Opinion - Letters to the Editor

Quick response

So, the Union Cabinet has approved the promulgation of an ordinance making it mandatory for the rights holders of sporting events to share advertisement-free live broadcast signals with all Prasar Bharti platforms on a revenue-sharing basis. The Cabinet's response to the upcoming India-Sri Lanka cricket series is indeed quick and heartening. But I wonder why such response is not forthcoming on more urgent and serious issues. There has been no let-up in the number of farmers' suicides in Vidharbha even after the announcement of a package by none other than the Prime Minister himself. Fair price for their produce has become a pipedream. Rising illiteracy, unemployment, poverty and woes of those displaced by development projects are matters of serious concern.

M.S.R.A. Srihari,
Khammam

In the globalised climate, the Government could have resorted to across-the-table negotiation on the matter, though it might have been protracted, instead of deciding to promulgate an ordinance, which courts may find difficult to uphold. No one can be forced to share; sharing should be voluntary.

B.R. Kumar,
Chennai

The decision is welcome, particularly among cricket lovers. Doordarshan has the maximum reach among television viewers in the country. Most private channels are either not available to viewers in rural areas or are not economically viable.

A. Abdul Vahid,
Kannur

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