Editor,
I would like to thank you for shedding light on one of the most brilliant and obscure historical figures in Khasi society. One week prior to the publication of your article on U Wickliffe Syiem, I was on the verge of writing an article about him but I could find very little reliable information about his life. Hence my contemplation and desire to write something about this great Khasi chieftain slowly vanished into thin air.
It was my father who told me to write this letter of commendation on your article. My father is not your biggest fan and he rarely reads your articles but he really appreciated the article on U Wickliffe Syiem, a Chieftain who chose principles over fame and power. My one suggestion to the youth of today is that rather than looking up to someone they see on the TV or the internet,they should look up to a person like U Wickliffe Syiem, a person who ticked all the right boxes and who possessed the caliber, courage and the integrity to be a youth icon!
Yours etc.,
Gary Marbaniang,
Via email
Truly deserving Nobel laureates
Editor,
There are some common links between Rabindranath Tagore, Mother Teresa, Amartya Sen, Kailash Satyarthi and Abhijit Banerjee. Firstly, all of them won the Nobel prize in their respective fields. Second, India cannot be separated from their identities. And finally, each of them has got a sensitive heart that drives them to work on improving the lives of poor people. Tagore’s Cooperative Bank, Teresa’s Nirmal Hriday, Sen’s Pratichi Trust, Satyarthi’s Children’s Foundation and Banerjee’s J – PAL (The Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab) bear material testimonies of their urge to work for the marginalised. My pride in their achievements is not only for their connection to this country but largely for their carrying a torch for humanity.
Yours etc.,
Sujit De,
Kolkata
Big salute to Pranjal Patil
Editor,
The true life story of Pranjal Patil, the country’s first visually challenged woman IAS officer, is something that gives everyone – young and the old a very big lesson -nothing is impossible if one has the will power, perseverance, steadfastness and a focussed determination to overcome all odds . This young woman battled great odds in her life to achieve what she truly aspired for – to write the civil service examination, pass the civil service and become an IAS officer. She has now become the Sub-Collector of Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala .
The loss of vision at the age of six did not deter the young girl from Ulhasnagar, Maharashtra, from pursuing her civil service dream. In 2016, she cracked the Union Public Services Examination in the very first attempt with a rank of 773. Though she was refused a job in the Indian Railway Accounts Service on the grounds that she was visually challenged Pranjal didn’t bow down and instead pursued to have her big dream come true. In her second attempt the very next year the youngster improved her ranking .Securing 124th rank in the 2017 Civil Services Exams, she was posted as Assistant Collector in Ernakulam, Kerala, in 2018 and now has been appointed as the sub collector thus becoming the first visually challenged woman in the country to attain such a high post. The adage, “Where there is a will there is a way,” is hundred percent true in the case of this young IAS officer. A big salute to her !
Yours etc.,
M Pradyu
Kannur
Deserving Nobel winners
Editor,
Kudos to India-born Abhijit Banerjee along with his wife and partner in research Esther Duflo- both professors at US-based Massachusetts Institute of Technology- and their colleague from Harvard, Michael Kremer, for winning the Nobel Prize for Economics, on their ‘experimental approach to poverty alleviation.’
Prof. Banerjee was educated at Presidency College, Calcutta, Delhi’s Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) and Harvard University, where he received his PhD in 1988. Prof. Duflo, who is the youngest person to ever receive the Nobel in Economics, is also the second woman ever to win the Economics Prize in its 50-year existence, following Elinor Ostrom in 2009. She is a former advisor to ex-US President Barrack Obama.The three economists found efficient ways of combating poverty by breaking down difficult issues into smaller, more manageable questions, which can then be answered through field experiments.
Banerjee is a known critic of the BJP-led government’s economic policies. On demonetization, he had said he never understood the logic behind such a drastic step, adding it was being viewed with ‘bewilderment’ in serious academic circles. He also said on Monday, “India’s economy is ‘on shaky ground’ and that the government should do pilots of policy initiatives carefully. Moreover, it may be recalled that he had advised the Congress ahead of the general elections in May about offering financial aid to the poor. However, his advice to limit the dole to Rs. 2,500 a month per family was ignored and the party, then led by Rahul Gandhi, announced Rs.6, 000 a month in its scheme called Nyay. But Banerjee was of the opinion that such an amount would be fiscally unstable.
The nation salutes this scholar of economics. Many top leaders and luminaries have congratulated him on the occasion of winning the Nobel Prize. Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Congress leader Sonia Gandhi, Economist Amartya Sen etc., are some of them.
Yours etc.,
TK Nandanan,
Via email