AmarSharma-Sensible Nonsense

There goes one more independence day marking India’s 67 years of `freedom’! Freedom from what? Being ruled by the British – certainly a Big Yes. Freedom from everything else a society or nation ought to be free of – A big question mark!! Like every year, Indians celebrated their nation’s independence in the usual way – putting on their traditional attires taking special care to wear colors resembling the national flag; hoisting national flag in their respective localities; standing as the national anthem was played; going shopping to nearby malls to avail `freedom discounts’; eating out as the domestic help chose to take an off on this important day; some took off to distant destinations to enjoy their long weekend while a few flew tricolor kites. And yes, we didn’t forget to wish our Facebook/Twitter friends a happy Independence Day. That’s about it! Celebrating Independence Day in our country (& perhaps everywhere else) has been turned into a wonderful ritual full...

An unprecedented exodus of household helps, specially cooks has been reported from all over the country bringing a large parts of the urban economy into a grinding halt. The most affected are households in big cities, specially metros which are home to a large number of working couples who depend on cooks or khaansamas for their daily nutritional requirements. Neighbourhood dhabas & roadside eateries too are reporting sudden & steady outflow of cooks. To get to the root of this phenomenon, this correspondent decided to visit some of the slums where these culinary experts live. He sees a crowd at a tea stall intently watching TV. No, it wasn’t an Indo-Pak cricket match. They were watching TV news and studio discussions about the death of children in Bihar after eating mid-day meals in their school. They came to know that teachers & principals of the school have been suspended for negligence and FIRs filed against them for cooking & serving contaminated meals as prep...