Letters would perhaps be piece of archives: Pranab Mukherjee
New Delhi, Sep 24 : Former President Pranab Mukherjee on Monday expressed dissatisfaction over loss of "letter writing habits" due to modern instant communication systems, saying the practice would "perhaps be a piece of archives for the next couple of decades".
Launching former External Affairs Minister K. Natwar Singh's latest book "Treasured Epistles" -- a compilation of letters written to him by several personalities like Indira Gandhi, E.M. Forster, C. Rajagopalachari, Lord Mountbatten and Vijay Lakshmi Pandit -- Mukherjee showed his gratitude to bring together the letters of such eminent personalities.
"Natwarji brought out together the letters which he received on different occasions from very distinguished personalities from different walks of life over a long period of time... Now a days, with the instant communication, the habit of writing letters taking the trouble of putting thoughts in details on a piece of paper. It would perhaps be piece of archives for the next couple of decades," Mukherjee said.
Remembering his student days, the former President said: "Letter writing was regular part of the curriculum 'how to write a letter'. And therefore we developed the practice of writing letters... I have no doubts that future readers would be deprived of a great taste which are being received from the collection of letters," he said.
He mentioned the letters written by first Prime Minister Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru to her daughter and former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi from Naini jail in Allahabad in the 1930s.
"Indiraji was quite young and perhaps could not understand many of Panditji's observations written by him in his letters to her. Those letters which later become the substance of Panditji's famous book "Glimpses of World's History" in which he spoke about the history of civilization, conflict of culture and the synthesis which has evolved over the years."
He also describe about Mahatma Gandhi, Tolstoy and Rabindranath Tagore who used to write letters, saying "letters reflect the thinking on the contemporary issues..."
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Himanta resigns as Assam CM, paving way for formation of new govt
Guwahati (PTI): Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Wednesday resigned along with his cabinet colleagues, paving the way for formation of a new government led by the BJP, officials said.
The BJP-led NDA bagged 102 seats in the 126-member assembly. The assembly elections were held in a single phase on April 9, and counting of votes took place on May 4.
"Following the formal notification of the results of #AssamElections2026 and to enable the formation of the new government, Dr @himantabiswa tendered his resignation as Chief Minister along with that of the council of Ministers to Hon'ble Governor Shri @Laxmanacharya54 today at Lok Bhawan," the Chief Minister's Office said in a post on X.
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The Governor has accepted the resignation, and requested Sarma to continue as the caretaker CM till the new government assumes office, it said.
Later, speaking to reporters outside the Lok Bhawan, Sarma said the oath-taking ceremony is likely to take place after May 11.
“As it was a historic win, we have invited Prime Minister Narendra Modi to grace the occasion," he said.
The new Assam chief minister will be selected at a meeting of the BJP legislature party in presence of central observers, Sarma said.
