Purely coincidental Sir - It appears that the 'Jamshedpur jinx' has been overcome by Sourav Ganguly's brilliant century ('India breaks Jamshedpur jinx with skipper's century', March 13). The Calcutta boy seems to have delivered India from the cul de sac that Sachin Tendulkar's captaincy had led it into. But India's prompt win has done more harm than good to the Indian captain. Jinxes, after all, are formed and broken through myths that evolve with time. The myth that he is a failed captain took its toll on Tendulkar, so much so that he chose to take it to heart. That it merely took two straight wins in the ongoing one day internationals against South Africa to make a world of difference to Indian cricket is more a matter of coincidence than Tendulkar's failure or Ganguly's success as captain. Seen in this light, cricket fanatics ought to temper their expectation of wonders from the present captain with some level-headed realism. Yours faithfully, Aishik Sen, Calcutta Damsels in denim Sir - All self-respecting young Indians should feel proud of the courage shown by the two young girls, Rachna Bhatia and Heena Koisar, in Kanpur who decided against taking the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad's culture-policing lying down ('Jeans Janes in Kanpur revolt', March 3). Under these repressive circumstances, they had no option but to take the law in their own hands. A group of half-witted male chauvinists posing as cultural and moral guardians have no business enforcing a 'dress code' in schools and colleges. This is nothing but another instance of gender discrimination where women have to uphold Indian culture in salwar kameez while the men go scotfree in shirt and trousers. What is more astonishing, however, is the college authorities' unquestioning acceptance of ABVP's directives when they should have been the first ones to object. The least the citizens of Kanpur can do is express their full-fledged support for the two girls. Yours faithfully, Satarupa Joardar, Calcutta Sir - The ABVP must be congratulated for taking a bold step in Kanpur. It is true that the BJP has opened the doors to foreigners for doing business, but that does not imply that they have opened the doors to foreign culture as well. Though the steps taken by the ABVP to stop college girls from wearing jeans is late, yet it is better than never. Jeans and Western clothes have caused a sharp rise in sexual offences against women. If Indian culture is to be saved from the onslaught of Western invasion, then steps like the ABVP's, strict as they may be, must be taken. One cannot transgress all limits in the name of modernity. A dress code must be introduced immediately so that debates over such issues do not keep vitiating the academic milieu. Or else, the day is not far when issues of real importance will get smothered by these trivial ones. Yours faithfully, Arif Jamal Khan, Rourkela Sir - Apart from the ugly consequences of their action, the courage and honesty of Bhatia and Koisar are admirable. I do not think the Bharatiya Janata Party or any political party has the right to be our moral mentors in any form. If they care to acknowledge, they have more diplomatic and economic matters on their plates than they can handle. They ought to concentrate on these. They should, if they can, prevent incidents like murders of missionaries and rapes, which, unfortunately, are becoming common in India. On the one hand, they are going global but on the other they want to force the new generation to be medieval in what it wears. The two attitudes do not go hand in hand. It is a case of cultural regression because jeans have been worn by women in campus for at least the last two decades. India has generally had a tolerant attitude towards change. Refusing to change is an invitation to disorder. Yours faithfully, Ranjika Ghosh, via e-mail Sir - The Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad has claimed that salwar kameez is the authentic Indian dress for women. But history tells us that this dress has evolved out of the centuries-old interaction between different cultures. So, by the same logic that the BJP and its student wing advocate the wearing of salwar kameez, they should also allow the wearing of jeans. Imbibing of external ideas has always been part of Indian culture and in this it is no different from other cultures, whatever the sangh parivar guardians might feel. This dichotomy in preaching and practice cannot continue. Yours faithfully, Shyamali Sen, Calcutta Getting there Sir - The recent imposition of traffic restrictions on Howrah bridge has caused inconvenience to thousands of people in Calcutta and Howrah. Commuters travelling by private vehicles and taxis are the biggest losers on three counts. One, they have to travel an extra six to 12 kilometres, thereby paying higher petrol bills or taxi fares. Two, passengers also have to fork out seven rupees as toll tax; and third, they have been daily losing out about 30 to 45 minutes of their valuable time. Thus, before imposing the restrictions, the West Bengal government should have at least made efforts to repair the bridge by closing two lanes without curbing traffic. Alternatively, it should have imposed the ban only during rush hour. If these approaches hampered repairwork, the complete ban of traffic flow would have then been justified. As of now, I request the concerned department to review the situation and at least waive the toll tax to partially compensate for the difficulties citizens have been enduring. Yours faithfully, Rakesh Bajoria, Calcutta Sir - I strongly support the suggestions of extending metro rail services upto 11 pm between Monday and Saturday - especially with the city's traffic conditions being so chaotic. The metro has indeed taken a substantial load off the city's public transport system. However, its services are also essential during late evenings - primarily to decrease the harassment of passengers using the crowded buses and trams. Infrequent bus services often prevent residents of Behala and Garia from getting to their nearest metro stations in the evenings. Unless the state government makes suitable arrangements in this area, the metro could run at a loss after office hours. Hence, to overcome travel difficulties of the commuters concerned, metro rail cum bus services from the Tollygunge station to the destinations mentioned above should be provided at night. This could also reduce the cost factor of operating the metro during the late evenings. Yours faithfully, Keka Bhattacharjee, Calcutta Letters to the Editor should be sent to: The Telegraph 6 Prafulla Sarkar Street Calcutta 700 001 Email: the_telegraph_india@newscom.com