China’s ban on private tutoring and weekend tutorial classes has been the source of much debate over the past few weeks. I believe this ban will have both favourable and unfavourable consequences. This move could undoubtedly ease the pressure on schoolchildren who currently spend long hours studying. It is not a surprise to see children’s weekend schedules filled with private tutorials and homework, both assigned in school or from their private tutors. The Chinese government believes that children spending their childhood hunched over workbooks is not healthy. Another reason for the government to implement this ban is that private tutoring was interfering with the schedules of in-class teachers. The ban could also prevent businesses profiting from the demand for private tuition by turning the tutoring companies into non-profits. However, these tutors will not just disappear into thin air after this move. They might go underground and keep operating as the demand for private tuition will not diminish. This would make it even harder hard to monitor private tutors, including what and how they teach. In general, this ban is a good start, helping alleviate the costs of raising a child and the pressure on youngsters. Should the Hong Kong government follow suit? Jacky Wong, Kwun Tong Compromise on regulating heated tobacco products I am writing in response to your article, “ WHO sounds alarm on ‘harmful’ e-cigarettes ” (July 28). Science and statistics should always prevail in the realm of policymaking, and it consists of two levels as far as these novel products are concerned. First, what does science say about the relative harm of these products compared to traditional cigarettes? Second, what do the statistics say about their impact on the population of smokers in countries where they are available? The World Health Organization’s report failed to provide any solid answers to these questions apart from highlighting the danger of youth uptake, especially in the case of electronic cigarettes. The approaches adopted by different governments also vary significantly, but it appears that many developed countries have opted for proportionate regulations. New Zealand has incorporated these products into its smoke-free plan. The National Health Service in the United Kingdom is conducting a trial in which e-cigarettes are given to smokers attending emergency departments. In Japan, which has a de facto ban on e-cigarettes, the prevalence of heated tobacco product use was more than 30 per cent among smokers, with no sign of the overall smoking rate bouncing back. In Hong Kong, a bill to ban both e-cigarettes and heated tobacco products has dragged on for more than two years amid strong opposition inside and outside the Legislative Council against the ban on heated tobacco products. Legislators and representatives of the retail, beverage and tourist industries have argued that, unlike e-cigarettes, heated tobacco products still contain tobacco and hence can fit into existing regulatory frameworks with ease. A complete ban, meanwhile, would only encourage the emergence of a black market or force smokers to revert to cigarettes, which does not help protect public health. However, measures must be in place to minimise the negative impacts of these products, especially on our youth. It is encouraging to know the Chinese government is also taking the first step towards setting up a proper framework for the manufacturing, sales and promotion of these products. The Hong Kong government should seriously rethink its position and consider whether a quick win by compromising with a Legislative Council that is already predominantly pro-Beijing is also the best solution for the city’s 600,000 smokers and for public health in general. Ryan Wong, Tai Koo Modi deserves praise for India’s pandemic response Your article , “Dead weight” (July 31) praises the Indian state of Kerala when it accounted for more than 50 per cent of India’s daily average of 40,000 Covid-19 cases in July. To appease the large Muslim voter base, its communist state government relaxed Covid-19 protocols for the Bakri Eid festival, which greatly contributed to the state’s case numbers. Health is a state subject in India. Despite Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi requesting all state chief ministers be vigilant by stocking up on essential supplies during the second wave of the pandemic, many of them failed. The impression internationally, including in Hong Kong, is that thousands of people died in India because of a lack of oxygen cylinders . However, The Wire – a publication not supportive of the Modi government – reported that, according to its own database, fewer than 300 people died from lack of oxygen during the second wave of Covid-19 in India. Interestingly, none of the state governments, most ruled by opposition parties, accepted that anyone died because of lack of oxygen. Compare this with 63 patients who died from lack of oxygen in one hospital in Yogyakarta, Indonesia, or the deaths at home of Covid-19 patients in Osaka prefecture in Japan, which was facing a shortage of critical care hospital beds. There are many other examples from other countries. But when it comes to India, a nation of 1.38 billion people, every lapse is exaggerated. Unlike other world leaders, Modi never downplayed Covid-19. Early on, he took the step of locking down the entire country. Dr David Nabarro, the World Health Organization’s special envoy on Covid-19, said the lockdown in India was early, farsighted and courageous. Even in the second wave, it was Modi’s leadership qualities that got the states to act, bringing down numbers from a high of about 400,000 cases per day to 40,000 cases per day. The world can learn a lot from Modi. Haresh Khushi, Yau Ma Tei