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The lone warriors

Till July 2009, over 690 soldiers from various states have been killed on duty (Battle Casualties) in the last three years. Life has become a painful saga for their families which keep shuttling between various government offices with the hope of getting some relief. These soldiers’ supreme sacrifice has made the country proud, but what has exhausted, disappointed and dejected their families is that the nation for which they have sacrificed their lives is least bothered to attend to their urgent and survival needs. And the government has turned its back. With a corrupt public servants network the Indian government has certainly failed to deliver and has forgotten atrocities meted out to its heroes.

Shubhani D Gupta

Kolkata The flu outbreak

Arindam Chaudhuri’s column on swine flu (TSI, August 17-23) really pinpointed the hapless condition of the Indian health care system. There was a joke doing rounds sometime back, “When a black man becomes president of the US, pigs would fly.” And 100 days into Obama's presidency, swine flu is here!! Jokes apart, there is little doubt that given the dense population, unhygienic living conditions and our miserable health care system, such diseases if spread once will kill with a vengeance. And as our public health system is sick, we need to help nurse it. The government must see to it that why those who have a choice avoid government hospitals, and should try to improve conditions not just in cities, but at grassroot level too. Health care facilities are crippled due to lack of medicines, qualified doctors and diagnostic equipment. The government cannot do without the help of private players. Private practitioners can play an important role in the health industry. But a formal planning and monitoring system for delivering health service through public-private partnership must be considered.

Devinder Kaur

Mumbai Trust with caution

With reference to cover story, "Love Hurts.." (TSI, August 10-16). This is an outcome of technology advancement. Today there are hundreds of MMS clips circulating freely on the Internet and no action is being taken. Even schools and colleges are not left behind. An MMS scandal is in fact proving to be worse than rape as it has become the most sellable commodity today. It’s not love but fun to which girls are falling prey. MMSes are not just a part of regular dating scenario but are also being shot for commercial purposes. If a guy cheats on a girl, it's because he does not have any feelings for her. The girls are humiliated, abandoned and hardly get any emotional support from their families and are looked upon as criminals. In most of the cases, it is a girl who ends up looking like a fool. Dr. Minesh Desai rightly stated that solution lies in making sincere attempts to understand the youth as well as in helping them understand the nuances of relationships.

Amrita J

Chennai