When Dal (Lentils) Makes You Think

Why is it that the whole burden of running the home budget falls mostly on the shoulders of women? To be frank, I’ve used the word mostly, in order not to bring about a debate among men vs. women.

The rise in the price of the different kinds of dal has made most families think about preparing and serving dal in the everyday meal. Most Indian households cannot think of a full meal without dal. Be it roti, be it rice, a bowl of dal goes with it. With soaring prices, dal which is thought as a wholesome food even for the poor is just going out of reach of the common man. The strong words about the Aam Adami (by this present ruling government) now lack the luster it created before the general election votes were cast.

Dals have their own nutrition value being rich in protein and a source of inexpensive protein in a vegetarian diet. A cooked meal of dal and rice is known as khichdi, rich in nutritional value and healthy food for the sick also. There has been a cut down on the monthly purchase of dals, as cost of some varieties has touched the near 100 rupee mark, something difficult in a common man’s chart. Said and done - there was a lot of commotion in the parliament on this issue. Here again we have to think, “Are our parliamentarians really concerned about us when they can have their tummy full?”

“Dal roti khao, prabhu ke gunn gao” for now, is no longer the merry and light-hearted tuned words of many in this country.

Delhi Rains Waterlogged Roads

At last when the rain god sent showers across Delhi, it had a story to tell. July 27 was late enough for the rains to come to this part of the country. The earth was already parched and the agricultural fields had gone hard and dry showing off cracks, revealing their real account of thirst. The heat and humidity had become unbearable. With no timely monsoon, people were left with no other alternative except pray for the dark clouds to come and open up. At last the rains came bringing with it a mixed bag effect on the lives of the people.

As the drops of rain began to fall there appeared smile on the faces of the people that was soon to vanish when the roads began to get waterlogged. The early and late evening traffic had to spend long hours on the roads due to heavy traffic jam. Traffic came to a halt on waterlogged stretches sending the signal of the callousness of the civic authorities of this city. The rain brought with it water logging, caving in of a road, traffic jam, vehicle breakdown and long hours spent on the road to reach home. The traffic signals stopped working causing chaos and in many areas water entered into the houses. It was a wet day at Delhi’s airport too. There was rain water flooding at the domestic arrival terminal causing inconvenience to passengers. Many flights were delayed and many ended up missing flights as they could not reach the airport on time.

The MCD’s tall claims that the city would not face water logging this year was simply like words from a fairy tale. With more rains life in this city could turn nightmarish and one may have to take the help of boats to move about.

All this leaves behind a question; “How come the MCD is not prepared to meet such challenges in the capital city of India?”

Food for thought: This is Delhi Meri Jaan.