Sir — A joint study conducted by researchers from India and Brazil has found that one of the reasons for the deadly heatwaves in India — this leads to several deaths every year — is the rise in temperature in the Arctic region as a result of global warming. Given the alarming rate at which the Arctic is warming, this is a serious concern. Yet, several countries continue to downplay the far-reaching implications of global warming. India must reach out to other nations and encourage them to take collective measures to mitigate the situation.

Sneha Chaudhury,
Calcutta

Swift action

Sir — Mud-slinging has now become common in election campaigns, but things can quickly spiral out of control when political leaders incite their supporters to indulge in questionable acts (“CEC exits with 24-hour gag on Mamata”, April 13). In this regard, the decision of the Election Commission to ban the chief minister of West Bengal, Mamata Banerjee, from campaigning for 24 hours may have been necessary. But this also raises some questions.

The EC swiftly imposed a gag order on Banerjee when she stepped out of line — she allegedly told people from the minority community not to divide their votes and asked women to gherao Central force personnel who intimidate them — but when it comes to the leaders of the Bharatiya Janata Party, such alacrity is missing. Several BJP leaders are guilty of inflammatory speeches, but they are rarely held accountable for their actions. In fact, Bengal’s BJP chief, Dilip Ghosh, had stated that unless people behave, more incidents like the violence that erupted in the fourth phase of polling in Cooch Behar — four people were shot by Central Industrial Security Force personnel — are likely to happen in the upcoming phases. So far, the EC has only sent Ghosh a show-cause notice. The EC must be more proactive in its approach towards curbing inappropriate behaviour during elections.

S.S. Paul,
Nadia

Sir — The death of five people, including the four who were shot by CISF personnel in Sitalkuchi, during the fourth phase of polling in Bengal last Saturday was unfortunate. Undoubtedly, it will be an uphill task for the EC to ensure that peace prevails in the state over the next three weeks. The decision of the EC to debar politicians from entering the trouble-torn Cooch Behar district for 72 hours following the incident was taken to help defuse the tense situation.

Similarly, the EC wasted no time in imposing a gag order on Mamata Banerjee for 24 hours because of her inappropriate comments after the incident. Now it must take strict action against Dilip Ghosh for his hateful remarks regarding the firing at Sitalkuchi. The EC also rightly banned Rahul Sinha from campaigning for 48 hours — the BJP leader allegedly remarked that not four but eight people should have been shot by the CISF. Leaders of both the Trinamul Congress and the BJP must exercise restraint in their words and deeds.

Khokan Das,
Calcutta

Need for change

Sir — The Federation of All India Medical Association recently wrote to the prime minister, Narendra Modi, expressing concerns about the prevailing ‘VIP culture’ in government hospitals amid the second wave of the Covid-19 pandemic. The association pointed out that there are separate VIP counters at several government hospitals run by the Centre that offer Covid testing only to politicians and ministers. In contrast, doctors themselves have to stand in queues to get tested. The doctors also alleged that many politicians call them at their residence for treatment; this further reduces the medical manpower available at government hospitals, which is already stretched thin.

This behaviour is shameful. The prime minister must take note of the matter and address the concerns of the doctors immediately.

N. Viswanathan,
Coimbatore

Sir — That political leaders are being offered special treatment at hospitals at a time when common citizens are dying of Covid-19 on account of inadequate medical resources is unfortunate. This must be stopped.

Riya Pal,
Howrah