An honourable deal

• The Sixth Pay Commission should be congratulated on recommending a much-needed 40 per cent hike in the emoluments of government employees. Such a hike was most necessary in the defence services, since almost 1000 officers leave the forces every year due to the poor pay and long work hours. However, despite the present salaries, defence personnel don’t complain about what the government has to offer them. It is their dignity, pride and self-respect that inspire them to be contented.

Missing link

• This refers to K. Subrahmanyam’s ‘In different orbits’. The missing link in Subrahmanyam’s article is the announcement made by the Election Commission that it requires at least 6-8 months to organise general elections. This is all the more so in the case of the newly delimited assembly and parliamentary sectors. L.K. Advani has taken this into account, which Subrahmanyam perhaps has missed.

Just order

• The Supreme Court bench has struck a major blow in behalf of justice by ordering a fresh probe into 14 Gujarat cases of violence during the 2002 Gujarat riots. It has further helped matters by directing the Gujarat government to form a high level special investigation team (SIT) for the purpose. The SIT, once it starts its work, will hopefully unearth the whole truth. The victims of the Gujarat carnage deserve an unbiased investigation and this is their best chance yet.

... contd.