Liz revisited

Sir — Here is a little more about the Liz Taylor lookalike that Soumitra Das wrote about in “Encounters with Elizabeth” (May 8). The lady’s name was Mrs Joy Butters. In her salad days, she was, in fact, known as the Liz Taylor of Calcutta, with several admirers claiming that she was even lovelier than the Hollywood star. Sadly, our local Liz rather let herself go as time went by, although even after she turned “blowsy”, there was still a remarkable resemblance.

Plagued by abysmal money management skills and a weakness for gambling (cards, horses), Mrs Butters was always strapped for cash. She and her family were one of several who stayed as monthly tenants in Evergreen Hotel and similar lodgings. These were people bludgeoned by the housing crunch in central Calcutta from the Seventies onward. At that time, housing loans and ownership flats were barely heard of. Unable to pay the exorbitant salamis which landlords began to demand, they paid rather high monthly rents at these hotels. The saving grace was that no big lump sum had to be put down.

In her own circle, Mrs Butters was known, believe it or not, as a brainy woman who liked writing poetry. She worked for years in A.W. Figgis, tea-brokers, I think, who had their office in Gillander House, Dalhousie. Working in the same building, I saw her almost daily and heard of her reputation as a terrific stenographer, known for turning out picture-perfect letters. (This was in the days of manual typewriters, with no computer to set out a document for you.) It was probably her outlandish appearance, the nightie-like dresses and Cleopatra eye make-up, as well as her string of creditors which stood in the way of her getting a much better job worthy of her skills.

After she retired, I lost sight of her, and years later, was saddened to hear of her death. Apparently, unable to pay rent, she had left Evergreen homeless and ill. I was told that she had eventually been picked up by Mother Teresa’s nuns and died in Prem Daan.

Yours faithfully,
Joan Bakefield, Calcutta

All work and little pay

Sir — We keep hearing that our soldiers are unsung heroes. We hear this statement time and again, and we need to ask ourselves, why do we let our heroes remain unsung? Why is it that we only think of them as those protecting the borders in a distant place? The Indian Army is an understaffed organization, battling militants in Kashmir and the North-east, extinguishing fires in highrises, rescuing children from bore-wells, saving lives during floods and earthquakes. We know that the sixth pay commission has offered a raw deal to our men in uniform. Why doesn’t this country rally behind its armed forces? Why do we choose to turn a blind eye to these men and glorify our cricket heroes and filmstars? Today there are thousands of officers ready to quit the already understaffed armed forces. This trend could prove to be fatal for the army, unless we decide to stand up for the men who defend our country’s sovereignty.

Yours faithfully,
Farzana Nigar, Ranchi

Sir — Whenever the civil administration falters, the army is brought in to maintain law and order. The latest incident is the ongoing agitation in Darjeeling where the army was called in. The army has not only to defend the country from terrorists and jihadis but also to maintain civilian order. Yet the sixth pay commission has been unfair to the defence personnel in terms of emoluments and career opportunities. Is it any surprise that many armymen are opting out to look for better careers in the corporate world?

Yours faithfully,
H.N. Ramakrishna, Bangalore

Sir — The Telegraph must be congratulated for the article, “Victory, they had said” (June 14) by Brijesh D. Jayal. We are willing to pay crores for the purchase of hardware but are unwilling to pay our men. The Soli Sorabjee Committee appointed by the Supreme Court recommended that even the constabulary should graduate from NDA-like training institutes. There were several other meaningful recommendations. It is perhaps time to have a national commission for defence. Will the Supreme Court take suo motu cognizance of this?

Yours faithfully,
Barin Ghose, Gurgaon

Sir — Pilots are known to be very well paid in our country. But not the coast guard pilots. The coast guard was formed much later than the other three services, to protect the Indian coast and to provide help during flood and other natural calamities. Officers from the Indian navy were employed initially to form this paramilitary force. Pilots for the coast guard used to be trained by the civil flying club. Later they received training from the Air Force Academy along with those from the other three services. The coast guards, under the defence ministry, have the same facilities as the rest, and even the same scale of flying pay. What is missing is rank pay, leave entitlements and rail concession, making coast guard pilots in effect the lowest paid pilots in our country. Gradually, the coast guards are beginning to feel a shortage of trained personnel. The huge demand for pilots in the civilian sector makes it easy for these pilots to get jobs with huge pay packets if they quit after 20 years of service, on becoming eligible for the army pension.

Yours faithfully,
B.K. Bose, Calcutta

Sir — The sixth pay commission has given short shrift to India’s armed forces. Two former service chiefs have written to the prime minister on this but received only a token response. Never since Independence has the morale of our soldiers sunk so low. Does the United Progressive Alliance realize that it might stand to lose over five million votes of serving and retired armymen?

Yours faithfully,
J.K. Dutt, Calcutta