Station redevelopment
The revamp of 508 Amrit Bharat railways stations is a case of misplaced priorities (Page 1, August 7). If 75% of this staggering amount of ₹24,470 crore had been spent on railway track renewal and upgrading signal and safety-related upgradation, passengers could have looked forward to safer train journeys. Many thousands of kilometres could have been upgraded. The much-touted Vande Bharat trains could have had faster speeds as at present their speed is limited by tracks, thereby nullifying the ballyhoo of a speed of 180 kilometres an hour. Improvements to railway stations should be mainly in providing user amenities such as escalators, waiting areas, ensuring hygiene, and better vehicle parking. What do fancy facades costing hundreds of crores achieve? Cannot the slowest passenger trains be moved faster saving crores of man hours for the poorest of the poor?
D.M. Mohunta,
Chennai
Tiger numbers
Half-a-century ago, India launched an ambitious new project to protect the tiger. Now, the new tiger numbers reflect the success of conservation efforts.
But tiger conservation remains a sensitive and challenging task. The threat of habitat fragmentation and climate change are real. A significant chunk of the tiger population lives outside designated reserves, resulting in rising man-animal conflict.
T.K.R. Noori,
Hyderabad
Gaddar
People’s balladeer Gaddar must be remembered for the way he knitted thoughts of revolution and the need for progress. Though branded a Maoist party sympathiser, he was admired politically.
Satish Reddy Kanaganti,
Tipparthi, Telangana
