MyVoice: Views of our readers 6th October 2024

It is high time Hindus get united, raise voice

This refers to the deeply reflective topic brought to light by the Bold Talk author of "Hindus Must Arise, Awake" (05-10-2024). At its core, Sanatana Dharma, also known as Hindu Dharma, has been a central theme in the discourse. Andhra Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister Pawan Kalyan has been vocal about the perceived discrimination against this ancient and well-established system, a stance that warrants serious consideration. The Vedas, epics, and Puranas clearly convey the message of "Loka Samastha Sukhinobhavantu," which calls for the happiness of all people across the globe, irrespective of religion, caste, or creed. However, within Hinduism, the existence of both theists and atheists presents a unique dynamic, one that is not as prevalent in Islam or Christianity, though those faiths have their internal differences as well.

The principle of secularism, enshrined in the preamble of our Constitution, emphasizes unity in diversity, encouraging everyone to live together while honoring their own cultural traditions. Pawan Kalyan's proposal for the formation of a Sanatana Dharma Rakshak Board is a commendable idea. However, like any institution, it will face challenges, which must be addressed with understanding and wisdom.

–N S K Prasad, Hyderabad

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Pawan Kalyan in his devotional dress spoke emotionally. He being a famous cinema actor, whatever he says will be watched by several across the world. He is blessed to be the Deputy CM of Andhra Pradesh. Both CM N Chandrababu and his deputy Pavan Kalyan have constitutionally sanctioned responsibilities and powers which they have to fulfil instead of talking about the lapses of the previous government. They can set or raise standards for education in state, people-related services and for all the devotional centers related to all religions. All these shall be legally valid. Let the state have a motto: AP Government is for 'GOOD GOVERNANCE.’

–G Murali Mohan Rao, Secunderabad

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The majority community has realised that their sense of accommodation vis-à-vis the Muslims is not meaningfully reciprocated – while the hostile and aggressive mentality on part of the latter is becoming growingly evident when places of worship are vandalised and religious processions are targeted while passing through Muslim majority areas. Hindus, despite all such provocation, want to have healthy social ties with the community, but this does not seem to be happening as the trust levels are falling drastically over the years, owing to aggressive posturing and redundancy mentality by the community. The recent killing of Hezbollah jihadi chief Nasrallah was celebrated as death of a martyr, and processions were taken out in his honour – with a warning that the 'terrorist' tag must not be used against the radical. Such developments are undesirable for the country, while the community constantly swears on the Constitution and Secularism; but when it is time to put them into practice the Muslims generally are on the back foot, and begin to talk in terms of sharia. The community’s stand, not to abide by the new Waqf laws, is a clear indication and mindset in this regard; and a similar stand was taken against CAA and triple talaq by the community.

–K R Venkata Narasimhan, Madurai

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Thank you Ramu Sarmaji for raising the valid issue of Hindus’ discrimination by the so-called secularists and selfish politicians as the majority religion never raised its voice in unison on thousands of attacks it was subjected to in the history. Hindus tolerance is taken for granted by all. The courage exhibited by Pawan Kalyan and the clarion call given to Hindus/Sanatana dharma followers to resist the injustice done to them is worth pondering. Yes, Jagan and his Christian lobby totally vitiated the holy atmosphere of Tirumala and the deity’s name was used to plunder its riches. The need of the hour for Hindus is the services of many Pawan Kalyans, Raja Singhs and Yogi Adityanaths.

– Rama Krishna M, Kakinada

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Taking advantage of the tolerance attitude of the Hindu people, they are the most exploited lot in the world today. Silently, under the name of secularism, conversion of Hindus to Islam and Christianity is on the increase. The Hindu population is dwindling and that of the Muslims and Christians have increased considerably. In the North-East, conversion has had a great effect. Also, Hindu temples are under the control of the respective state government by law. The hundi collection from Hindu temples is used by the government to help free Haj pilgrimage to Muslims and pay monthly honorarium for the mullahs and flourish other religious activities. Churches and Darghas are managed by their own religious committees. Then why Hindu temples are alone held by the government? Is it secularism? The Hindu temples should be released from the clutches of the government.

Hindu religion is said to be the oldest religion in the world. It has a hoary past. ‘Dharmo rakshati rakshitaha‘ is the essence of the Hindu religion. Efforts are being made to wipe it out, but in vain. So, the voice of the Deputy CM of AP, Pawan Kalyan, asking the Hindus to save Hindu religion is quite correct and welcome at this point in time.

– Sravana Ramachandran, Chennai.

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It's high time for managing and running any temple's affairs without political interference. But to seek funds any and every temple has to seek either the general public's help or the local politicians’ help. Herein comes interference. If funds from the general public aren't sufficient; it necessarily has to seek political help. When I mean political; it’s government. When almost all the temples come under the purview, ambit and control of the endowments department, it practically becomes difficult to completely do away with political interference. Religion and politics in India are inextricably intertwined.

