FORMER United States President Mr. Donald Trump scraped through his impeachment trial in the US Senate because the impeachment lobby could not muster enough numbers on the floor of the House. Though a massive ignominy was averted, the world knows that Mr. Trump had made himself vulnerable to some punitive action, thanks to his statements and conduct. The current Senate acquittal came on one count -- that Mr. Trump had instigated his supporters to mount an incursion into the US Capitol in Washington DC to protest what they called faulty electoral process. Let alone that, a lot of other charges, too, flew fast and thick against Mr. Trump. Now that he has been spared of the misfortune of impeachment, Mr. Trump must give up his posturing against the American system and spend the rest of his life like other past Presidents do. Unfortunately, however, that may not happen because Mr. Trump has promised his supporters that he would come back. Though nobody knows what that actually means, it is obvious that Mr. Trump would look for chances to create trouble. That will be only most unfortunate, to say the least.

 

 

EVEN though India has only one per cent of vehicles by global parameters, it accounts for as much as 11% of the global accidental deaths annually. That means, about 1.5 lakh persons lose their lives due to road accidents. These details stemming from a World Bank study show the poor management of roads and traffic across the country, especially on national and state highways where every driver demonstrates a tendency to step on the accelerator and enjoy speed. Because the roads, generally speaking, are full of raw spots that invite accidents, the accidents take place, killing 1.5 lakh persons and injuring a much bigger number. A good percentage of injured persons remains confined to bed for lifetime and spends purposeless lives. In recent years, Union Road Transport Minister Mr. Nitin Gadkari has been harping on safety on roads and has been paying much attention to the task of removing raw spots in the national road system. May his efforts bear positive fruits in time, but currently the situation is just abominable. What the nation needs is a national campaign for safety on roads and also a greater effort to improve roads and their designs a change of road-using culture.