, should there not be an inquiry into how the microphones failed?
S. Venkataraman,
Bengaluru