– N R Raghuram Hyderabad

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The snake analogy in the write-up by the author sums up the true situation and predicament of the Hindus in the country – unable to be united; and act in unison for the rights and concerns facing the community. This situation must change as Islam is making unmissable and dangerous inroads to disturb the status quo. The most painful and irrational part is the community being labelled as communal, giving unbridled freedom and leeway for others. The initiative by the Deputy Chief Minister of AP Pawan Kalyan in setting right the trend in the wake of Tirumala temple Prasad contamination issue for restoration of Hindu pride is appreciable. A united endeavour is needed for the Hindu voice to be heard loud and clear in the country. What is required is will and an inclusive sense of belonging as a single entity to fight against exploitation in preserving the identity .

–S Lakshmi, Hyderabad

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The profoundly redundant expression of ‘secularism’ that was surreptitiously added in the Constitution by the Congress during the Nehru era, is in fact working against the fundamental interests of the community, ranging from places of worship not left to the community's control and management while the income is shamelessly used for non-Hindu and anti-national purposes as Waqf board is ruthlessly usurping the temples and Hindu properties at an enormous rate that are several centuries old which have now become the Muslim property that even the country’s judiciary is helpless to tackle and restore order.

Hindus on their part must follow a strict regimen akin to others regularly visiting temples and celebrating festivities, with more zeal and involvement since other communities are well aware of our innate weakness and shortcomings in this regard, not being a cohesive force that is not united and easy to intimidate, exploit and convert.

– K R Parvathy, Mysuru

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If Islam had respect for other religious groups, the world would have been a wonderful place of peace and harmony to live; but sadly enough, this is not the case with that religion, which sees other groups as infidels. The division prevailing among Muslims is astounding – the constant hate between the Shia and Sunni communities is known to us all. The status of Ahmedias and Bohra communities are pathetic – and not to speak of Hindus and Christians before the eyes of Islam. Hindus have been a favourite punching bag and fit case for slaughters by marauding invaders from time immemorial. Northern India has witnessed their brutality more compared to the south – it is the reason why the Hindi belt is more religious and united when the religious sentiments are taken for granted by others. There were more freedom fighters who sacrificed their lives either by death or sent to the penal island of Andaman. The article is a wake-up call for all level-headed Hindus to be united and thwart the designs of forces that are inimical to the religion and the country.

– K V Raghuram, Wayanad

Test cricket getting a new lease of life

No sooner had the one-day internationals emerged in the seventies, than the test cricket started receiving a minor setback on account of dwindling crowds at the stadiums even as fans started patronising the shorter format one day and the T20 even more. In short, people were least bothered to watch the live telecast of matches on TV so much so, test cricket was relegated to the background despite all the leading players from the cricket playing countries were of the firm view that test cricket is real cricket and any day is irreplaceable. Despite ups and downs in the last five decades, test cricket never lost its charm and regained its prime position once again. Onus is on cricket boards to prepare lively pitches that yield results so that the crowds do not feel disappointed or get bored watching their favourites play the 5-day format. The results in recent 2-test series against Bangladesh and similarly the New Zealand-Sri Lanka series have aroused the interest of masses, bringing crowds to the stadium.

– K R Srinivasan, Secunderabad

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The reason why test cricket was losing charm and spectators was the long dreary draws which bored the spectators as batters went on and on setting records which had no bearing on the match. The ICC has made certain changes like the 90 over per day rule which prevents time wasting on the field and there is a better chance of a result. The second test against Bangladesh also showed how an expected draw was turned on its head and Indian batters pulverized the Bangla bowlers to score 285 is less than 35 over at an incredible average of 8.22. The second innings of India followed in the same vein and India went on to win with a session to spare even after losing more than two day due to bad weather. If captains take risks to win the game, test cricket will get a new lease of life.

– Anthony Henriques, Mumbai

India’s wise decision

External Affairs Minister Dr S Jaishankar has confirmed his official visit to Pakistan on 15th & 16th October, after almost a decade, for the purpose of attending the SCO (Shanghai Cooperation Organisation) foreign affairs ministers summit, to parallel the equation created by former Pakistani Foreign Affairs minister Bilawal Bhutto, when he visited Goa to attend the similar meeting in 2023.

Geopolitics is all about calibrated calculations and choreographed equations of handling key geopolitics diktat with appropriate reasoning. As we know that SCO group itself is a key cluster of strong Central Asian powers, which are of great interest for India vis-a-vis many of its key projects & ambitions. We just can't miss this very opportunity to engage with the key Central Asian partners.

There is no doubt that India have strategic problems with Pakistan because of its terrorism attitude. But by deputing its EM to Pakistan for attending SCO summit in person, India reveals its zeal to effectively balance its bilateral and multilateral issues.

– Kirti Wadhawan, Kanpur

Poor sanitation not a big worry yet

The edit page article, "Why poor sanitation remains a common sight" and the opening quote of Gandhiji,"Sanitation is more important than political independence" are apt and interesting. I attended a meeting of WATSAN (water and sanitation) in Hyderabad in 2007 and a resource person made it a point that open defecation in the rural India should be tackled strictly and there should be volunteers wielding a stick to drive the people away and he said in a way that it was a cause of water contamination and poor sanitation.

