I would have liked writer’s travelogue better if he had stepped outside of well-tread Wagah-Chandigarh-Delhi route.
NEW YORK: This is apropos Yaqoob Khan Bangash’s article “My India visit” (November 5). I am nitpicking, but I would have liked the writer’s travelogue better if he had stepped outside of the well-tread Wagah-Chandigarh-Delhi route on his visit to India. The only other places I have seen Pakistanis visit are Agra and Ajmer. Might I suggest a trip to West Bengal, the south of India or Mumbai?
Panjab University has been rated as the top-ranked university in India, according to one international ranking. The writer’s observation of the chancellors and deans carrying water bottles to the speakers is interesting.
Regarding his reference to an Indian commentator wanting India to act more like an Elder Brother rather than a Big Brother to its neighbours, I disagree with this notion. One cannot change one’s neighbours, so it is better to stay aloof and maintain only a civil relationship. For instance, the US, the UK and China do not behave as elder brothers to anyone. Only in a coincidence of interests, such as that of India right now with Bangladesh, does it make sense for India to be brotherly to any neighbour.
Galuru Ben
Published in The Express Tribune, November 7th, 2013.
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