Switch to Vegetarian Food on Air India Causes an Uproar
Omar Abdullah, a former chief minister of the state of Jammu and Kashmir, wrote on Twitter
that the move would "restore Air India to full health in ... oh heck 5000 years." The step on Monday was not the airline’s first away from serving meat.
The government of Uttar Pradesh, India’s most populous state, which is led by a new firebrand chief minister, has been cracking
down on buffalo slaughterhouses this year, even though buffaloes are not considered sacred by Hindus the way cows are.
Chennai wrote that Simple business sense suggests that any loss making entity
should attempt to optimise and cut costs & more food options = more cost,
But not this time: When Air India announced on Monday
that coach passengers on its domestic flights would now be offered only vegetarian meals, the move provoked an uproar on social media.
In January 2016, the airline replaced sandwiches with hot vegetarian meals for economy passengers on flights between an hour
and 90 minutes long, The Press Trust of India reported, a change that the airline presented as an upgrade.
At the heart of the outrage over the airline’s policy is a widespread sense
that India’s Hindu nationalist ruling party is trying to limit the freedom of the county’s minorities.
