MyVoice: Views of our readers 27th February 2021

What's in a name?

Unnecessary hullabaloo is being made regarding the renaming of the Motera stadium to Narendra Modi stadium.Unnecessary hullabaloo is being made regarding the renaming of the Motera stadium to Narendra Modi stadium. Those who make a hue and cry will have to realise that this is not for the first time in India that an international stadium has been named after a leader . So many stadiums in India are named after leaders like Jawaharlal Nehru, Indira Gandhi, Rajiv Gandhi and so on. Even airports and railway stations have been named after great historical rulers and heroes, actors and leaders and there is nothing new in naming a stadium after a leader who during his stint as CM of Gujarat changed the state into a highly developed one . It was Modi's dream then, as president of Gujarat cricket Association, to create a stadium of global standard with state of the art facilities and was instrumental in the redevelopment of the entire sports facility and what we have now is a big dream come true- the largest most modern cricket stadium in the world.

Let us understand that renaming the stadium to Narendra Modi stadium has in no way belittled or insulted the earlier name - Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel stadium - as the name of the Iron man of India is kept in tact for the present new stadium is just but a part of an upcoming sports enclave, located in Gujarat's Motera, named after the great leader . The Gujarat Cricket Association, in a mammoth project, has now expanded the erstwhile stadium into a huge sports enclave. The sports enclave will be henceforth known as the 'Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel Sports Enclave'.

The newly built sports facility in addition to its ownership of the world's largest cricket ground will have an Olympic-sized swimming pool, an indoor cricket academy, badminton, tennis courts, a squash arena, a table tennis area, football, hockey, basketball, a 3D projector theatre, and a clubhouse.

The 'Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel Sports Enclave' can even host mega sports events like the Asian Games , Common wealth games and even the Olympics in future. The stadium, which has a seating capacity of 1,10,000 and furnished with the latest and most modern amenities has the capacity to host the semi and even the finals of World Cup cricket . The sports enclave no doubt will be a global sports hub of high reputation and definitely take the name of our nation to be reckoned in the international sports field.

M Pradyu, Kannur

Unethical move by Patanjali

It is unbecoming of anyone to encash the suffocating situation of the people world over and so in India which is marked by plight for life and livelihood. A corporate company with false claims launches a traditional medicine. There is a set norm to introduce a medicine. It is introduced to the professionals with all details like pharmacodynamics and pharmacokinetics of the product, trial results, adverse effects etc. Professionals again try such medicines with their patients to satisfy themselves before taking it up for regular prescription.

Patanjali has chosen to launch its product through a grand press meet as if it was launching a consumer durable product. It claims the medicine to be effective in prevention, treatment and post infection management in Covid 19. It claims the Drug authority and even the World Health Organisation have offered clearance for the product to be used in the treatment protocol for Covid 19. Both the claims are found to be false. Indian Medical Association immediately reacts with so many objections. The entire population including the professionals, authorities and ailing patients are plunged in shock by the way the product is introduced and the tall claims made about the product as if the concerned authorities and global institution having cleared its introduction.

The World Health Organisation has immediately responded by making it clear that the claim was false. The CEO of the corporate management is said to have made unpleasant comment about the other system of treatment also. The height of all these wrong doings is that the launch of the product was attended by two Ministers and one among them being the Minister of Health and Family Welfare. A minister who is given the responsibility of ensuring proper functioning of the entire health related organs being a mute witness to all such arbitrary wrong doings of this corporate management is now raising too many questions.

The Minister is a qualified and registered medical practitioner well versed with the entire systems involved in the process. Why he has allowed such false claims to be made is confusing one and all. The Minister knows how a medicine is launched. Why did he allow the said medicine to be launched in a press meet? Why he had been a part of it? Why did he speak in appreciation instead of condemning the atrocious deviations?

India has given a number of traditional systems of treatment and every system has its superiority and benefits, which are respected by one and all. But the way this corporate management has chosen to launch its medicine involving unethical means and wrongful claims has the potentiality of people being driven away from the very traditional system instead of bringing more in its ambit. The entire episode raises a predominant question in the minds of many,' Is corporate dominance allowed to assume the position of dictating the Government?'

A G Rajmohan, Anantapur

Record-breaking Test

India took a giant leap to secure a place in the World Test Championship final, outsmarting England by 10 wickets at Ahmedabad. The match incredibly finished before drinks on the last session of day two, making it the shortest completed Test in terms of balls bowled since 1935 and the seventh shortest of all time. Spinners on both sides had a ball taking 28 of the 30 wickets that fell, while unbelievably English speed merchants Anderson and Broad, with over 1100 wickets between them, failed to get a scalp.

N J Ravi Chander, Bengaluru

Reining in OTT

This refers to the report 'Tough rules to rein in social media, OT' (The Hans India, Page 1, February 26, 2021). The government's step towards a constant vigilance on the contents of the Over The Top (OTT) platforms and digital media have been taken in right direction.

The OTT platforms now a days have been hugely banking on violence, bloodshed and barbarism. Sexual violence, objectification of women, brutalisation of female characters, rapes and male gaze occupy a major chunk of the screentime on their contents to cater the adrenaline rush of the consumers, specifically the youth but in fact are tarnishing their minds. The social media on the other hand has become a tool to breach the peace and harmony of the country. One hopes that the new stringent guidelines will make some difference.

Tushar Anand, Patna