Writing to the paper

I have been reading Gulf News for more than two decades and I want to share my association with readers. I still remember my first letter was published in Friday magazine on December 31, 2004. The letter was my comment on the article about scientist Krishna Murthy Kannan. Then, in June 2006 June I joined the Gulf News Readers Club (GNRC) as a member.

Since then I have been contributing letters to Gulf News despite my departure to my home country, India, in 2009. I have seen the development of Gulf News both in Nation and Views in the issues they have covered over the years. I always remember Gulf News and cherish my first letter published and the moment I became a member of GNRC.

Exactly on December 31 this year, I will be completing a decade contributing in various ways to the UAE’s leading newspaper. I am once again thanking Gulf News for a long association.

From Mr K. Ragavan

Bengaluru, India

Dangers of tailgating

Tailgating is the most dangerous and I believe that it is responsible for many major accidents. What we see on the highways is all at high speeds and so when someone is tailgating behind you, it can scare you as people will come very close. Victims find themselves suddenly swerving to the other lanes and do not even have time to check if there is a vehicle in the other lane and it results in an accident.

We also notice that if we are in the slow lane, there are vehicles coming behind you and tailgating. This is really irritating because we are already in the slow lane and then these speeding drivers aren’t letting us drive. Strict penalties should be given for tailgating so that it will help reduce accidents.

From Mr Ajeet Kumar S. Pillai

UAE

Take care of bus supervisors

The Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) has made a wonderful job implementing the new rules for bus supervisors. They take care of the children inside the bus, but what about the bus supervisors? Some schools are apparently not giving them time to eat their food and even sometimes because of safety issues, bus supervisors are not allowed to go the toilet.

One of my cousins is working as a bus supervisor in Dubai and for everything; RTA card renewal, fitness test and even the medical test, the employee has to spend from their own pocket and the school is not giving them any money.

I wish that at least RTA should have fixed the same salary for all because that would have been better. Some of the schools are treating the bus supervisors very badly and Saturdays they often end up having to work even if there are no children in the school. Bus supervisors have to come even on Fridays and Saturdays. The RTA should announce holidays for the bus supervisors so that they can take rest properly and the next day be fresh to work seeing as some times they have to carry children.

From Mr Akshath Kumar

UAE

Choosing a role model

These days, children follow Hollywood or Bollywood stars and try to copy their hairstyles, dress sense and even mannerisms. They start considering them as their role models. I am wondering what kind of impact having such a superficial role model may be having on young children for whom these are the foundational years of their future.

There is nothing wrong in having role models. In fact, role models serve as an exemplar and whose consistent behaviour is emulated by others. They inspire us. When it is known that role models are so influential in impacting young lives, isn’t it advisable to ensure that your role model is someone who is actually leading a good life, serving selflessly, possessing a positive attitude and high moral values.

My role model is our school environment co-ordinator. I am proud of my choice of role model as she is an environmentalist in its truest sense. She is so eco-conscious that she can’t see any litter thrown anywhere in school and she herself picks it up and disposes it mindfully. If she sees plastic bottles, she will immediately pick it up to put in a recycling bin.

She inspires others to adopt a green life style. She tells stories to convince us how being eco-friendly will help us, our families and our world as a whole. She tells us to take charge of our daily actions and think twice before doing anything if it is saving or harming the environment.

From Ms Arushi Madan

Sharjah

Protect non-resident Indians

India has always been a land of complete contradictions and the new developments only confirm this. The Indian government provides so many incentives to the already-rich exporters of goods and services in order to promote inward foreign currency remittance. These exporters get cash incentives, tax refunds and duty-free facilities.

On the other hand, the government now wants to tax very poor labourers and maids just for sending their money home to needy family members. All of us non-resident Indians (NRI) will be taxed almost 13 per cent tax on service fees of our remittances to India.

For so many years, NRI remittances have been steadily higher than foreign direct investments (FDI) in India, but the government seems to have forgotten this. This new proposal to tax NRI remittance is not only greed, it is also completely illogical.

The NRI remittance tax may not directly affect all of us, but we must consider the plight of blue collar Indians who live with us in the UAE. We must form public forums and groups to protest against this grave injustice.

From Ms Saby Sebastian

UAE

Pakistan’s future

Another year is ending and it was packed full of sorrows and joys for all. With new commitments, hopes and promises, we will be gazing at 2015. Today I’m thinking only as a Pakistani as the year ends for us in the most horrifying manner. The brutal killing of the school children and teachers in Peshawar has left every mind thinking of what we did and what we will do.

After this extremely tragic incident in the history of mankind, we don’t even want to be reminded of 2014. All we desire and desperately hope for is a safe country where our children’s present and future is secure. For me, my present is as important as my future because we will have a bright future only if we invest in the present today. Our ruling party, opposition leaders, army and judiciary need to think about our children now.

The world and, in particular, the West does not matter to us. I think Pakistan needs to take some very drastic and daring policies and decisions that keep in mind only the future of our children. We want a Pakistan where we live with pride and our heads are held high with no worries about our safety.

From Mr Khaula Shahbaz Rao

Dubai

The choice is yours

I strongly believe that passive play habits create an imbalance in children’s development pattern (‘Speak Your Mind: Children’s Development’, Gulf News, December 26). It is true that the problem is also prevalent due to working parents and the lack of facilities for children to play. While it is a known fact that children in the UAE and other GCC countries mostly indulge in passive playing, there are a few day boarding schools in the UAE that are equipped with a curriculum that focuses on the holistic development of a child rather than academics alone. Such schools have a plethora of afternoon activities that not only enhance the motor skills of students, but at the same time provide ample opportunities for socialising with peers thereby allowing children to work in collaboration both physically and mentally. Unlike the olden times, there are umpteen ways of indulging in any form of physical activity, the choice is yours. I would like to stress on the fact that the benefits of physical activity far outweigh those of passive play.

From Mr Vaishnav Rajkumar

UAE

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