Spotlight on Ayodhya
The hype surrounding the inauguration of the Ram Mandir in Ayodhya has been rising with every passing day.
The infrastructure blitzkrieg that is being witnessed, which includes the launch of a new airport (Page 1, “Ayodhya airport takes off ahead of Jan.22”, December 31), the introduction of trains for the route and so on, has been carried out on a gigantic scale and it would be no exaggeration to say that all roads lead to Ayodhya. A humongous sum of money has also been earmarked for development work in Ayodhya and it needs no guessing that the city will soon turn into a travel hotspot. The Bharatiya Janata Party can be expected to milk the temple’s inauguration to the maximum for electoral gains and there is nothing that can be done by the Opposition parties to stem this.
C.V. Aravind,
Bengaluru
By hook or by crook
If the graphic details of the travails of the poor in Indian villages are heart-wrenching, their illegal, and sometimes risky, attempts to leave India for a living are devastating. Host countries, understandably, do not encourage illegal immigration as mass immigration into their countries is fraught with international ramifications. The recent incident involving Indians, sheds light on the desperation of those who do not want to live in India any longer. No doubt, securing a decent job in India is a challenge, but that does not justify fleeing the country. Our government must make it plain that those who indulge in illegal migrations will be, once caught, dealt with sternly (‘Ground Zero’ page, “Dream destination, nightmarish journey”, December 30).
V. Lakshmanan,
Tirupur, Tamil Nadu
