People are talking about —

—- the village in Hyderabad, Sindh known as Tando Soomro which has become a model as the people of the area instead of relying on the government have joined hands to make it a healthy and safe place to live. A gated community, to assure security for its residents, the collaboration among villages has given manifold benefits to all regardless of social status, so villagers do not want to migrate to cities - definitely a model for other villages to follow.

—- the cancellation of the women’s bicycle rally in Peshawar because of pressure from religious parties that it is against moral and cultural norms, terming the rally as promotion of ‘vulgarity and obscenity.’ People say it’s a shame that a sporting event has been so labelled and in any case it was to be held in a stadium and not on the road like in other countries, so those who were not in favour of it could abstain from watching the proceedings.

—- the anti-encroachment drive and how the big question is who allowed these illegal constructions to be established and the takeover of state lands without a whimper? People say political pressure and trying to gain cheap popularity by political entities is the main cause of this problem that came about because commissioners and the building authorities turned a blind eye to what was going on to save their jobs instead of doing what they had the authority to do.

—- the adage that ‘silence is golden’ and sometimes it’s better to keep quiet than respond in anger to an opponent’s remarks which are inclined to put your back up. People say political entities especially should avoid verbal diarrhea and refrain from reacting to taunting remarks as well as issuing statements not based on facts. With the electronic media capturing everything on tape, words blurted out in the heat of the moment can be used later on to embarrass those who said them.

—- the shelter homes established by the government and how hundreds of laborers who come from small towns and villages and usually live in unhealthy conditions in crowded rented rooms sharing the accommodation with others in the same situation, now have a place to eat and sleep in comparative comfort. This admirable initiative should be replicated all over the country and given support by big corporations so that all the burden does not fall on the cash strapped government.

—- the news that the Punjab government will not celebrate Basant, disappointing those who were looking forward to the event and how before announcing its return, authorities should have considered everything, avoiding cries of ‘another U-turn.’ People say it’s entertainment the public enjoys and if accidents have occurred because of carelessness and use of banned string, it’s regretful but you don’t stop other activities despite the numerous accidents that take place, so why basant? Take stricter action against lawbreakers and let the show go on.