Kurt Archer

Delhi is traditionally among the last places you would think about stepping out into the fresh air, but that is exactly what the Government is aiming for with its new control on tobacco consumption.

As of October 2nd 2008, all public establishment shall be smoke free zones, thus ending the majority of the threat caused by second hand smoke. In their campaign they targeted schools colleges and restaurants with signs that not only read no-smoking, but also “It is an offence here” just to drill home the point that there will be no tolerance.

Delhi is the first city to adapt such laws in India and the subcontinent, and can only hope that others will follow suit. This action was put forward by Dr Ramadoss from the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare as a series of city wide pollution clean up efforts leading up to the commonwealth games in 2010.

Along with this campaign, Delhi University has seen a massive transition as the students union (DUSU) who speaks on behalf of the 40,000 plus students has also enacted a non-smoking rule in and around the campus. They have made it illegal for cigarette vendors to sell cigarettes within 100 meters of any college establishment, and for staff students and visitors that don’t comply, there is a fine up to Rs. 500.

This example just goes to show that tobacco companies don’t have the developing countries fooled any longer, that awareness is building, and there is only hope that other institutions will follow close behind. Recently, I had a chance to visit LUMS campus, one of the top universities in Pakistan, and it appalled me the sheer amount of smokers, both male and female, smoking all over campus. Whether it’s an act of poor enforcement or lack of policy, the students of LUMS should be encouraged to take action to make their campus a smoke free environment, with the hope that other institutions will also follow suit.

Can we turn the tap off in time?

Here water pours out of a tap without a wheel. It symbolizes our struggle to find a solution to the open tap before all the water runs out. If only it were as simple as turning the nob to off. It isn’t.

In the heart of beautiful Amritsar in Punjab, the jewel city of the Sikh followers, lays the Golden Temple, by far one of the most ambitious developments of the millennium. Over 750 years old, this temple was enacted by Guru Nanak, the first Guru of Sikhism.

The religion boasts a very humanitarian approach to life; to serve humanity is to serve God, as some signs around the compound will tell you. This feat is proven in its entirety on the sheer volume of travelers, pilgrims and devotees that come through the gates. All throughout the day and night volunteers are working to sweep the premise, to clean the temple, and enacting their duty to service the people of this sanctuary.

Most noteworthy are the eating grounds provided here. The Langar Khanna (Blessed Food) is a completely systematized wheel of food for the people. No cost for entrance and all are welcome. Everyone eats together in lines on the floor so there is no distinction in class here. Thousands of people come through these gates everyday, and everyday they provide this service. It is all funded by the amount of donations and volunteers provided.

First, you get your metal dish, a metal bowl for drinking and a spoon. Then you, like hundreds others like you at this time, enter the large hall where everyone will sit in lines, cross legged. Volunteers then come by with spoonfuls of daal (lentils), rice, curd, or halva (a sweet flour mixture) in the mornings. All vegetarian options. Water is poured into the bowls for drinking and the food is eaten with small rotis (similar to pita bread). After you are done, you carry your plate outside, hand over the spoon to these men sitting in chairs, and then you pass your dish and bowl down an assembly line of volunteers who take the dirty plates in large trolleys over to the dish washing area where even more volunteers are ready to clean all the dishes that come their way. Then you move along to the side of the Langar Khanna and take another metal bowl for chai (tea with milk) and enjoy it amongst a crowd.

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