(UNI SPECIAL)Charudutta PanigrahiNew Delhi, April 6 -- In 1978, the Supreme Court of India did something that raised eyebrows and chuckles in equal measure-it declared that temples could be classified as "industries."The ruling, in Bangalore Water Supply and Sewerage Board v. A. Rajappa, broadened the definition of "industry" to include any systematic activity involving employer-employee relationships, profit motive or not. Suddenly, priests, cooks, flower sellers, and even the man who rings the temple bell were part of what the law could recognize as an industrial workforce.
At first glance, this sounds absurd. Temples are places of worship, not factories. Yet, scratch beneath the surface and you will find that India's temples are not jus...