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PETA had goats for dinner

The animal rights organisation threw a party for goats on Bakri Eid day. Meanwhile, the city celebrates with full gusto.
by The Diarist | thediarist@themetrognome.in

It’s the same story every single year. Goats and sheep are taken across the city to Muslim homes, where families eagerly await them every Bakri Eid day. But a recurring theme in the celebrations, is that the animals end up dead even before they are cut – many times during transport, at other times because they are artificially fattened up in a very short period of time, thus making them very ill.

A seller who spoke to us on condition of anonymity said, “Orders are increasing every year. Sometimes, we find that the animals don’t survive very long after selling. Some customers say that the animal was unconscious after the sale, others say that it couldn’t walk properly and kept collapsing.”

In the midst of this, animal rights champion People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) told The Metrognome that PETA had goats for dinner this year. In an email sent to us by Corporate and Government Affairs liaison, PETA India, Sarfaraz Syed said, “This Eid, PETA had goats for dinner, not as food but as the guests of honour. We urged people to join us in using this auspicious occasion to celebrate, not take, life and to give alms such as fruits, vegetables, breads and pulses to the people and animals who need it the most.

We’ve pushed the Ministry of Environment and Forests to ban all animal sacrifice in the country. As per the Slaughterhouse Rules, slaughter is supposed to happen in a licensed slaughterhouse, not on the streets. Most cases of sacrifice/slaughter are conducted in temples or on the roads, against the Rules.

We also have a case on in the Indian Supreme Court against year round illegal treatment of animals during transport and slaughter. Goats, buffaloes, sheep and other cattle are crammed onto vehicles on their way to slaughter in such high numbers that many break their bones and die en route. Those who survive are hacked to death with dull knives in full view of one another.

Our year round focus is on raising awareness on the benefits of going vegan for the animals, our health and the environment in a variety of ways so that it reaches the maximum number of people.”

 

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Mumbai is state’s murder capital

However, police records show marginal dip in overall murder cases in 2011, more men are murdered in State than women.
by The Editors | editor@themetrognome.in

With the murder of model-actor Bidushi Dash Barde in Andheri on Monday this week, the spotlight is again on the safety and security of women in their own homes. However, a look at police figures compiled for Maharashtra and Mumbai reveals that incidences of murders (overall) have marginally gone down in 2011 as compared to 2010.

Interestingly, more men than women have been murdered in Maharashtra in 2011; the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) state that in every age group except the 10 to 15 age group, there were more men murdered than women in every age group. The biggest difference was in the 30 to 50 years age group, where 826 men were murdered, as opposed to 292 women.

However, Mumbai is the murder capital of the state, with 203 murders recorded in 2011, out of a total of 2,818 murders for Maharashtra. Thane is a distant second at 127 murders in the same year, followed by Nagpur (114) and Pune (110).

Crimes against women

Crimes against women (comprising sexual crimes, trafficking and abduction) have gone up in Mumbai in the last year. This year, the city has been rocked by sensational murder cases, in which women were killed in their own homes. Some of these cases include the murder of 25-year-old lawyer Pallavi Puryakastha by her building’s watchman, Suzanne Rodrigues’ death by stabbing in her home in Marve Road, and senior citizen Sarla Vasudevan’s killing at her VP Road residence. Bidushi Dash-Barde’s killing at her Andheri home is the newest addition to this list.

(Picture courtesy bharatchugh.files.wordpress.com)

 

 

 

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When I met Gary and George

Our writer had a ringside view of Masterchef Australia’s Gary Mehigan and George Calombaris doing the judging – in Mumbai!
by Pooja Palani

“Indian food has still not made that niche that it deserves in Australia as yet. Indians should come up with more variety in their cooking internationally. There are very few famous Indian restaurants in Australia,” he said. Then he added, “I love the flavours in Indian food, I love the spices that dominate Indian recipes.  The only thing I miss in the Indian food we get in Australia is the ethnicity.”

