Apropos of ‘Step up Covid origin probe: Biden to Intel’, there is no smoke without fire. As China's demeanour and stand on the novel coronavirus have been sceptical since its outbreak, a high-level probe was a global imperative to know from where and how the deadly virus originated. One should not forget that the World Health Organisation had expressed disappointment over China for not finalising the permissions initially for the arrival of the team that was to investigate the origin of the virus in January this year. If the theories surfacing are spurious, as China claims, why is it not lending a helping hand to the probe agencies? After all, it has also faced the brunt of the pandemic.

Tushar Anand, Patna

Substantiate slogan

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar has alleged ‘a political effort’ to tarnish the government’s image. This is concocted. There is a difference between the political imagery and actual government record. The government could speak through its actions taken over seven years rather than engage in a war of words. Its own slogan of ‘Sabka saath, sabka vikas, sabka vishwas’ needs to be substantiated by ‘actual’ government record.

Prem Singh, Chandigarh

Poorly paid

Refer to “The lasting appeal of nambardari’; the nambardar still enjoys the age-old aura in villages. His job is multifarious. The most important is the identification of a person in the court of a tehsildar in matters of land registration, mutation and division. Once I, too, needed identification by my village nambardar. After having done his job, he asked for a fee of Rs 20. I was flabbergasted as I was unaware of the custom. I glanced at those standing in the small courtroom. All nodded in unison. I took out Rs 50, gave it to him, and left. He ran after me to thank me for my generosity. The nambardar is a poorly paid functionary. His honorarium needs to be enhanced.

Roop Verma, Jalandhar

Safety of health workers

The Indian Medical Association has projected a shocking report about the death of 20 doctors daily due to Covid-19. This worrisome situation should be urgently tackled by the National Medical Commission which is an authority to ensure that necessary infrastructure required for safe medical practices during Covid-19 is provided to all doctors, nurses, pharmacists and other front-line staff on priority. The IMA is a voluntary association and its advice should be included in the regulations. There should not be any hesitancy among the medical staff to get themselves inoculated, after which they can render service more intensely to save lives.

SUBHASH VAID, NEW DELHI

Freedom fighters

Today came the news of the passing away of 95-year-old freedom fighter and renowned Islamic scholar, Maulana Mufti Abdul Mazak Khan. The other day centenarian HS Doreswami, another freedom fighter, passed away. People at large are not even aware of such persons living among us. Passing references are made in the media when such august personalities are no more. It is a sad commentary on our sensibilities that little heed is paid to these persons who were in the thick of the freedom struggle and are a witness to the glorious events of the national struggle for freedom. They are a valuable national repository of knowledge about the freedom struggle. It is the responsibility and moral duty of the Central and the state governments to pay attention and take immediate steps lest we are deprived of valuable national heritage.

DV Sharma, Mukerian

Haryana history pioneer

A former editor of the ‘Journal of Haryana Studies’ and former director of the Haryana Academy of History and Culture, Dr KC Yadav, breathed his last on May 27 on account of cardiac arrest owing to Covid infection. Dr Yadav had been chairman of the Department of History, Dean Social Sciences, Dean Academic Affairs, and chief adviser of Ambedkar Study Centre at Kurukshetra University. He not only guided a large number of PhD scholars, but also published outstanding books on Haryana’s history. Before his demise, he had completed ‘Bahadur Shah Ka Mukadama’ and ‘Constitutional Development and Electoral Politics in Punjab’. He was planning to revise his book, ‘Revolt of 1857 in Haryana’. His death has caused an irreparable loss to the discipline of history in general and to the field of Haryana studies in particular.

Ranbir Singh & Kushal Pal, Karnal

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