An invisible crisis
It is disheartening to know that many face hunger even now in this day and age, (Editorial page, “Invisible humanitarian crisis in India”, August 7). “Poverty is the worst form of violence,” observed Mahatma Gandhi. The government, irrespective of the party, should ensure that eradication of poverty remains a key agenda and that welfare schemes reach the impoverished. The media in India needs to focus on such vital issues even if it does not “pep up the pages”. It was Nelson Mandela who said, “Poverty is not an accident. Like slavery and apartheid it is manmade...” and “Like slavery and apartheid, poverty is not natural. It is man-made and it can be overcome and eradicated by the action of human beings.”
B. Karthiga,
Thiruvananthapuram
The article gives a pathetic picture of poverty in India. It is tragically true that poverty has affected even the middle class in India. As a septuagenarian who had dreamt of a prosperous India, I feel hurt and disappointed to find that we trail even Bangladesh and Pakistan in the Global Hunger Report 2019.
Instead of alleviating the poverty and sufferings of the poor, our leaders are busy in playing political musical chairs and mudslinging. There is even time for them in the midst of a pandemic, to lay the foundation of a temple.
May the gods open the eyes, minds and hearts of our leaders to be aware of the state of poor Indians.
George Mathai,
Kochi
Gandhi on Hiroshima
Our inability to comprehend Gandhiji’s moral ambivalence in the face of a monstrous crime against humanity such as America’s nuclear bombing of the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki has made us take refuge in grand theorising and ethical rationalising (OpEd page, “The meaning of Gandhi’s silence”, August 7).
We only can speculate on the motives for his ‘tactical’ silence, such as adding a spiritual dimension to it, when we refuse to accept that the life journeys of outstanding leaders have their share of stumbles and missteps. However painful it may be, let us admit to ourselves that Gandhiji’s decision not to speak out against a war crime was an aberration in an otherwise enviable record of relentlessly experimenting with truth and practising what he preached.
V.N. Mukundarajan,
Thiruvananthapuram
