Archive · 7 Sep 2026
Letters Address Loneliness, Food Safety, Floods and Women’s Rights
A page of letters discusses several different problems and public issues.
One letter says a Chinese entrepreneur charges people to scratch hard-to-reach itches.
The writer thinks this business shows that some people feel lonely and lack someone close to help them.
Other letters discuss unsafe food found in restaurants and markets in Kolkata.
The writers want food inspections to happen regularly and fairly.
Several letters describe destructive floods in Assam and nearby regions.
They ask for better warnings, long-term flood protection and help for families who lost their homes and livelihoods.
Another letter says Gloria Steinem was an important leader in the fight for women’s rights.
Together, the letters ask governments and communities to respond more consistently to social, health and environmental problems.
A Chinese entrepreneur reportedly earns about 100,000 yuan by offering paid back-scratching sessions.
Letters praise Kolkata’s food-safety inspections but call for regular checks, strict penalties and protection against corruption.
Writers say recurring floods in Assam and North Bihar require long-term climate-resilience funding, early warnings and rehabilitation.
One letter describes how Assam floods destroyed migrant workers’ homes, crops, livestock and vehicles.
Two letters mourn Gloria Steinem, citing her work for feminism, reproductive freedom and women’s rights.
- Who
- The letter writers, a Chinese entrepreneur, Kolkata food-safety officials, flood-affected residents and migrant workers, and Gloria Steinem are discussed.
- What
- The letters address a paid back-scratching business, food-safety enforcement, recurring floods and the legacy of Gloria Steinem.
- When
- The letters refer to reports dated September 2 and September 4, recent floods, and Steinem’s death the previous week.
- Where
- The issues concern China, Kolkata, Assam, North Bihar, Nepal, India and the United States of America.
- Why
- The writers seek greater attention to loneliness, unsafe food, disaster preparedness, flood rehabilitation and women’s rights.
Reform Advocates
Current Systems and Official Priorities
Food-safety enforcement
Reform Advocates
The writers support the Kolkata Municipal Corporation’s inspections but demand regular checks, strict penalties and safeguards against under-the-table transactions.
Current Systems and Official Priorities
Existing departments and food-safety drives are presented as the current enforcement system, though the letters argue that irregular oversight leaves serious gaps.
Flood policy
Reform Advocates
The letters call for year-round engineering, early-warning systems, emergency relief and rehabilitation for people who lose homes and livelihoods.
Current Systems and Official Priorities
One writer argues that governments devote aggressive attention to alleged illegal migrants while recurring floods in Assam and North Bihar receive insufficient attention.
- Back-scratching fee
- About 300 yuan for a one-hour session.
- Reported business income
- Estimated at about 100,000 yuan, or roughly 14 lakh rupees per month.
- Food-safety concern
- Letters cite rotten, stale and adulterated food recovered from restaurants, eateries, canteens, markets and storage facilities.
- Flood-affected areas
- Assam and North Bihar are described as facing recurring monsoon floods; Nepal is also mentioned in connection with recent flash floods.
- Proposed flood response
- One writer calls for a National Climate Resilience Fund and an emergency relief fund.
- Gloria Steinem
- Letters describe her as a writer, journalist, activist and major figure in the second-wave women’s liberation movement.