I was speaking to Gary Mehigan. And George Calombaris. Of Masterchef Australia. In person. In Mumbai.

I was at an event where Gary and George were judges for food cooked by the Kohinoor International Management Institute’s School of Hospitality Management students, for the Oz fest conducted by the Australian consulate General Mumbai at Hotel Kohinoor Elite. The popular duo was more than friendly, and very encouraging of the food presented to them.

Admitting that they were “amazed” with the food put up for their judging, they spent a long while telling the students how to improve on certain aspects of their cooking. Given George’s track record of breaking into a big sweat when eating anything spicy, I waited to see how he would react to the tandoori chicken. But surprisingly, he was very happy with it, and when I suggested that he was probably ‘bazzled’ (his favourite word, that he uses freely on Masterchef Australia), he broke into laughter. “You’ve been watching the show!” he exclaimed.

When asked about their judging style on Masterchef, Gary said, “We don’t believe in de-motivating students by shouting and demoralising them, unlike other celebrity chefs like Gordon Ramsey.” Ouch.

The two also tried their hand at making naan in the hotel’s tandoor, apart from being very impressed with jalebis and rabri, which the students served for dessert. George even said he would include the dishes in his restaurant in Australia. I asked him about Matt Preston, the third portly component of their famous trio, and who is very familiar with Mumbai street food. “Yeah, I really miss him in today’s food fest,” he said.

A student asked about international audiences’ expectations of Indian food and how it should be presented. Gary simply said, “Be aesthetic and traditional. The food should be served and eaten the way it is traditionally done at home. There is no need to add frills and fancy to the dish if it doesn’t demand it,” here he picked up a drumstick wrapped in foil, considerately served that way so nobody would get their hands dirty. “The recipe should do the talking,” he said.

I wanted to know more about Indian influences on Australian food – which, curiously, is not an identifiable cuisine but a mix of several cultures – having been in Australia myself for a year. “India is an important trading partner for Australia, and there are many Indians living in Australia for several generations,” Gary explained. “But Australia is a multicultural country, it has a bit of an Indian influence in the cooking style. For example, the barbeque is very widely used to cook in Australia, as well as in India, but here you just call it a tandoor.” Both the men spoke at length about how Masterchef Australia had been a stepping stone for many of the Indian contestants who were in the show.

“It’s great, how we get to taste various cuisines. But Indian food should get more publicised in Australia, like the other Asian cuisines like Thai, Chinese and Vietnamese food. We want Indian street food to go international. I am a big fan of south Indian food and I wish they start dosa bars in my country,” said Gary. George, on the other hand, loves the buttery garlic naans and parathas.

George could barely contain his glee as he explained his tour itinerary. “We are very excited to try the street food of Mumbai and Delhi. I am waiting to have the chicken bhuna masala and the mutton seekh kebabs from Bademiya and Khan Baba’s,” he grinned. The media asked if they would be visiting again, to which both men said they would come whenever invited. “Follow us on Twitter, you can suggest great foodie joints for us!”George said. After Mumbai, the duo were set for a tour comprising Delhi and Bangalore as well.

Overall, I had the greatest time. And it was made all the more better when I smiled at George, and he winked at me!

(Pictures by Pooja Palani)

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Corporate Mumbai is sick of its bosses

A majority of employees are quitting their jobs because of bad bosses; workers from 18 sectors participate in national survey.
by The Diarist | thediarist@themetrognome.in

You’re not overreacting if you’re thinking of doing your boss a grievous injury. Or at the very least, thinking of quitting your current job for another, where the boss won’t be an ogre. You can take heart in knowing that many in the country agree with you on this.

In a nationwide survey conducted by the Associated Chambers of Commerce (ASSOCHAM) in the Indian metros of Mumbai, Delhi, Kolkata and Chennai, and other major cities like Ahmedabad, Hyderabad, Pune, Chandigarh and Dehradun, and with over 200 employees from the corporate sector interviewed from each survey centre, it emerged that “69 per cent of corporate employees who quit their jobs complained about the indifferent attitude of their bosses or immediate supervisor while the remaining moved to a new position in the same company.” The survey was released to coincide with Boss Day on October 12.

