Letters to the Editor – December 2019

Let’s give to TRF generously

The Editor’s Note captioned Undaunted by their disability in the Nov issue is apt, for nothing can stop those who want to achieve big. Hats off to wonder women Kuhu Das, and Jeeja Ghosh, who are fighting for the rights of the disabled.

RI Directors Dr Bharat Pandya and Kamal Sanghvi have laid emphasis on TRF contributions, which will help the poor and needy.

A good formula of giving is that if you have to choose between being kind or right, choose the former to be always right. Help people to overcome their fears without condescension. It will make them and you happier than you imagine. We should contribute to TRF to the best of our capacity as it will help in a big way to fight hunger, provide healthcare and literacy.

Raj Kumar Kapoor, RC Roopnagar — RID 3080

Model project

RC Bareilly South, RID 3110, has set a good example of utilising the CSR fund through its project addressing open defecation in villages.

Rotary is a good platform for CSR activity. This model project shows the best way to utilise the CSR funds from the corporates. Congrats to the club leaders and the managing director of B L Agro Oils for executing a need-based project for society.

Chinmaya Mahapatra, RC Bhubaneswar Heritage — RID 3262

Making India literate

The article Let’s make India literate by 2025 is interesting. It will be really a gift of Rotary to the nation if we could accomplish this grand mission. For, literacy is the means to achieve various goals in society. I congratulate RIPN ­Shekhar Mehta for his ­tireless efforts.

Dr Prosenjit Ghosh, RC Green Land Silchar — RID 3240

Excellent editorial

RI President Mark Maloney asks us to raise funds for polio, and says that its eliminaion will get Rotary global acclaim. We share the same feelings of Editor Rasheeda Bhagat over the importance of education. She has rightly pointed out that there are millions of children for whom even basic literacy remains just a dream, beyond their reach.

With our literacy rate at only 74 per cent, it is debatable if we are providing quality education to our children. As an 85-year-old citizen, I have spent 20 years of my life as a Rotarian and think the Oct issue editorial is the best one penned by the Editor so far.

The cover story on RC Mysore West’s pioneering work for children with hearing loss explains in detail the efforts of the club in reaching out to these special children over the last 30 years.

S Muniandi, RC Dindigul Fort — RID 3000

I fully agree with the editorial that only education can usher in changes in various fields and make India the most powerful nation in the world. In this aspect, only Rotary can fulfill the aspirations of the poor masses in India as Rotary leaders dream of total literacy by 2025.

I request RILM’s national committee to review TEACH and add innovative ways to quickly achieve visible results. The Literacy Summits are events with statistical analysis of our success stories, but in future these summits must give scope to our leaders to take decisions for realising total literacy in our country.

Arun Kumar Dash, RC Baripada — RID 3262

I was impressed with your thoughts on education in your editorial and how a common man is hungry for knowledge that can come only with education. Our first PM Jawaharlal Nehru set great emphasis on education and that is why he set up such quality educational institutions all over India. Today education is a business and nobody cares to do anything about this.

Fortunately, in Delhi, the right thrust has been given to education for all under the ­leadership of the Delhi Chief Minister Arvind ­Kejriwal. I suggest you do an in-depth interview with him and his deputy, Manish ­Sisodia, on their achievements so far and publish it in Rotary News.

Robert Franklin Rego, RC Bajpe — RID 3181

Correction

It was inadvertently reported in the article, Mehta’s dream, Nobel Prize (Nov’19) that PDG Vinay Kulkarni has contributed ₹50,000 to the Polio Fund. He has donated ₹500,000 for RILM.

The error is regretted.