Wrong perception
Reports frequently surface about police rounding up beachside touts in Goa, only to release them with a warning or a fine. However, touting – whether soliciting business for spas, casinos, hotels, restaurants, local shops or investments – is a legal activity that actively drives business growth and boosts profits. Far from being criminals, touts act as commercial advertisers, agents and middlemen/women making an honest living through commissions earned from customers and the businesses they represent. Public perception often wrongly equates touts with fraudsters. While bad actors exist in every industry, true cheating involves deliberate deception and dishonest practices such as selling sports tips, scalping tickets or failing to deliver on promises. While all cheaters might act as touts, not all touts are cheaters. Touts and their profession deserve respect rather than disdain; the focus should remain on being vigilant against genuine swindlers.
Sridhar D Iyer, Caranzalem
Road access
Authorities must guarantee proper road access before granting approval to any basic infrastructure project intended for public convenience. Unrestricted access is vital across every phase, ensuring emergency responders, including fire trucks, ambulances and police, can reach sites safely, while also accommodating heavy machinery, cement mixers and material deliveries on wide, stable routes. To prevent future obstacles, essential pre-approval checks are necessary to confirm that approach roads avoid land disputes, encroachments or landlocked status by securing a permanent, registered legal easement or public status. Furthermore, inspectors must verify physical standards such as adequate path width, proper drainage and durable surface materials like concrete or asphalt, alongside obtaining formal access permissions from local governing bodies or the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) when connecting to major district roads or highways. Ultimately, mandatory road access requirements serve as fundamental zoning and building regulations that ensure proper layout design, safeguard residents and truly serve the public good.
Rajesh Banaulikar, Arpora
Asiad success
India’s performance at the Asian Games in Japan leaves a good reason to smile. By securing fourth place on the continental leader board – standing firmly behind sporting powerhouses China, Japan and South Korea – the nation successfully matched its placement from the Hangzhou edition, where it achieved a historic high of 107 medals. What makes this tally truly promising is India’s expanding athletic footprint. Dominance is no longer confined to a few traditional events; success across athletics, shooting, wrestling, boxing, archery and badminton proves that Indian athletes have the calibre to go toe-to-toe with Asia’s elite. This Asiad triumph arrives at a critical juncture as India prepares to host the 2030 Commonwealth Games and builds its campaign to bid for the 2036 Olympics. Yet, true Olympic victory requires a broader talent pipeline, superior training facilities, sharper psychological preparation and elite support infrastructure.
Gregory Fernandes, Mumbai
Adequate housing
Access to adequate housing underlines basic human dignity. Policies and partnerships towards adequate shelter or housing for all have to result in practical solutions. There is a dearth of adequate housing for approximately 1.6 billion people across the world. 1.1 billion people currently live in slums. As per a United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN Habitat) report, nearly 40% of people lack safe, secure and stable shelter. Housing is not adequate by merely possessing a roof over one’s head. Structural safety, sufficient living space, protection from forced evictions, affordability and availability of basic needs like water, sanitation and electricity are the minimum criteria to define “adequacy”. Sadly, conflicts, climate change and disasters have rendered people homeless to the point of despair. World Habitat Day, observed on first Monday of October every year, hopes to address the unbalanced planning and development of towns and cities.
Ganapathi Bhat, Akola
Constructive engagement
Recent events, ranging from youth-led mobilisations regarding examination and institutional transparency to discussions on public gatherings in major cities, highlight a growing demand for transparent dialogue between citizens and the administration. While civic groups have the democratic right to voice their concerns, authorities face the ongoing challenge of balancing public order, safety regulations and residential zoning laws. It is crucial that administrative bodies handle permission requests and public demonstrations with consistency and clarity, avoiding heavy-handed crackdowns that often amplify public discontent into larger movements. At the same time, the organisers must respect local regulations and designated public spaces to ensure that civic life is not unduly disrupted.
Jubel D’Cruz, Mumbai
