Housemaid dilemma
This refers to the column “We and our housemaids: The untold stories” by Ali Al-Shiddi. In the column the author has tried to portray a very idealist situation where there is so much of understanding and coexistence between the families and the maids and drivers. I agree that there may a large number of such families who respect their workers, provide a decent living and make them work for certain fixed number of hours. There may also be good number of cases where the God-fearing employers must be treating their maids and drivers as members of their families and they are given advance salaries, gifts, bonuses and even farewells. I also agree that the media might have snowballed some of the incidents of cruelty and atrocities on maids. However, unfortunately, the majority of the maids and other house workers are made to toil and work hard for very long number of hours.
In many cases, the very financial burden which the sponsor bears to bring a maid or driver home becomes a bane for the worker as he/she is burdened with different duties and works in order to recover the expenses incurred. Moreover, the egos and prestige issues make the families to let the maids do all the works which are considered lowly and if the family is large sized or the houses are big, the maid is doomed.
There is only way through which one could ensure total fairness and coexistence. There should be a detailed agreement between the employers and employees before the commencement of the employment about the specific duties required of the worker, his/her duty hours, exact benefits due to him/her and more importantly, a quick and transparent regulatory system to redress the grievances. The employment of these workers be governed by the same international standards and policies that have been set forth by the International Labor Organization. _ Safi H. Jannaty، Hyderabad
India’s lackluster show
Now that the curtains have been rung down on the London Olympics, it is time to reflect over India’s appalling performance and the corrections required. India garnered only 2 silver medals and 4 bronze medals, with 83 athletes competing. India’s neighbor China, with a similar population of over a billion, collected 87 medals, including 38 gold medals. So, why is Indians unable to produce world-class players? There are five reasons for India’s lackluster performance. First, the Indian government does not identify, nurture, train or motivate talent adequately. Countries like China and Britain identify talented players early and then invest in them.
Second, sports bodies in India are hotbeds of politics and corruption and do not focus on training players and winning games. Most sports bodies are headed by politicians and ministers, not by sportsmen.
Third, Indian players lack world-class coaches and training facilities, infrastructure and thus never achieve their full potential. Fourth, Indian players are not ambitious and lack global aspirations. They are happy to pickup sundry bronzes and bask in local glory.
Finally, sports in India does not pay well enough; most Indian players are employed with the railways, army etc. They are always jostling between their games and jobs. In this Hobson’s choice, the pressure of the job takes its toll.
The corporate sector in India, should play a proactive role in nurturing players who have world class potential. India needs to undertake some serious soul-searching to perform better in the Rio de Janeiro Olympics in 2016. — Rajendra K. Aneja, Dubai
Letters: Housemaid dilemma
