Sir — The government has proudly announced the success of Mission Shakti — India shot down a low earth-orbit satellite with the help of anti-satellite missile technology. Yet, one cannot help but ask when the government will muster up the “shakti” or power to eradicate the social and economic problems that plague the nation (“Mission Desperation”, March 28). The destruction of a remote satellite hardly helps the vast population of the country who struggle to procure food, medicines, shelter, education and employment in order to sustain themselves. Can these problems be solved by launching missiles? Our internal problems are not caused by other nations.

The Centre’s only goal is to garner applause from the privileged classes, who have the luxury to obsess over the enemy outside. There is no concern for the plight of the unfortunate. Mahatma Gandhi had once said, “Recall the face of the poorest and weakest man whom you may have seen, and ask yourself if the step you contemplate is going to be of any use to him”. If one considers this as a litmus test for humanity, Mission Shakti seems like a complete failure.

These days, anyone who points out the elitism in judging a country’s progress by technological advancement alone is swiftly labelled ‘anti-national’. By this logic, it would seem that the Father of the Nation would also be considered unpatriotic for refusing to sweep the misery of the poor under the carpet of ‘nationalism’.

Kajal Chatterjee,

Sodepur

Sir — It is disappointing that Arun Jaitley is trying to collect brownie points for the Bharatiya Janata Party by claiming credit for the A-SAT missile test carried out by the Defence Research and Development Organisation with homegrown resources. He has alleged that the United Progressive Alliance government had pushed back the development of this technology and that the present dispensation revived it.

While technological progress is commendable, one must ask whether this government has taken up any development initiative on its own. The only ones that spring to mind are the misguided demonetization project and the shoddily implemented goods and services tax. Most of the programmes that have achieved some degree of success under the current dispensation were adopted from past flagship programmes, like the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act and the Aadhaar scheme.

While the A-SAT is a signal achievement for our scientific community, one needs to question its necessity in a country where there are more urgent priorities. The prime minister’s dramatic announcement of the test — made, incidentally, on World Theatre Day — was essentially to divert the attention of the people from more pressing issues affecting their lives. It was an abject attempt to sway the people’s votes. Although the Election Commission has ruled that this incident did not violate the model code of conduct, it was an infraction of the code in spirit.

S. Kamat,

Alto St. Cruz, Goa

Sir — Based on the report of a committee of officers, the EC has stated that the prime minister, Narendra Modi, did not violate the model code of conduct. The Opposition parties were optimistic that Modi can be fixed for declaring that India has established itself as a global space power after the success of Mission Shakti, but now they are disappointed. The announcement about the missile test does not pertain to a project undertaken after the code came into force. It was as much a breach of the code as an announcement of examination results would have been.

K.V. Seetharamaiah,

Hassan, Karnataka

Sir — Although Narendra Modi has been exonerated by the EC on the basis of technicalities, the intention of his speech is clear to the general public. The BJP repeatedly tries to glorify the achievements of its government in terms of weaponization or the military prowess of the country. More important indices, like the number of scholars the country produces, the well-being of its farmers and labourers or the economic health of India, are ignored.

Noyonika Sen,

Calcutta

New challenge

Sir — It is impossible to step out onto the streets of Calcutta without having one’s eardrums assaulted by the honking of vehicles. Drivers blare horns when using indicators would have sufficed. Jaywalkers also contribute to the problem. The careless use of horns shows a lack of awareness about the adverse effects of sound pollution on human health. It also highlights the absence of civic sense among people. Even no-horn zones like school, university and hospital premises are affected by this menace.Would promoting a ‘no-horn challenge’ on social media help reduce noise pollution in the city?

Sreemanta De,

Calcutta