Being vegetarian is the only way to save the planet: Maneka Gandhi

Holding responsible the many fallacies that are associated with a vegetarian diet for the rise in the number of meat eaters, Maneka Gandhi, the founder of People for Animals, said that even medical practitioners were not aware of how well a vegetarian diet can work for physical well being. "They believe in the dictum 'garbage in garbage out.' They don't believe in the adage 'prevention is better than cure' and so preventive methods preached by naturopathy or ayurveda have been termed as alternative medicine." Diet and nutrition forms a very minuscule part of medical curriculum, she feels. "Even athletes turn vegetarians some five to six days before a tournament as it is known to make them feel more healthy and agile."

Dismissing all arguments against vegetarianism as puerile, Gandhi says, "Just see how well the Jains and the Marwaris do in life. It cannot be a co-incidence that they are so well educated and affluent. It is because of their way of life which involves least harm to a living being."

"There is an urgent need to instil these values in young children and for this we need to catch the adults who have an influence on them. It can be parents as well as teachers," she feels.