MyVoice: Views of our readers 28th March 2026

RTA and passengers must rise to the occasion

It’s horrible that 14 passengers were burnt alive and 28 others sustained grievous injuries in a ghastly private bus-truck accident at Markapuram in Andhra Pradesh (THI, March 27). One hears of many private buses running between Telangana and AP are involved in fire-related accidents. This makes a mockery of the claims by RTA authorities that they follow strict rules when it comes to fitness of private buses.

Many allegations of drunken driving, loss of control, short-circuits and drivers at the wheel despite of lack of sleep, are often seen as the triggers. Corruption is another menace due to which there is no proper inspection of buses and their drivers. The silence of the passengers even after noticing that the driver is drunk adds to the woes.

JP Reddy, Nalgonda-508001

Bus crew was callous

This refers to the road accident in which 14 people were killed in a bus-truck crash near Andhra’s Markapuram. This is the fourth such incident in AP in the past six months.

It was reported that the private semi-sleeper bus had faced repeated glitches and had halted many times during the journey before the head-on collision with the truck. The bus crew could have stopped the bus at some point and safely deboarded the passengers. It’s the callous attitude of the crew that led to the disaster.

S Sankaranarayanan, Chennai-40

LPG crisis: Public reactions could turn volatile

The news “Enraged over the ‘shortage’, residents grab LPG cylinders” rings alarm bells for all of us if the West Asia war continues for long. As a nation, there is a need to plan for both short term and long term to cope up with emerging situations.

The Union and State governments must sit together to share the available data and evolve a pragmatic plan. Oil marketing agencies and civil supplies authorities should be equipped with relevant details to keep the consumers updated from time to time. Lack of planning is adding to the confusion and chaos.

M V Nagavender Rao, Hyderabad-4

LGP crisis being handled deftly

This is further to your editorial ‘Global growth faces recession risk if oil price stays elevated’. India’s lack of self-sufficiency in crude oil and LPG is constantly in the process of re-evaluation and re-adjustment in terms of projected growth in country’s GDP – this is but natural for any developing country.

In a welcome move, India’s proactive planning and diverse procurement sources of crude oil and LPG from around 41 countries has helped reduce the burden. The domestic users are protected with a steady production and supply of domestic LPG cylinders. The bold move by the Centre to reduce duty on petrol from Rs 13 to Rs 3 and diesel from Rs 10 to zero is truly commendable.

Sakunthala K R, Hyderabad

Oppn must stop blabbering

This refers to your editorial ‘Global growth faces recession risk if oil price stays elevated’. The situation is likely to worsen if the war does not end soon. India is relatively safe in the present scenario, having enough buffer stock of LPG, diesel and petrol as tankers laden with crude and LPG can arrive in India, passing through the Strait of Hormuz.

India may face the ripple effects of non-supply of energy as other countries, but the needless panic created by the Opposition in terms of shortages and scarcity is uncalled for. The country is unfailingly watching every development being blown out of proportion by the Congress.

K R Venkata Narasimhan, Madurai

Caste endures as it serves material interests

Apropos “Caste, Christ and the Constitution” (THI, March 27), the author raises an uncomfortable but necessary point. Caste has demonstrated a remarkable capacity to survive religious boundaries, adapting itself to institutions that were, in principle, built to reject it. That persistence deserves honest examination rather than communal defensiveness from any quarter. The Constitution remains the most credible instrument that we have. But legal abolition and social reality continue to diverge sharply.

The gap will not close through conversion, legislation alone, or theological argument. It requires sustained investment in education, economic mobility, and inter-community contact at the grassroots level. Caste endures because it serves material interests. Authorities must address such interests directly but measurably.

K Sakunthala, Coimbatore-641016