Alarm bells
Sir — Some things are perfect and do not need to be improved upon. Analogue alarm clocks would be one such thing. Before they were invented, people were woken up by roosters, church bells and even knocker-uppers. But now, alarm clocks have been displaced by handy smartphones. This is far from a smart idea. Studies show that when one picks up a smart phone to switch off an alarm, one glimpses at a barrage of emails, messages and other notifications, causing people to spend more time on their phones as soon as they wake up. This increases both screen time and stress and should set our alarm bells ringing.
Divya Sinha,
Calcutta
Divisive bill
Sir — Reservations in the workplace mean little as governments have failed to generate enough jobs to address the widespread unemployment in the country. The Karnataka government’s decision to halt the bill proposing job reservation for Kannadigas in the private sector is thus a wise move (“Karnataka halts quota for locals after uproar”, July 18). Andhra Pradesh, Jharkhand and Haryana have also unsuccessfully tried reserving jobs in the private sector for locals. In Andhra Pradesh, the state assembly passed a bill in 2019 reserving 75% of employment in private enterprises for local candidates. In 2020, Haryana framed a similar law. Both of these were later struck down by their respective high courts. Such laws are gimmicks to win over regional voters.
Jang Bahadur Singh,
Jamshedpur
Sir — It is baffling that Karnataka, one of the best-performing states in terms of ease of doing business, came up with a regressive bill about reservations in the private sector (“Bin it”, July 19). Nasscom rightly cautioned the Congress government in the state that the restrictions could force companies to relocate. The private sector thrives on meritocracy. Any compromise for the sake of political gain will put off investors. The Karnataka government would do well to bury the bill.
S.S. Paul,
Nadia
Sir — The selectively welfarist bill proposed by the Karnataka government would only create divisions among the people. Job seekers in Karnataka should not have to learn Kannada. It is the right of every Indian citizen to reside and be employed in any region in India.
A.P. Thiruvadi,
Chennai
Sir — The Karnataka government has taken a sound decision by keeping the bill for job reservations in abeyance. The bill promotes regionalism, goes against the notion of equality, curtails interstate migration, and narrows down prospects for job seekers. Moreover, penalising the industry for non-compliance will negatively affect businesses and decrease employment opportunities. In the era of globalisation, such a bill is only meant to validate the sentiments of the local population. Regionalism can adversely affect millions of Indians working abroad.
M. Rishidev,
Dindigul, Tamil Nadu
Sir — A disaster has been averted by putting the job reservation bill in Karnataka on hold. The bill could have resulted in the migration of a talent pool from the state known as the technological hub of India. Providing local people with skill-development courses to enable them to compete with workers from across India is a move that will help Karnataka in the long run rather than reservations that overlook merit.
Avinash Godboley,
Dewas, Madhya Pradesh
Sir — State governments must remember that merit matters more than regional politics in the private sector. Bengaluru employs more technology experts than Delhi or Mumbai. A discriminatory bill on job reservations would result in companies shifting their bases to other states, affecting the state’s economic prospects.
Bal Govind,
Noida
