Last week I was an amused witness to the confessions of Sheila Dikshit — the formidable chief minister of Delhi — while she regaled an audience of nutritionists with anecdotes of how she dodged her mother’s efforts to get her to drink milk at mealtimes. There is a lesson in what she said about her childhood aversion for milk. Often, children do not drink milk for reasons of taste.

There is also a school of thought that believes taking milk after the weaning of a child is not desirable. They claim that no species of animals consume milk once weaned off it in childhood.

I wish to debunk this point of view outright.

Humans have many characteristics that are distinct from all other animal species. And for reasons of sound nutrition, milk should remain an integral part of the human diet.

Of course I am not entering the morality arena, where it is argued that drinking milk violates standards of moral behaviour. But even Gandhiji — who was personally of the same viewpoint as the moralists —also added that until a viable substitute is found for milk, humans, in general, should not give up milk.

For a growing body in need of sensible nutrition, milk has no substitute.

The sad bit is that not enough is being done in India to emphasise the importance of milk for children. Perhaps we need sustained campaigns that rope in sportspersons and celebrities who can add a touch of attention and allure to milk.

... contd.