Sir — While the world is raging against racism since the killing of George Floyd in the United States of America, an incident closer home has revealed how deep the roots of discrimination run in society. Two pre-primary school teachers in Burdwan were accused of having taught children from an alphabet book which illustrated the phrase, ‘U is for Ugly’, with the image of a person with a dark complexion. The first step towards ending prejudice based on skin tone is to educate children responsibly. To achieve this, adults must themselves be aware and stop equating fairness with ‘beauty’.

Pradyut Mishra,

Calcutta

Take action

Sir — The gas leak and subsequent fire at the Baghjan oil field in Assam is yet another woeful reminder of the consequences of poor safety standards and crisis management at industrial sites. Besides the two firefighters who perished last week, the ongoing blaze has caused massive devastation in the Dibru-Saikhowa National Park and the Maguri-Motapung wetland, threatening extinction of species in these rich biosphere reserves. More than 10,000 people have also been reportedly evacuated from surrounding areas.

The damage that industrial refuse and leaks cause to the environment is often permanent. Especially in a country like India, which is home to rich natural ecosystems and a large population living off the land, enforcement of industrial safety guidelines is essential. Oil India Limited, which operates the facility, must be held accountable for failing to quell the blowout over a period of two weeks before the breakout of fire. It is possible that complacency regarding crisis management training has led to this delay.

The economy of Assam may be heavily dependent on cash infusions from such big industries, but concessions must not be made with regard to safety and training requirements to this end. In the aftermath of this incident, industrial regulations across the country should be tightened.

Ashish Chowdhury,

Calcutta

Sir — The massive inferno in Assam’s Tinsukia district has unfortunately claimed the lives of two firefighters. The fact that the leakage in the Baghjan 5 gas well went on for a fortnight and then turned into a raging fire last week is extremely unfortunate at this hour when the state is badly affected by the coronavirus pandemic. The leaping flames and black sky visible from kilometres away speak volumes about the plight of the affected population surrounding the site. Although over 1,600 families are said to have been evacuated, the fire has caused massive damage to biodiversity. The OIL authorities must pay attention to the lack of disaster management equipment that has aggravated the situation to this extent.

Chandan Kumar Nath,

Barpeta, Assam

Sir — It is shocking that the terrible accident in Assam has failed to evoke a powerful response among Indians at large and in mainstream media. One hopes that with experts from the United States of America and Canada joining hands to douse the flames, the situation will gradually be brought under control.

Biswajit Kundu,

North 24 Parganas

Curious case

Sir — In a hearing last Sunday, a Supreme Court bench granted relief from arrest until July 6 to the journalist, Vinod Dua, while refusing to stay the sedition case against him (“No stay on sedition case against Dua”, June 15). Dua has been booked for allegedly having accused the prime minister of using ‘deaths and terror attacks’ to get votes.

Interestingly, when Dua’s lawyer asserted that the complainant in the case is a “puppet in the hands” of the ruling party, he was reportedly asked by the court to not “use such adjectives”. While respectfully agreeing with this advice, one wonders how else one can describe the numerous news channels and print media houses which, in the garb of nationalism, praise the government all day and spread fear against dissent, so that people who agree with Dua and others like him cannot speak up in their support. How long can people be expected to be silent?

Bidyut Kumar Chatterjee,

Faridabad