CFTRI to supply 1 lakh meals to Fani-hit Odisha
News

CFTRI to supply 1 lakh meals to Fani-hit Odisha

May 5, 2019

Mysore:  Cyclone Fani has taken the lives of 16 people in Odisha so far and the Government mounted a massive restoration work across 10,000 villages and 52 urban areas ravaged by the storm that pounded coastal parts, affecting nearly one crore people.

Coming to the rescue of flood-affected people, Mysuru-based Central Food Technological Research Institute (CFTRI) is preparing more than one lakh ready-to-eat meals for distribution in Odisha, Andhra Pradesh and West Bengal.

Teams at the premier institute, which had sent food and relief material to Kerala during floods in 2018 and to flood victims of Uttarakhand in 2013, are working round-the-clock to prepare food for the affected people.

Volunteers from Railway Police seen assisting CFTRI staff in packing nutritious-rich rusk this morning to be sent to cyclone-hit Odisha.

The effort is being led by Dr. K.S.M.S. Raghavarao, Director, along with more 1,000 students, staff and their family members.

Speaking to Star of Mysore this morning, Raghavarao said that the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) placed orders with CFTRI to prepare food for more than 1 lakh people. “We have a target of preparing 25 tonnes of food that can be consumed by over 1,25,000 people. The first batch of 5 tonnes will be despatched by today evening or tomorrow morning,” he said.

Biscuits being readied at the institution.

“We have completed the procurement of raw materials and are working overtime to prepare ready-to-eat Chapatis, upma, poha, rusk, biscuits and other bakery products. While the Chapatis are ready-to-eat, there are two types of upma that can be eaten after either pouring hot water or cold water into the pouch. If hot water is poured, it will take 10 minutes for the upma to cook and if it is cold water, it will take 20 minutes,” Raghavarao explained.

Water can be poured directly into the pouches eliminating the need of vessels to cook. “Over 200 students and 1,000 employees actively supported by their families including women and children are involved in packing the food items,” he said. The rusk prepared is with high protein that can be served to aged people, women and children.

A special ‘Gojju’ to be mixed with ready-to-eat poha is being prepared inside CFTRI.

The first batch will be airlifted from Mysore Airport either today or tomorrow. “We are in close contact with Indian Air Force and they will decide the air-lifting time depending on the weather conditions in Odisha. Consignments will be sent through trucks to Mysore Airport from where they will be airlifted. If there is inclement weather in Bhubaneswar, the consignment will reach Vizag and from there it will be transported to Bhubaneswar by road,” he added.

ABOUT

Mysuru’s favorite and largest circulated English evening daily has kept the citizens of Mysuru informed and entertained since 1978. Over the past 45 years, Star of Mysore has been the newspaper that Mysureans reach for every evening to know about the happenings in Mysuru city. The newspaper has feature rich articles and dedicated pages targeted at readers across the demographic spectrum of Mysuru city. With a readership of over 2,50,000 Star of Mysore has been the best connection between it’s readers and their leaders; between advertisers and customers; between Mysuru and Mysureans.

CONTACT

Academy News Papers Private Limited, Publishers, Star of Mysore & Mysuru Mithra, 15-C, Industrial ‘A’ Layout, Bannimantap, Mysuru-570015. Phone no. – 0821 249 6520

To advertise on Star of Mysore, email us at

Online Edition: [email protected]
Print Editon: [email protected]
For News/Press Release: [email protected]