Sir — It is always heartening to see sports personalities making positive social statements through their words or actions. Recently, several cricketers responded to the Covid-19 crisis by pledging to auction their souvenir kits from memorable matches to raise funds to help combat the medical emergency. After A.B. de Villiers, Virat Kohli and Shakib Al Hasan, Herschelle Gibbs has become the latest cricketer to step up, by declaring that he will auction the bat that he had used during his knock of 175 runs against Australia in 2006. This must be a genuine personal sacrifice. More players should follow in his footsteps.
Avishek Pramanik,
Siliguri
Do not panic
Sir — In his article, “State of fear” (April 30), Swapan Dasgupta may have rightly picked holes in the management of the Covid-19 crisis by the West Bengal government, but should not the same yardstick also apply to the handling of the situation by the Bharatiya Janata Party at the Centre? It was the decision of Narendra Modi to call for a nationwide lockdown at the notice of some three hours that has been the primary cause of the people’s misery since there was no time for preparation.
Dasgupta also mentions the dependence of people on mainstream media for authentic information. But is it really a secret that a number of television channels operate under the orders of the Centre? While it is true that the state government under Mamata Banerjee has been contributing considerably to the advertisement revenue in the print and electronic media, it must be remembered that the Centre does not lag behind in this race either — it is rather ironic that the face of the prime minister is displayed on television channels and newspapers but he is seldom seen facing the press. As such, let not the pot call the kettle black.
P.T. Mallik,
Calcutta
Sir — Swapan Dasgupta has made some correct observations regarding the pandemic and the current situation in West Bengal. Yet, given the turbulent state of affairs, one must keep in mind that this is not the time to pass the buck by blaming the ruling party in Bengal alone. It is not just the state government that is at fault; the Central government is playing the same game in a larger arena. It is high time that political parties cooperated with each other to tackle the crisis. The ‘political surprises’ that the author talks about can wait.
Rivu Sengupta,
Calcutta
Sir — A lot has been made of the perceived inconsistencies in the state government’s statistics regarding Covid-19 deaths in West Bengal in the past month. One agrees with Swapan Dasgupta that in the absence of credible sources clarifying the number of Covid-19 deaths in Bengal, widespread panic had gripped the state, especially with rumours and videos doing the rounds. Yet, political leaders are expected to play a responsible role, regardless of their affiliations, to calm common people and stand by them in such a time of crisis rather than adding fuel to the fire.
The recent clarification by the Centre — it has made a distinction between deaths caused by Covid-19 and deaths on account of co-morbidities in the state — must have alleviated the situation considerably. This was indeed an important step. Without this distinction, the effects of the pandemic would appear to be grossly inflated, leading to more misinformation and further mismanagement of the crisis.
Rishikesh Kundu,
North 24 Parganas
Weak connection
Sir — Educational institutions across the country have been closed down indefinitely as a result of the lockdown imposed on account of Covid-19 (“Out of class”, May 1). Because of the raging crisis, there is no alternative to this decision. In this hapless situation, many educational institutions have arranged for online classes, quite like the work-from-home arrangement made for many white-collar employees.
Online teaching, however, cannot be a viable substitute for classroom study because of several reasons. Beside the lack of face-to-face communication between the teacher and the students that affects the learning experience, online education cannot inculcate all-round development in students. After all, the information contained in books constitutes only a part of what is learnt at school. Association with classmates, interaction with the teachers and periodic excursions are integral to gaining knowledge. Online education may be used as a stop-gap measure, but it can never be a long-term alternative to school or college education.
Sanjit Ghatak,
South 24 Parganas
Sir — As a remedy to the temporary shutdown, some educational institutions and universities have come up with the idea of conducting online classes. This is a welcome step. However, it is necessary to investigate the effectiveness of such classes. It should also be noted that several regions of the country lack proper internet connectivity, and most students do not have access to smartphones. It is therefore difficult for all students to benefit equally from these classes. This will make it unfair to conduct any examinations based on lessons imparted through online classes.
Chandan Kumar Nath,
Barpeta, Assam