As per a release from ASSOCHAM, the survey targeted corporate employees from 18 broad sectors, with the maximum share contributed by employees from the IT/ITes sector (17 per cent).

Employees working in engineering and telecom sector contributed 9 per cent and 8 per cent respectively in the questionnaire. Nearly 6 per cent of the employees belonged from market research/KPO and media background each.

Around 42 per cent of the employees surveyed claimed to have been a victim of workplace bullying, and almost 56 per cent said that they were currently being bullied by their bosses. The survey also found public sector workers were most likely to experience workplace bullying (48 per cent), followed by PSU (37 per cent) and others (15 per cent). Around 62 per cent of the respondents said that they have an abusive boss, who indulges in such behaviours as humiliating and insulting employees or isolating them from co-workers.

The survey also revealed that bad bosses also led to employees’ health problems. Most of the respondents said they were moving jobs because of management, supervisors or the general work environment of the company (56 per cent), career advancement or promotional opportunities (24 per cent), while 12 per cent said that they “felt like a misfit” in their current organisation. Much smaller percentages of respondents claimed to have quit because of flexibility or scheduling (6 per cent) or job security (2 per cent).

(Picture courtesy www.mensfitness.com)

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My friend in Pakistan

Second leg of Indo-Pakistan school-level project kicks off in both countries today, two Mumbai schools participate in the year-long initiative.
by The Editors | editor@themetrognome.in

Nobody has pen friends any more. A pity, considering that the value of a word written on a sheet of paper, and read in another country, is much, much higher than a tweet or a post on your friend’s Facebook wall. And if your friend is in Pakistan, and is a person you have never seen before – you may not even know his name – receiving a letter from across the border, and sending your own, in turn, must make the effort extra special.

Children in five Delhi and Mumbai schools experienced this thrill last year, when they wrote to (and received) letters from unknown friends from Pakistan. Letters soon gave way to scrapbooks, scrapbooks made way for video recordings of elders who remembered pre-partition India and Pakistan and spoke lovingly of old friends and relatives now lost to geographical and political boundaries. All of these activities were undertaken by two NGOs – Routes-to-Roots from Delhi and Citizens Archive of Pakistan (CAP) – which coordinated the children’s efforts and ensured that material reached both countries seamlessly.

Mumbai kicks off the second leg of the programme, titled ‘Exchange for Change’ today at Malabar Hill, where actor Juhi Chawla formally inaugurates the programme. This time, the programme is designed around four projects – ‘Letters to the past’, under which children from both countries will speak to their grandparents to understand what life was like before 1947, a ‘Photography series’, under which students will exchange postcards depicting what their lives are like in their countries, ‘Oral history’, under which students share DVDs and create scrapbooks of their perception of life across the border, and finally, ‘Videos’, which will be shot before and after the project to record the students’ expectations of the project; select videos will also be combined and shared across the border.

The participating schools from Mumbai are Adarsha Vidyalaya from Chembur, and Amulak Amichand Bhimji Vividhlakshi Vidyalaya from Matunga. This time around, teachers will also participate in the activity, especially in ‘Letters to the past’, where they will write to Pakistani teachers.

Said Routes-to-Roots founder Tina Vachani, “With a positive response to our first programme (last year), we look forward to Exchange For Change 2012-2013 which will connect many more children, schools and cities this time. We endeavour to spread peace and friendship between the two nations through this project where 3,500 school children with their families and friends shall be involved. We are also creating alumni for the participatory schools from last project, so that students and teachers are still part of it.”

