Nagpur: Who said samosas, bhajias and kachoris are junk food? Apparently, the Maharashtra Government has a different nutritional dictionary! In a rather delicious twist to its healthy-eating campaign, the State Government has officially placed these deep-fried favourites alongside boiled pulses, moong chilla and steamed idlis in the list of nutritious food approved for its canteens. So much for the battle against junk food!
A Government Resolution (GR) issued by the General Administration Department on November 5 has approved 54 additional food items for canteens at Mantralaya, Vidhan Bhavan and Konkan Bhavan under its control. What makes the order particularly interesting is not merely the inclusion of popular fried snacks, but their official classification as “nutritious and healthy food”.
Clause 1 of the resolution explicitly describes the items listed in its annexure as nutritious and healthy, thereby giving an official stamp of approval to an assortment that includes cocktail samosa, moong dal bhaji, Punjabi samosa and bread pakoda. Vidarbha, too, gets its share of recognition through the spicy Shegaon kachori, priced at Rs 30 for employees and Rs 35 for officers.
The healthy menu does not stop there. Cheese sandwiches, vegetable potato shots, aloo tikki, pav bhaji and potato rolls have also found a place in the approved list. Apparently, the distinction between healthy refreshments and irresistible fried snacks has become rather flexible in the corridors of power.
The irony is difficult to miss. At a time when health experts routinely caution against excessive consumption of deep-fried and calorie-heavy food, the Government’s own official menu appears to have discovered nutritional virtues in samosas and pakodas. The issue is not their availability in government canteens, but their inclusion under the very category of food officially described as healthy and nutritious.
The November 5 resolution follows a September 2 directive issued by the Public Health Department advocating balanced and healthy food at refreshments and meals served during government and semi-government meetings, official programmes and canteen operations. The latest order translates that policy into an approved menu and rate card for the specified establishments.
To be fair, the list does contain several genuinely nutritious alternatives, including boiled mixed pulses, boiled peanuts, bananas, boiled eggs, vegetable poha, dalia upma and sprouted-pulse upma. Spinach, moong and mixed-vegetable idlis, along with steamed coriander vadi, have also made the cut.
The canteens have been instructed to maintain nutritional quality, taste, high standards and hygiene. The new items will supplement, rather than replace, existing dishes, while the approved rates have come into effect from the date of the resolution. Prices may be revised in future to account for fluctuations in market rates.
Thus, government employees can now enjoy their samosas and bhajias with an official sense of nutritional satisfaction. Whether the Public Health Department would recommend the same menu to citizens as part of a healthy lifestyle is another question altogether.
Perhaps the Government’s latest dietary innovation deserves a new category: junk food with official nutritional endorsement!