How many rural villagers and remote tribals are used to defecation in the borehole lavatories if not septic latrines? In early 2000s, there was a healthy emergency drive in AP due to communicable diseases born out of poor sanitation and contamination of drinking water sources. The main drive was to remove heaped up dung and left out dry grass or hey soaked in unchecked water flow or rain water and educating the villages to keep the cattle away from living houses.

Gandhiji was keen on self-clearing own or community toilets and as seen in ‘Gandhi’ movie when Kasturba initially declined as she was not used to it by then he pushed her infuriated. Though he realises his unsavory temper, it leaves a lasting impression that more than soft words there should be strict punishment for those who violate norms for sanitation and safe drinking water.

– Dr T Ramadas, Visakhapatnam

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After PM Modi assumed office in May 2014, on 2 October, he launched Swachh Bharat Abhiyan when he got himself photographed alone holding a broom and sweeping a small lane. Since then, on every Gandhi Jayanti, it’s almost the same scene. On the occasion of 10th year of SBM, the PM was seen with broom, this time with schoolchildren.

Crores are being spent for this mission, the ground reality is well known. Even in PM's home state, there's very little is visible including Babu's birth place Porbandar. The surrounding of Kirti Mandir is pathetic and so are other tourist spots. The state of public toilets not only in Gujarat and all other states is such that they can't be used. Only women travelers know about the difficulty as even paid ones are unsuitable. No wonder speaking in Rajya Sabha Shiv Sena(UBT) MP Priyanka Chaturvedi highlighted the lack of toilet facility even for women leaders during the election campaign. Probably we need more mobile public toilets on call like ambulance service near highways, tourist spots, hospitals, particularly for women.

I'm part of 9 year old voluntary Febkomath group involved in clean street, lakes etc. The group is still struggling in their mission due to lack of backing from elected representative. The group's efforts to clean up nearby lake during and after Ganesh Chaturthi got very little support.

– N Nagarajan, Hyderabad

Decline in morality, values ubiquitous

I would like to say with deep anguish that nothing in the country has substantially changed for the betterment of masses in the last decade. Violence is not uncommon (think of Manipur) , the population is increasing ,corruption has metastatically spread , illiteracy is yet to vanish and unemployment has touched the sky. Reservations have made the lives of students of general category miserable.

Adulteration in edibles, prasadams and medicines have become the order of the day; murders and killings through encounters are taking place frequently. Crimes against women have increased manifold (NCRB says 86 cases of rape are reported daily; there is no record of molestations taking place daily in the country). Babas and Bapus are playing havoc with the lives of ignorant and gullible. Suicide rate amongst students is rising; bulldozing of houses and shops is taking place routinely. Recently, a child of 2nd standard was killed for the prosperity of the school by the owner in a 'sacrificial ritual'. The morality is on a steep decline even in the dignitaries of the country; leaders and ministers are indulging in vendetta politics; they are daggers drawn with members of the other parties. Being very egoistic and arrogant, they blow their own trumpets loudly and don't even refrain from exposing buried bodies. Some consider them as nonbiologicals and divine.

– Dr Sunil Chopra, Ludhiana

Engage the youth for sustainable habitats

A healthy habitat supplies everything an organism needs to survive, including shelter, water, food, and space. We should treat housing, not an investment or a dream, but a basic right for every individual.

The ‘World Habitat Day’, designated by the United Nations in 1985, is observed annually from 1986 on the first Monday of October, this year on 07 October 2024, to reflect on the state of our towns and cities and the basic right to adequate shelter. This year’s theme is “Engaging youth to create a better urban future”. It is high time for the next generation to step up and act. Millennials (28 to 43 years of age group) and Gen Z (12 - 27 years of age group) are the driving force behind sustainable urban development, and their leadership in addressing all the present day challenges.

The rapid unplanned urbanisation, the problems of basic amenities are increasing multi-fold, resulting in unhealthy urban population. By 2050, cities are projected to host 70% of the global population, emphasising the need for inclusive, sustainable urban planning and development, at least from now.

The World Habitat Day dais may be effectively used to advocate for affordable housing, support sustainable best practices, encourage community participation, engage on social media initiatives, cooperate habitat for humanity and expect voluntary youth contribution. The World Habitat Day may use the hashtags like #SustainableCities, #UrbanDevelopment, #HousingForAll, BetterLiving, #CommunityDevelopment, #GlobalGoals may be shared on social media for seeking voluntary public support and participation.

World Habitat Day unfolds the opportunity to celebrate the contributions of youth to sustainable urbanisation, while addressing the problems associated with rapid unplanned urban growth. Let’s pledge to preserve the healthy habitat for healthy future generations.

– Dr Burra Madhusudhan Reddy, Karimnagar