lApropos the report ?Private colleges in surfeit cry?, January 6, more and more companies are now interested in setting up engineering colleges in Calcutta, Howrah and the surrounding areas. In the past few years, a large number of such colleges have been set up in the city and its suburbs.
The existence of scores of private colleges has made it easy for even mediocre students to study engineering. Even those securing ranks between 15,000 to 30,000 in the joint entrance examination now make it to engineering colleges without any problem.
The vital question is: Can these students be expected to become good engineers? The country needs quality engineers, not necessarily millions of them. It is also desirable that they should not find it too difficult to find employment after completion of their courses.
The diminishing quality of engineering graduates has brought another problem to the fore ? their lack of communication skill in English. Those training to be engineers need not have excellent knowledge of the language, but should at least be able to express themselves clearly.
The engineering college heads need to ensure that those who pass out are not found deficient in any respect. Unfortunately, the infrastructure in most colleges is not satisfactory and they might not be able to help the students adequately.
Another report published on January 6 (Coaching centre substitute) carried encouraging news for aspiring engineers. The attempt by a joint entrance training centre to conduct classes for students in their schools is most welcome.
With the coaching centre faculty also tackling the school syllabus, the fundamentals of the students are likely to be bolstered. They also won?t have to run to coaching centres after school hours to prepare for the engineering entrance test. The move is notable since most coaching centres have become commercial establishments and charge exorbitant fees.
Able engineers are vital for the development of a country. The government should pay proper attention to their training.
Dinabandhu Mukherjee,
Behala.
Rally freeze on trafficApropos the report ?Another protest wave, more road chaos?, January 13, it is unfortunate that though the authorities know very well that holding meetings on busy thoroughfares would invariably result in huge traffic snarls, they have been granting permission to political parties to do exactly that.
Office-goers, school and college students and patients are the worst sufferers. It is high time, the state government earmarks a venue for rallies and meetings so that the Calcuttans do not have to suffer.
Sourish Misra,
Salt Lake
lIt is quite incredible that in a democracy the ruling party does not seem to care the least bit about the inconveniences of the people. To allow rallies in the middle of a road is tantamount to wilfully throwing traffic, and the schedules of the people, out of gear. In Bengal, however, such paralysing rallies continue to be held day in and day out.
Govinda Bakshi,
Budge Budge
lKudos for your coverage of the disruptive effect of rallies at the city centre. Unfortunately, the rally raj cannot be ended so easily. Whatever be their ideological differences, so far as showing their supporter strength at the cost of people?s convenience is concerned, all parties equally eager. Even the judiciary appears helpless before pressure by the political bosses.
Subhankar Mukherjee,
Borehat, Burdwan
Communication breakdownApropos the report ?Wannabe heroines sent home by cops?, January 12, most guardians fail to perform an integral part of their duty towards their wards ? that of keeping the channels of communication open.
The girls who ran away to become heroines did so because they were not confident that their parents would support them in the pursuit of their ambition. If the children are running after a mirage, the guardians need to show them the right path without shattering their confidence.
Ratan Kumar Halder,
Behala
School spreadApropos the report ?Church schools go south?, January 12, having been associated with two renowned schools in the city, I know the average Calcuttan?s craze to admit their children to church schools. The step taken by the institutions will open a new avenue for thousands of boys and girls living in the suburbs. We appreciate the Bishop?s endeavour to spread quality education.
B.N. Bose,
Dum Dum Park
Appeal to sheriffIt was good to learn that Amal Kumar Chakraborty, a professor of medicine, has succeeded footballer Chuni Goswami as the sheriff of Calcutta (picture in the City Diary on January 10). I would request the new sheriff to start free clinics for the treatment of shanty-dwellers. Being a doctor, he should be able to appreciate the problems faced by poor patients in the city.
Prahlad Agarwala,
Majdia, Nadia
Safety questI marvelled at the memory of D.G. Pillai after reading his letter (Every week a road safety risk, January 19). He has written that a couple of years back someone wrote in this column that every week should be treated as a road safety week. That ?someone? is me. My letter was published on February 20, 2002.
The fact that after four years people still remember the proposal shows how concerned Calcuttans are about road safety. I would like to take this opportunity to repeat my request to Calcutta Police to hold road safety programmes throughout the year.
Purnima Vasudeva,
Rowland Road
Campus muscleApropos the report ?Poll siege on campus?, January 7, muscle power cannot decide the result of a student union election as SFI has found out in Presidency College. The student wing of the CPM should not attempt such malpractice in the future.
Sachindra Nath Mitra,
Beleghata
ClarificationApropos the item titled ?Officer duo held for graft? in the City Diary column on January 5, Nemai Chandra Sarkar, who was arrested by the CBI for possession of assets disproportionate to his known sources of income, is not an employee of VSNL.
B.G. Ghosal,
Manager (Administration/Vigilance), VSNL
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