Sir — It is surprising to learn that Swapna Barman failed to find a spot in the list of Arjuna awardees this year. She made history by becoming the first Indian heptathlete to win a gold medal at the Asian Games 2018 in Jakarta-Palembang. She achieved this feat even after suffering from a raging toothache. Barman also had to make do with standard competition footwear in spite of having 12 toes. After all this, was her performance not deserving of the Arjuna Award? One hopes the government will be more encouraging towards her in future.

Tapan Mohan Chakraborty,

Calcutta

Violent trait

Sir — A 40-year-old executive of Apple Inc, Vivek Tiwari, was shot dead by a constable in Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh (“Uttar Pradesh's encounter culture”, Oct 2). Tiwari allegedly did not stop his car even after being asked to by the cops while returning from office late in the night. Apparently, this prompted the constable to fire. The death has, naturally, created ripples in a politically sensitive state like UP.

The chief of the Bahujan Samaj Party, Mayavati, has targeted the Yogi Adityanath government over the deterioration in the law and order situation in the state and also tried to give a caste spin to the murder. If Mayavati’s theory gains acceptance among the Brahmin community, to which the deceased belonged, then it would hurt the Bharatiya Janata Party electorally. Besides, the BJP has already alienated some segments of the society by failing to control gau rakshaks.

Sensing an erosion of its Hindutva vote bank, the BJP government has gone into overdrive. It has accepted almost all the demands of Tiwari’s kin. The government also hurriedly dispatched the state law minister, Brajesh Pathak, to attend the funeral of Tiwari. Now, it remains to be seen whether these gestures act as a healing balm.

Jayant Mukherjee,

Calcutta

Sir — The way in which a cop in Lucknow killed Vivek Tiwari is shocking. It goes to show that policemen in UP have started believing that they can shoot anyone on the basis of mere suspicion. This proclivity is clearly a result of Yogi Adityanath’s support for encounters to rein in alleged criminals.

If Tiwari was indeed speeding away, could the constable not have shot at the tyres of Tiwari’s car or passed on the vehicle number to the police control room?

The Adityanath government must try to change the mindset of the police. The latter need to be told that their primary job is to protect the aam aadmi and not to terrorize him.

Bidyut Kumar Chatterjee,

Faridabad

Yogi Adityanath File picture

Shocking lapse

Sir — It is quite alarming to learn that a Ghaziabad-based company, Biomed, released oral polio vaccine samples containing type-1, type-2 and type-3 polioviruses (“Obsolete polio vaccine scrutiny”, Oct 3). It did so in spite of the fact that India, following the guidelines of the World Health Organization, had ordered the withdrawal and destruction of all trivalent OPV stocks in 2016. Since then, OPVs were expected to be bivalent, containing only type-1 and type-3 polioviruses. Vaccines with type-2 virus carry more risk than benefit.

What is even more worrisome is that the trivalent samples have already been used to immunize children in parts of Uttar Pradesh and Telangana. The violation of WHO guidelines could lead to the reintroduction of the type-2 polio strain in the country. A thorough investigation should, therefore, be conducted by the authorities and they should see to it that the offenders receive stringent punishment.

Tapash Chatterjee,

Calcutta

Sir — In a shocking incident, traces of type-2 polio virus have been found in OPV samples manufactured by a private company in India. Vaccination against type-2 virus, reportedly, does not provide much benefit. Rather it may make the children more vulnerable to the wild strain of polio. The government should track down all the babies and children who were administered the faulty vaccine and, if possible, arrange for additional immunization. Further, it should ensure that such episodes are not repeated.

Khokan Das,

Calcutta

Parting shot

Sir — New Market has been an integral part of my life since childhood. Preparations for any birthday party in the family were incomplete without paying a visit to the market. Even during Eid, a trip to New Market was customary. But now, going to New Market is no less than a horror story. The roads outside the market teem with hawkers, making it impossible for shoppers to manoeuvre or park their cars.

Even walking to the market from the main road is a painful experience for anyone. The situation is worse for the elderly. Pushing, shoving and hollering are a common affair. Most of my relatives and friends have also stopped going to New Market because of these inconveniences.

It is disappointing that in spite of numerous media reports highlighting the menace caused by hawkers, the Calcutta Municipal Corporation is yet to take adequate measures.

Rukhshi Elias,

Calcutta