Tourists and devotees thronging the Ujjain’s Mahakaleshwar Temple in Madhya Pradesh daily will now have the option to relish convenient and culturally healthy food at ‘Prasadam,’ the country’s first healthy and hygienic food street located adjacent to the much revered Hindu temple.
The temple attracts over 1-1.5 lakh visitors daily from across the country.
The unique food hub at Shri Mahalkal Lok was inaugurated on Sunday by the State’s new Chief Minister Mohan Yadav at Shri Mahakal Lok in Ujjain. The inauguration took place in the presence of Union Health and Family Welfare Minister, Dr. Mansukh Mandaviya, along with several officials from the FSSAI and the State Government.
Spread over an area of 939 square meters with a total of 19 shops, vendors at the ‘Prasadam’ food street will serve Ujjain cuisine to guests, including tourists, while keeping in mind the parameters of ‘Eat Right,’ promoting healthy food.
The use of plastic, along with samosas, kachoris, and junk food, will be completely banned on this street. Among the food stalls open here, tourists will be able to enjoy Malwa’s famous Dal-Bati and Pohe-Jalebi, along with other local dishes.
This area will be entirely plastic-free, and a mobile lab will be stationed here to ascertain the quality of food items, as mentioned by an official from the Food Safety and Standard Authority of India (FSSAI).
It has been prepared at a cost of `1.75 crore and is designed to provide various facilities, including a kids’ play area, drinking water facility, CCTV surveillance, parking, public conveniences, and seating spaces.
“Special care will be taken of cleanliness while preparing street food here. A hub of street food will be created in Prasadam, where the devotees coming to visit Lord Mahakaleshwar can enjoy the local cuisine of Ujjain.
“Special attention will be given to all the parameters under Eat Right Food here under the supervision of the FSSAI and Ujjain Smart city,” said the official.
“The Prasadam will start at the premises above the smart vehicle parking located near Neelkanth Forest. Various types of stalls will be set up for Prasadam,” he said.
In addition to enhancing Ujjain’s tourism appeal and preserving its culinary traditions, the Government feels that the “Prasadam” will also contribute to economic growth and community engagement.
In the coming days, every city will have its own food street ensuring healthy food reaches to all across the nation, said Dr Mandaviya on the occasion.
He also commended the development of infrastructure and facilities near food streets including training and capacity building of street food vendors on food safety and hygiene. Dr Mohan Yadav said that “the Food Street will serve to ensure that healthy and clean food will be available to all in an engaging manner contributing to a healthy nation.”
The opening of ‘Prasadam Street’ is part of the Union Ministries of Health and Housing and Urban Affairs project aiming to encourage safe and healthy practices among food businesses and community members, thus reducing foodborne illnesses and improving overall health outcomes.
Last April, the Ministries had jointly written to the States and Union Territories to develop 100 food streets in 100 districts across the country as it has been felt that with rapid urbanisation, while these hubs have led to easy access to food, it has aggravated food contamination and associated health issues due to unhygienic and unsafe practices.
But it was also considered that these hubs not only provide a daily diet at affordable prices to millions but also direct employment to a large number of people while supporting the tourism industry.
On the occasion, the Union Health Minister also launched the official website for the Healthy and Hygienic Food Street Initiative and released a brochure outlining the Standard Operating Procedure for Healthy & Hygienic Food Streets.
The FSSAI, on its part, to empower consumers to tackle food adulteration released “The DART Book” to check common food adulterations at home with simple tests. “Additionally, a mobile food testing van called Food Safety on Wheels (FSW) was launched to reach remote areas and conduct training and awareness activities, traveling from city to village to promote awareness campaigns and adulteration testing,” said the official.
Earlier on the occasion, Dr Yadav and Dr Mandaviya along with other public representatives performed bhoomi pujan and inaugurated a string of works, 187 works to be precise worth Rs 218.76 crore. This included the foundation laying ceremony of 36 health projects such as two Public Health Unit blocks, 54 Sanjeevni health clinics, and three integrated public health labs, an emergency Covid response package including 30 beds and wards, three community health centers among others envisaging Rs 118.07 crore project cost among others.
