Mindless practice

Sir — Black Friday — the day which marks the beginning of the shopping season a month before Christmas — became a nationwide phenomenon in the 1980s in the United States of America. It has since caught on across the globe. Brands offer discounts, egging people on to buy more items for themselves and their near and dear ones under the misguided idea that they are saving money. Not only does this mindless consumerism create unnecessary pressure on people to spend money on gifts but it also puts those working in retail through immense stress. Amazon has the highest number of worker injuries during this season and salespeople are forced to work longer hours and stay away from their families. The only ones benefitting from Black Friday are big businesses.

Ritaja Basu, Howrah

Bridge the gap

Sir — It is heartening that the chief minister of West Bengal, Mamata Banerjee, met the leader of the Opposition, Suvendu Adhikari, for the first time since he ditched the Trinamul Congress to join the Bharatiya Janata Party before the 2021 state polls (“Message of ‘inclusiveness’”, Nov 26). Although it was a courtesy call, Banerjee has sent the message that she believes in an inclusive brand of politics and allows space for the Opposition.

Khokan Das, Calcutta

Sir — The meeting between Mamata Banerjee and Suvendu Adhikari hints at the robustness of democracy in West Bengal. Strained relations between the government and the Opposition vitiate parliamentary atmosphere. Further, Constitution Day was the perfect opportunity to heal this breach.

Jayanta Datta, Hooghly

Restore balance

Sir — The Centre has constituted a committee to review the implementation of the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act, especially its efficacy as a tool to alleviate poverty. The MGNREGA was instituted in 2005 and currently has 15.51 crore active workers enrolled under it. While poorer states like Uttar Pradesh and Bihar have not been able to use the scheme optimally to reduce poverty, economically stronger states like Kerala have utilised it for asset creation. The panel should look at correcting these imbalances.

C.K. Ramanathan, Ghaziabad

Freedom first

Sir — It is heartening that the new Chief Justice of India, D.Y. Chandrachud, has emphasised that matters of personal liberty would be a priority during his tenure (“Free again”, Nov 23). His directive that all judges would hear 10 transfer petitions and 10 bail petitions at every sitting before beginning on the other cases scheduled for the day will lessen the burden of undertrial prisoners enormously. However, much depends on the political will of the incumbent government and the unbiased conduct of its agencies.

Jahar Lal Saha, Calcutta

Uniform path

Sir — Uniform Civil Code has been a contentious issue. India is a secular country. Its social growth has been hindered by religious divisions. A UCC will overcome loopholes in personal laws that act as hurdles to social progress. A committee of jurists should be tasked with formulating a UCC so that it is devoid of political machinations. The government should instead focus its energies on increasing access to education and spreading awareness. These are the ways in which a UCC will gain acceptability. There are plenty of erroneous ideas regarding this.

Tashi Baheti, Ujjain

Harsh treatment

Sir — The ‘bulldozer politics’ of the chief minister of Uttar Pradesh, Yogi Adityanath, is spreading to other states ruled by the Bharatiya Janata Party. After Madhya Pradesh got a taste of it earlier this year, Assam demolished the houses of suspects who allegedly torched a police station in Nagaon. No less than the chief justice of the Gauhati High Court has questioned the legality of such action. The case is sub judice. One hopes the court will ensure that victims are properly compensated.

K. Nehru Patnaik, Vishakhapatnam

Crumbling pillar

Sir — NDTV was the last bastion of independent news on television. With Gautam Adani taking over NDTV out of a sense of “responsibility”, there are legitimate fears about the future of the channel. Many viewers feel that watching news is now a waste of one’s time. TV media is unapologetically obsequious towards the party in power. This is unfortunate as the press is the fourth pillar of democracy.

Sebastian Kujur, Siliguri

Play ball

Sir — World Cup matches are played among countries. But most footballers play for prominent clubs with players of all nationalities. Playing for clubs develops a kind of teamwork, which is often missing in World Cups. In absence of such cohesion, the mere presence of a Lionel Messi or a Cristiano Ronaldo is not enough to achieve satisfactory results. This is not all. Football is popular in India. Yet, while smaller and poorer countries participate in the World Cup, India cannot even qualify. The government must take urgent steps to improve the standard of football in India.

Sanjit Ghatak, Calcutta

Right step

Sir — It is encouraging that the Calcutta Municipal Corporation has taken charge of the E.M. Bypass. Previously, complaints about poor garbage disposal and other infrastructural issues resulted in a blame game between the CMC and the Calcutta Metropolitan Development Authority. The area around the Subhas Sarobar has been badly neglected by the CMDA. One hopes that it will now get due attention.

Amit Brahmo, Calcutta