Health Ministry Replaces Junk Food With Healthier Options At Its Canteen

The Union Health Ministry has made a permanent shift by eliminating fried food items from its canteen menu in favor of healthier alternatives that meet people's health requirements. According to reports, the arrangement was made as part of the operation of a pilot mood for gauging the public reaction. 

In the Health Ministry's canteen, items such as samosas, bread pakora, and other similar fried products will be substituted with healthier options such as dal chillas with pea stuffing, health curries, millet rotis, and millet pulaos. 

While dal chilla is tentatively priced at Rs.10, breakfast and lunch would be priced at Rs.25 and Rs.40, respectively. Notably, the arrangements to replace fried items with healthy options in the Health Ministry's canteen have been implemented under the supervision of Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya, who has always considered bringing healthy food options since taking over as Health Minister and has also commissioned them in October 2021. 

Notably, Mansukh Mandaviya who is himself a fitness enthusiast is usually observed choosing healthy alternatives in his everyday lifestyle, such as cycling to Parliament on a regular basis, followed by regular exercise, and at least 20 km cycling every day. 

Ayush Ministry's 'Ayush Aahaar' in its canteen 

In a similar effort, the Ministry of Ayush has also aimed to establish healthy eating habits through its 'Ayush Aahaar' project in the ministry canteen. Healthy meals such as vegetable poha, bhajani vada, gajar ka halwa, and kokum drink were included in the pilot project, which started in January of this year. 

Ayush Secretary Vaidya Rajesh Kotecha stated during the project's launch that the usage of such a diet in the canteen will be beneficial to health since it is easily digested.

He went on to say that the Ministry has partnered with other states and done excellent work on the National Ayush Mission, and that this year it would focus on a single-window system.