Great ma'am theory

Indians, like the Chinese, make for very pushy parents. This is a very well-known fact. But the idea of coaching a foetus (' Womb Tuitions', May 19) to supposed greatness is quite outrageous really. There is nothing scientific about many of the ideas these programmes propagate and sell. In fact, some of them sound like pure mumbo jumbo and should serve as a warning of some sort. They thrive only because we want our children to think and act like great men even before their brains and bodies are fully formed. These businesses should be at least asked to explain their methods, if not be subjected to immediate checks and regulations.

Neelima Pande, via email

A 'kapil' of issues

The IPL (Cover story, May 26) has every thing: cricket in its most delinquent form, 'able' administrators;superstar owners who brazenly smoke in public and belligerently scold sincere security guards;a 'kiddie' owner of a franchise who finds the asking of a Blackberry pin to be indecent but kisses film stars in public;and much else that grabs attention. But the IPL does not have Kapil Dev. He never claimed that he started the original T20 league in India, but he fears none, and never sought amnesty. Besides, his silence could not be bought too. The IPL has everything, but cricket lovers in India have Kapil Dev. Let IPL go and Kapil Dev stand tall.

Ram R, via email

Peak rot

Your story and graphic on Mount Everest getting overcrowded (' It's crowded at the top', May 26) and deaths resulting from that was very informative and commendable. But I would like to point out that the estimates for costs are still on the lower side. Packages that involve training and guidance up to the summit of Everest can cost up to Rs 60 lakh, depending on how famous the operator is and the quality of facilities provided. And medical check-ups are not always done before even just trekking to base camp. Mt. Everest is also the world's highest rubbish dump;I have been told that many tonnes of rubbish are found on the peak itself.

Shubham Banerjee, via email

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