Delhi man’s fancy act of consuming liquid nitrogen calls for strict laws in the country
The shocking report that a man consumed a drink with liquid nitrogen and thus developed a hole in his stomach is, in a matter of speaking, difficult to digest. Anyone with even a passing interest in science knows that liquid nitrogen, or for that matter, liquid oxygen and hydrogen is so cold that it freezes living tissue instantly. Enough videos have been made where a rose has been dipped into liquid nitrogen where it freezes solid and is then shattered like glass. Those who have watched the Arnold Schwarzenegger classic ‘Terminator 2’ would have seen the evil cyborg frozen by liquid nitrogen. The fact is: If one falls into liquid nitrogen, one will almost certainly die. And avoiding contact with liquid nitrogen without thermal protection is natural self-preservation. The fact that a Delhi man survived consuming liquid nitrogen is nothing short of a miracle even if he will spend the rest of his life without a stomach. However, as much as one might question the sense of the young man who consumed the drink, human beings are known to do stupid things when they are drunk, but this was not a stupid mistake nor can it be described as an ‘accident’. This gentleman had his very fancy drink in good faith, believing what the bartender had served him was not going to almost kill him. Indeed, had he not sought immediate medical attention, he would have likely died. And all this for a gimmick that was not properly tested or explained by either the person who made the drink or the owner of the restaurant and the simple fact is that these individuals should have known better than to have served such a drink. Even if they wanted to maintain the illusion of the smoke that is generated by liquid nitrogen as it boils off, they should have kept the drink from the hands of any patron, whether inebriated or not. The reason why such an event would never take place in a developed economy is because this is criminal negligence. Some tort cases in the American legal system might sound ridiculous to us, but if such an incident happened in the United States, the owner would be in jail and would have to pay a ridiculous amount of restitution. Which would be justified in a case like this because this was not an accident.
The lack of tort laws in India where companies and individuals are punished for negligent service is unfortunate. While human stupidity does contribute to many accidents, one has to account for it. And this also stems from India’s lack of a safety culture where we leave things ‘bhagwan bharose’ (in the hands of god) and is evident in the way we drive on our roads where helmet usage appears to be optional. Putting things in the hands of fate is a masochistic fatalism that Indians have and cannot be undone through education. The only solution is massive fines and legal tort awards for negligence.