This is with reference to your alarming report, “Britons ordered to stay at home as third national lockdown begins” (Jan. 5).

Boris Johnson has also cancelled his visit to India, where he was to be the Chief Guest at the Indian Independence Day celebrations, on January 26. There is also a petrifying report from CNN that ‘LA County hospitals are full because of the latest COVID-19 surge. As of Monday, the county of 10 million people had just 17 available adult ICU beds, according to official data. LA County supervisor Hilda Solis called the situation “a human disaster” and said “our health care workers are physically and mentally exhausted and sick.”’

India has managed to control the COVID-19 infections, as of now. Nevertheless, the farmers agitation in Delhi, where thousands of farmers are protesting against the new Farm Bills, is a potential risk. Many international passengers, arriving from abroad, have also tested positive for the new COVID-19 variant.  

The Government should reach an early settlement with the agitating farmers, on the Farm Bills. It is not safe to have thousands of farmers camping, cooking, eating and sleeping in the open, in the fierce cold of North India.

If the farmers are not convinced about the veracity of the bills, then it is wiser to postpone the matter for a while. When the vaccination is complete in India, the Farm Bills can be reviewed in detail. There is no point in bamboozling a law through, if the people are stoutly opposed to it. In a democracy, discussion and debate are the ultimate vehicles to victory. Sometimes, a leader can win, merely by stepping back or aside a little, to permit dissent and discussion. Everybody could win.

Rajendra Aneja
Mumbai, India