Exchange for Change is a 12-month information exchange programme between Karachi-Mumbai, Lahore-Delhi and Chandigarh-Rawalpindi that involves secondary school children who study in two low-income schools and two medium-income schools. Students in Delhi, Chandigarh and Mumbai who rarely have a connection with those in Pakistan will be encouraged to develop a relationship with their counterparts in Lahore, Rawalpindi and Karachi through sustained exchanges, while building an alternate sense of identity and awareness, as well as have a better understanding of their shared history and culture.

The programme aims for children from both countries to interact with each other through sustained dialogue and frequent exchange of informative material. Tina adds, “The next generation of Indians and Pakistanis increasingly view each other enemies. With barely any citizen-to-citizen contact it is easy to fall prey to the propaganda that is preached on either side. This project is designed to make students understand that there is little or no difference between their lives and the lives of those across the border. We hope that by the end of the project, there will be a marked difference in the way students approach India-Pakistan ties.”

(Picture courtesy: www.timesofummah.com)

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More breast cancer cases in Mumbai

…as compared to the rest of Maharashtra, say city-based doctors. But awareness of the disease has also gone up significantly.
by The Diarist | thediarist@themetrognome.in

A survey commissioned by a private firm in Mumbai to understand breast cancer symptoms and treatment awareness among women has revealed some interesting results – and put Mumbai in a spot. For, while just a small sample size of women was tested in Powai, doctors reflecting on the survey findings reveal that Mumbai women are increasingly under risk of developing breast cancers, sometimes in both breasts.

Said Dr Dinesh Pendharkar, consultant medical oncologist, SL Raheja Hospital, Mahim, “In Indian metros, breast cancer has already tops the list of women cancers. Breast cancer is three times higher in urban areas compared to rural. If the age-adjusted rates of breast cancer incidence in Mumbai are estimated to be around 29.3 per 1,00,000 population, then in rural Barshi district of Maharashtra, the same figure stands at a low value of 9.4 per 1,00,000. This clearly tells about the impact of life style change on the incidence of cancer.”

The survey methodology was simple: 375 women in the Hiranandani Gardens area of Powai, Mumbai, participated in the survey conducted by International Oncology Services Pvt. Ltd from January to February this year. The participating women had to fill out a questionnaire and give written consent of their participation. Questions ranged from ‘Have you ever visited a breast specialist?’, to ‘Have you got your mammography done within a year?’, and from ‘Do you know at what age breast cancer is more common?’ to ‘Do you think you are at risk?’ There was also a risk factor analysis done for each of the participants.

The results were startling, to say the least: about 79 per cent of women surveyed had never visited a breast specialist. Nearly 33 per cent had not undergone a mammography in a year, but a big 51 per cent were aware that having breast cancer did not always necessitate removal of the breast(s). Meanwhile, 71 respondents qualified for a consultation with a breast doctor on the basis of their risk factor analyses, and six of these women turned out to be candidates for surgery.

Said Dr Neeraj Mehta, business head, International Oncology Services Pvt. Ltd, “One of the major problems is the delay in diagnosing breast cancer. Only if you take regular breast cancer examination will you be able to get it rectified quickly.” He added that breast cancer has been rapidly increasing in urban women, compared to women in rural areas. “Late marriages, stress, irregular lifestyle, diet and pollution can lead to breast cancer, and all of these abound in the urban areas,” he said.

Dr Sanjay Sharma, President of the Breast Cancer Foundation of India, and Surgical Oncology at Bombay and Lilavati Hospitals, said, “The incidence of breast cancer is rising in every country of the world, but especially in developing countries such as India. The incidence of breast cancer varies between urban and rural women; in Mumbai it is about 27 new cases per 1,00,000 women per year, while in rural Maharashtra it is only eight per 1,00,000. Also, the age-group of cancer affected patients is shifting from the late 40s to early 30s.” He added that about five per cent of breast cancers were hereditary; typically, these families had many members fall victim to the disease, which tends to occur at a relatively young age and often affects both breasts.

Doctors advise that apart from regular check-ups with a doctor, women can self-examine their breasts for lumps or any hardness, or an unusual discharge.

 

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