Rice consumption
The report on white rice consumption (Inside pages, “Study links rice intake to diabetes”, September 4) cites a study of ‘1.3 lakh individuals in 21 countries over 9.5 years’. The findings have long been obvious — that excessive consumption of such carbohydrates causes diabetes.
But the report does not mention red rice with the bran, or at least partially red rice, as often eaten in Kerala and Karnataka. Brown rice is not so good as the bran falls off in cooking. Why throw the bran, the most nutritious part, to chickens? While whole grain wheat is widely eaten, in some areas, useless “refined” white flour foods are preferred. People used to eat so many other better nutritious foods, as millets, which used to be main foods. Twelve of them are grown in the South. I have seen schoolchildren’s meals as a great pile of white rice and a dash of dal , maybe not even vegetables (though masalas partly compensate, as they have the highest level of micronutrients by volume). All children should be educated that green and other coloured vegetables and fruits, beside whole grains, are the most important foods for health, and the fact that many also contain protein.
Clarence Maloney,
Kodaikanal, Tamil Nadu
Even a layman like me knows that excess starch consumption could lead to diabetes if the person leads a sedentary life. India now produces 98 million tonnes of paddy with roughly 130 million tonnes of straw, which means that a substantial portion of the population leans heavily toward farming for its livelihood. We are an agricultural nation first and foremost. As Indians living in the tropics need rice to sustain their energy levels throughout the day, their consumption of proteins is considerably lower. Also, many of them people living south of the Vindhyas will not prefer wheat products. There is good advice in the report — to have white rice with ‘other ingredients such as proteins, salads and vegetables’. Cooked vegetables need to include pulses or lentils, oilseeds such as mustard seeds which also contain good percentage of fat and proteins, and coconut. As an avid reader (I am 73 now), I would like dietitians and nutrition experts to comment on the study. We should also note that Canada is a large wheat producing country, and as the report makes it clear, there are Canadian institutes associated with the study. So why is there this sudden interest in rice?
Sankaran Suresh Sundaram,
Chennai
Pranab Mukherjee
Former President of India Pranab Mukherjee’s knowledge on government matters, complex policy issues and his mastery over numbers made him the go-to man during any political or governance crisis. During meetings, he was known to cite figures from past Five Year Plans and other government data in a flash, leaving his colleagues stunned (OpEd page, ‘Notebook’, “Pranabda, the man with a remarkable memory”, September 4). As Finance Minister, he was at his essential best, reeling off figures and the prices of commodities. In 1982, after he delivered one of the longest Budget speeches, that lasted 95 minutes, Indira Gandhi quipped, “The shortest Finance Minister has given the longest Budget speech.”
R. Sivakumar,
Chennai
Supertanker blaze
The standalone picture, “Mid-sea disaster” (Inside pages, September 4), on the fire aboard the supertanker, New Diamond , and chartered by Indian Oil Corporation while on its way from Kuwait to Paradip, Odisha, is a grim reminder of the possible consequences of a major oil spill. Thursday’s incident is just after a major oil spill from a Japanese ship when it ran aground on a reef in Mauritius recently. One wonders whether India and Sri Lanka are even prepared for such scenarios which would spell disaster for fishing and other maritime activities for almost the entire South India. Perhaps India and Sri Lanka should conduct disaster drills at regular intervals and test their preparedness. We cannot forget what happened in the Exxon Valdez oil spill in 1989.
Ashok Nair,
Chennai
New Chairman
As an avid reader of The Hindu from boyhood, I join readers in congratulating Mr. N. Ravi on his elevation as the Chairman of Kasturi & Sons, the holding company of The Hindu Group. The daily has had a galaxy of distinguished and eminent persons as its editors and managers. Its writings on diverse subjects have captivated countless readers. Critical journalism, especially in the present day, is a difficult task and one hopes the grand old newspaper follows this.
R. Sampath,
Chennai
