Transported in time

Being a non-resident Indian in the UAE, I take every opportunity to celebrate Onam, the harvest festival of the southern state of Kerala. A few of us at our apartment complex decided to mark the occasion true to tradition by creating a floral arrangement called pookkalam. I think Keralites living overseas feel nostalgic when celebrating this festival as it refreshes memories of times spent with close friends and relatives. Wherever they go, Keralites will always celebrate Onam. They treat it as an opportunity to come together and forget everyday troubles to cherish the good old days of the mythical king Mahabali.

From Mr Ramesh Menon
Abu Dhabi

Another let-down

The report regarding the terror strikes was sad and painful to read (“India police detain three people over Delhi High Court bombing”, Gulf News,
September 8). Despite past experiences, the Indian government failed to protect ordinary people. The absence of surveillance cameras hampered the response after the attack. Although investigations are under way, the loss of human life is hard to overcome. I believe that sloppy security and incompetence are the main contributing factors behind this tragic incident. I pray for the injured people’s speedy recovery.

From Mr K. Ragavan
Chennai

Baffling silence

Another terror strike in India and again more lives lost. Unfortunately, the tragedy will be forgotten in a few days’ time like in the past. Be it the 26/11 attacks or the recent Mumbai attacks or the one that took place in Delhi recently, I think India will continue to keep quiet despite knowing who the people behind these acts of terror are. What are we waiting for? Wake up India, before it is too late.

From Mr Syed Ameen
Doha, Qatar
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Unite against terrorism

In reference to the recent bomb blast at Delhi’s High Court, all of us are very concerned about the safety of the people in India. Wasn’t it a blatant
failure of intelligence in predicting such a massive blast near a very sensitive zone? What about the government’s plans to install CCTV cameras in and around public places? If the government had installed them outside the Delhi High Court, we may have had some clues to go by. Were the authorities so busy dealing with the issue of corruption that they almost forgot the threat of terrorism to India? Time is running out and we all must unite once again against terrorism, forgetting individual differences.

From Mr Rakesh Verma
Qatar

Important lessons

Education has become very expensive (“Bracing for spike in school bill”, Gulf News, September 8). Schools are run like business organisations and the focus is on profits. The authorities must take action against such schools. They should fix fees at all private schools based on a grade structure and monitor services offered by institutions. The authorities should also open a call centre to assist parents who wish to file complaints against schools that violate the rules. I think this will create a good education system.

From Mr Ahmad
Dubai
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Not going by the book

I do not understand why schools keep on changing books. They either don’t have qualified staff to decide which books are best or they just want to make money. I have noticed one text being used one year and another the next only for the original choice to reappear the year after. This clearly shows that schools are making a large amount of money out of this and indirectly forcing parents not to use old books. I request the authorities to take serious action as it has become the norm.

From Mr Hussain
Dubai
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