Mail of the Week

PICTURE SPEAK

"Game On", June 12

"The World Cup reaffirms our impotency at not being able to produce even one world-class footballer per 10 crore people."

Rajneesh Batra, Delhi

High on Grass

A fine display of talent, outstanding professionalism and state-of-the-art training given to players are what generate the mass hysteria during the FIFA World Cup ("At Full Stretch", June 12). I wish we Indians were also part of the action and not just spectators.

Navneet Dhawan, Delhi

Irrespective of who wins the World Cup 2006, the fever it has generated throughout the world, including in cricket-crazy India, is unparalleled. In Bangalore, boys are displaying Brazilian colours with Ronaldo and Ronaldinho marked on their shirts. At the same time, it is unfortunate that very few Indians take up football, which is truly a poor man's game, much less expensive compared to cricket and tennis. It is time we shifted our attention to games like football, hockey, volleyball and basketball.

A. Srikantaiah, Bangalore

It is heartening to see that you have devoted space to the beautiful game of soccer. I have observed readers' boredom over meaningless talk about cricket. There was a sense of relief in finding the golden picture of the World Cup on your cover. I hope you will give due coverage to soccer, which is the most popular game in the world.

G.S. Jaidka, Chandigarh

Though we are a cricket-obsessed nation, with the boys faring poorly in the Caribbean, all the excitement is bound to shift to Germany and we will have our own share of frenzied fans rooting for the Sambas.

Jinu Mathew, on e-mail

India Today deserves praise for bringing out the football special, a diversion from cricket. Boots made India lose a chance to play in the World Cup in 1950. Maybe World Cup 2006 will boost our interest in the game. I believe we have the potential to make a mark on the game.

A. Jacob Sahayam, Thiruvananthapuram

Listen to the President

The legislators should amend the office-of-profit Bill and not force the President to approve it in its present form ("Show of Dissent", June 12). If they are only interested in making profits, they should quit Parliament rather than turn it into a shop. Profit replaces the purpose of serving the nation.

Man Mohan Bhatia, Delhi

President A.P.J. Abdul Kalam does not want to get trapped in dirty politics. By returning the Bill he has conveyed a strong message that the President's office can't be used as a tool to serve political ambitions. His refusal to sign the Bill, backed by reasonable queries, raises hope of cleaner politics.

Arvind K. Pandey, Allahabad

It is evident that the Bill is designed to give a reprieve to those occupying offices of profit. Moreover, the application of different yardsticks to define an office of profit in different states exposes the Government's discrimination. The President's dissent itself tantamounts to an indictment of the Cabinet decision. The Government should, therefore, redraft the Bill.

P.K. Srivastava, on e-mail

By exercising his prerogative after seeking legal advice, Kalam has demonstrated that checks and balances are integral to India's parliamentary system of governance. The Congress and the Left, whose MPs stand to gain the most from the proposed law, should refrain from criticising the President as it would reflect nothing but their contempt for the Constitution.

J. Akshay, Secunderabad

Scorching Issue

I must blame my father for having inculcated useless values like discipline, devotion and dedication in me and for making me study, forcing me to get stuck in a routine job ("Official Tourists", June 12). Had I not been groomed thus, I would have definitely turned into a scoundrel and chosen the last option: politics. At least, then I would have got the chance of going abroad.

A. Srinivasa Murthy, Hyderabad

It is frustrating to read that one-third of the Cabinet is headed towards cooler places during this summer. On the one hand, the Government is trying to ensure that every penny earned by the common man is recorded and taxed. On the other, the so-called people's representatives are leading lavish lives at the taxpayer's expense.

Bal Govind, Bareilly

Taxpayers can ill-afford the foreign junkets of their "honourable" ministers. Their hard-earned money should go towards improving the country's infrastructure and making it more livable. Underworked ministers cannot tolerate summer in India and leave for distant shores, while their countrymen don't even get uninterrupted power and sufficient water to quench their thirst and cool their bodies.

Ranjana Manchanda, on e-mail

MISPLACED TARGET

Strangely, you are more interested in highlighting how the Fanaa controversy is benefiting actor Aamir Khan and the film- which anyone can guess-rather than pondering over the harm done to society by the quelling of dissent ("Profit From Protest", June 12). Sri Kumar, Hyderabad Aamir must know that he can fool some people for some time, but not all the people all the time. Rukmini Srivastav, Gurgaon Aamir supported what you didn't, so damn Aamir! What is the difference between fanatics and you "intellectuals"? Aashish Rao, Bhubaneswar

Course Correction

Your survey was fabulous but it did not include colleges providing MEd and BEd degrees ("Top 10 Colleges", June 5). It is disappointing that colleges preparing prospective teachers are not considered mainstream educational institutions. With rampant commercialisation of education, a number of colleges offering degrees in education have mushroomed all over the country. These colleges run without adequate infrastructure and qualified teachers. Universities have granted them affiliations without verifying their eligibility.

Jitendra Sharma, Jodhpur

I suggest that you include a new section on management in your survey and give the statistics on placement, infrastructure and faculty of the top 20 colleges in the country. You can also prepare a list of about top 100 colleges limited to engineering, medical and management courses to help students make a better choice.

Rohith Iyer, Bangalore

Protest of the Faithless

The ruckus over The Da Vinci Code is absolutely laughable ("Breaking the Code", May 29). As a Christian, I say the restlessness of the protesting churches and Christians depicts only one thing: they really do not have faith. Why should they be bothered about Jesus being married? Jesus never said he was not. Rather than following his teachings and principles, Christians do all sorts of things and then go to the church to repent. Faith does not rely on the life of one particular person; it is a tool that should be nurtured by the realisation of the self.

Kenny Roger Moise, on e-mail

Out-of-Turn Promotion

How could you improve Home Minister Shivraj Patil's rank from 29 last year to 16 this year ("The Best and the Worst", May 29)? There is no firm policy on the Naxalite menace, illegal immigration to Assam, terrorism in Jammu and Kashmir and the rehabilitation of Kashmiri Hindus. Even his body language betrays lack of confidence.

G.D. Joglekar, Pune

Correction

The Faculty of Law, Panjab University, Chandigarh, was wrongly referred to as the Faculty of Law, Chandigarh University, in the listing of top 10 law colleges ("Law", June 5). There is no Chandigarh University. The error is regretted.

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