Editor,
I was genuinely excited when I first heard the news about the Rs 100-crore Polo Commercial Market—Meghalaya’s first modern mall—coming up in the state. However, I couldn’t help but wonder why such a massive project was constructed in an already crowded and congested area. After its inauguration by Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on July 10, 2025, I assumed that the mall would soon be open to the public and that we would finally get to see what it had to offer. Unfortunately, even after so many months, the mall is still not functional. It is quite shocking and disappointing to see such an inordinate delay.
One is left questioning why it is taking so long. Had this been in Assam, a second mall might have been built by now. Is the structure so “modern” that it requires more time than reasonably expected? More importantly, why has the government remained so quiet about the reasons behind its continued non-functioning?
There is also a growing concern that if this delay continues, the space may eventually turn into a space for cobwebs and dark dirty corners. As the project approaches its first anniversary this coming July, one can only hope that it becomes operational before then and serves the purpose for which it was intended.
Yours etc.,
Benjamin Roland,
Via email
Parents Need to Relearn Parenting
Editor,
Deeply shocked to learn, as reported in many daily papers, about the tragic death of three young sisters who jumped from the ninth floor of their apartment in Ghaziabad in the early hours of February 4, 2026—a tragedy so disturbing that it sends a chill through the moral bones of our society and calls for a very, very serious reflection. This is not merely another news report; it is a wake-up call that demands honest introspection from parents, teachers, schools, and society at large.
The girls—Nishika (also reported as Vishika), aged 16; Prachi, 14; and Pakhi, just 12—lost their lives around 2:15 a.m. Reports indicate that they left behind a handwritten diary expressing deep emotional distress and intense attachment to an online world, particularly after being denied access to a mobile phone. While investigations are ongoing and no single cause should be hastily blamed, overlooking the warning signs would be both irresponsible and inhuman.
We cannot view this tragedy in isolation. According to the World Health Organization, suicide is the fourth leading cause of death among people aged 15–29 globally, and more than 700,000 lives are lost to suicide every year worldwide (WHO, 2023). These are not distant statistics; they represent young lives whose emotional suffering went unnoticed until it was too late.
Equally alarming are findings from leading medical research. Studies published in The Lancet Psychiatry and the Journal of Adolescent Health have consistently reported a strong association between problematic digital use, compulsive gaming, social withdrawal, depression, and suicidal ideation among adolescents (The Lancet Psychiatry, 2022; Journal of Adolescent Health, 2021). These studies clearly indicate that while digital platforms do not directly cause suicide, they can dangerously intensify distress when emotional needs remain unmet and support systems fail.
Such tragedies do not occur suddenly. They develop quietly–when children withdraw into themselves, when screens replace conversation, when loneliness hides behind closed doors, and when adults misread silence as normal behaviour. What may appear to be discipline or control to adults can sometimes feel like emotional abandonment to a vulnerable child.
Parents today are not careless; they are overwhelmed. Teachers are not indifferent; they are burdened. Yet good intentions alone cannot protect children if we fail to understand child psychology and emotional distress. Many parents do not realise when firm discipline turns into emotional shock. Many teachers lack the training to recognise when a child’s behaviour is not indiscipline or apathy, but a silent cry for help.
This is why counselling must no longer be treated as an optional add-on. Parents themselves need guidance and counselling to understand the emotional world of today’s children. Schools must ensure that teachers are trained as effective first-line counsellors, capable of listening with empathy, observing behavioural changes, and guiding children toward professional help when required.
A school without trained counsellors is no longer safe enough. A home without open dialogue is no longer secure enough.
Children are not dying because of mobile phones or games. They are dying because their pain goes unseen, unheard, and unsupported. If this tragedy results only in temporary outrage or misplaced blame, it will repeat itself—perhaps in another city, another family, another silent night. But if it compels us to pause, to think deeply, and to act with compassion and responsibility, then perhaps these young lives will not have been lost entirely in vain.
This is an appeal, not an accusation. A warning, not a judgement.
It is a humble request to parents, schools, and teachers to reflect deeply on such happenings, to understand the psychology of children growing up in the digital era, and to equip themselves—through awareness, counselling, and training–to guide, support, and protect young minds before it is too late.
Let us act—before another child feels that falling into darkness is easier than asking for help.
Yours etc…,
Jairaj,
Via email
Right to Menstrual Hygiene
Editor,
By issuing a landmark ruling that recognises the right to menstrual hygiene and access to menstrual hygiene products as a fundamental right under Article 21, the Supreme Court has made an assertion that women deserve a dignified life. In addition, the Court has directed the states to provide free biodegradable sanitary pads in schools and to set up menstrual hygiene corners with sufficient pads and innerwear. Menstruation is a universal biological process not a personal problem. Period poverty is a social issue that affects millions of women across the world. Lack of knowledge, financial constraints, inaccessibility to water and sanitary facilities and menstrual products cause serious health problems in women in India.
The inability of school girls to deal with menstruation leads to absenteeism and school drop-out. The myth of “impurity,” menstruation taboos and the stigma associated with it must be rooted out from society. Only through education can the general perspective on menstruation be changed. Women must not be deprived of their right to menstrual hygiene and accessibility to hygienic products. Menstrual hygiene and reproductive health must be made an important part of the curriculum. Education must be aimed at living a comfortable life. Emphasis on menstrual dignity is a part of women’s empowerment.
Yours etc.,
Venu GS
Kollam
