“Education must deal with the deeper anxieties of the young in order to retain its own sanctity and credibility. The hatred that found open expression for some days in north-east Delhi has put a question mark on the capacity of the system of education to nurture the core values a democratic order demands.” Krishna Kumar, former director of NCERT, on the damage done to education by the recent communal riots in Delhi (The Hindu, March 16) “The treatment of the poor in this crisis seems to bear all the hallmarks of what the State did to them during demonetisation: They are asked to sacrifice disproportionately for the common good, they are treated with impunity, and the state acknowledges their needs only very grudgingly.” Pratap Bhanu Mehta, former vice chancellor of Ashoka University, on how the national lockdown has ignored the poor (The Indian Express, March 28) “The coronavirus pandemic is not going to rob China of its DF-41 intercontinental ballistic missiles or the J-20 Mighty Dragon stealth bombers. But it will most certainly take away a far more potent weapon: Global trust. In the last four months, it has suppressed facts, lied, silenced whistleblowers, bullied its citizens and the world community… despite being the originator of this apocalyptic outbreak.” Abhijit Majumder on why China must pay for its coverups of the Covid-19 pandemic (firstpost.com, March 25) “Like many disease outbreaks, Covid-19 does not distinguish between rich and poor. There is worldwide attention on it because it threatens every country regardless of development status.” Mami Mizutori, head UN Office for Risk Reduction on the rampaging Covid-18 epidemic (Times of India, March 23) “There was supreme irony in the PM’s call for applauding health workers. It led to complete disregard of the basic principle of avoiding crowds.” TJS George in an essay ‘When leaders set bad examples’ (Sunday Express, March 29)
