Wedding food worth Rs 339 crore goes waste

[email protected] (Hetal Vyas,TNN)
October 12, 2012
food_wastage_in_marriage


Bangalore, October 12: After the big fat wedding is done with and the guests have gone home, what remains is the litter, dirty dishes and piles of excess high-calorie food.

Enough to feed lakhs of children, in a country where malnutrition has been termed a "national shame" by Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh. Statistics show that every third malnourished child in the world is an Indian.

A survey shows that annually, Bangalore alone wastes 943 tonnes of quality food during weddings. "This is enough to feed 2.6 crore people a normal Indian meal," a study by a team of 10 professors from the University of Agricultural Sciences (UAS), Bangalore, has concluded. The team, under the guidance of UAS vice-chancellor K Narayana Gowda, surveyed 75 of Bangalore's 531 marriage halls over a period of six months.

"About 84,960 marriages are held at 531 kalyana mantapas (marriage halls) in Bangalore every year. About 943 tonnes of high-calorie quality food is wasted in these halls annually. At an average cost of Rs 40 per meal, the total food wastage in the city is estimated at Rs 339 crore," the study said.

On an average, 1,000 people attend a wedding where two meals are served - lunch at the wedding and dinner for reception, besides breakfast.

"About 10-20 items are served at a wedding ceremony. The maximum items served include 100 grams each of soup and juice, followed by 50 grams each of puri and pulao," the survey stated. It also concluded that rice and cereals were on top, making for 35% of the wastage.


"On an average, a typical wedding meal is very rich in energy. Each meal may have 1,239 calories, enough to meet an entire day's requirement of a child! The wastage per meal amounted to 20% at 246 calories," said Gowda.

"The survey sought to bring to light the criminal wastage of food during Indian weddings. Our aim is to create awareness and sensitize the public not to waste food. We found that food wastage was more with buffets than served meals," said professor PK Mandanna, of agricultural marketing, UAS.

The university has scheduled a brainstorming session on the issue at its GKVK campus on Saturday. Those interested can attend.

'Guests should be sensitized'

"Food wastage is a big concern during weddings. We need to create awareness among people and sensitize them against wasting food. Hosts must put placards with messages saying guests must not waste food and take only what they can consume. Nowadays, professionals serve food, which is working positively," says Vasan T, proprietor, Gowrishankar Mahal, west of Chord Road.

Weddings wows

1,000 people attend an average marriage

Menu comprises two meals and breakfast

Each meal contains 1,239 calories

Avg cost of meal Rs 40

943 tonnes of high-calorie quality food wasted

Wasted food worth Rs 339 cr

22% food wasted in buffet system; 20% in served system



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Agencies
June 13,2020

New Delhi, Jun 13: Loss of smell or taste has been added to the list of COVID-19 symptoms, according to the revised clinical management protocols released by the Union Health Ministry on Saturday.

The ministry said that coronavirus-infected patients reporting to various COVID-19 treatment facilities have been reporting symptoms like fever, cough, fatigue, shortness of breath, expectoration, myalgia, rhinorrhea, sore throat and diarrhea.

They have also complained of loss of smell (anosmia) or loss of taste (ageusia) preceding the onset of respiratory symptoms.

Older people and immune-suppressed patients in particular may present with atypical symptoms such as fatigue, reduced alertness, reduced mobility, diarrhoea, loss of appetite, delirium, and absence of fever, the ministry said.

Children might not have reported fever or cough as frequently as adults.

The US's national public health institute, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), had in early May incorporated "a new loss of taste or smell" in the list of COVID-19 symptoms.

According to the data from Integrated Health Information Platform and Integrated Disease Surveillance Programme, portal case investigation forms for COVID 19 (n=15,366), the details on the signs and symptoms reported are (as on June 11), fever (27 per cent), cough (21 pc), sore throat (10 pc), breathlessness (8 pc), Weakness (7 pc), running nose (3pc ) and others 24 pc.

According to the health ministry, people infected by the novel coronavirus are the main source of infection.

Direct person-to-person transmission occurs through close contact, mainly through respiratory droplets that are released when the infected person coughs, sneezes, or talks.

These droplets may also land on surfaces, where the virus remains viable. Infection can also occur if a person touches an infected surface and then touches his or her eyes, nose, or mouth.

The median incubation period is 5.1 days (range 2–14 days). The precise interval during which an individual with COVID-19 is infectious is uncertain.

As per the current evidence, the period of infectivity starts 2 days prior to onset of symptoms and lasts up to 8 days.

The extent and role played by pre-clinical/ asymptomatic infections in transmission still remain under investigation.

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News Network
January 16,2020

Mangaluru, Jan 16: The Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad is holding rallies and meetings and distributing booklets across the country in support of the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, said ABVP National Secretary Harsha Narayan here on Thursday.

Speaking to media persons, he said that the CAA, which provides citizenship to Hindus, Buddhists, Sikhs, Parsis, Jains and Christians persecuted in Pakistan, Afghanistan and Bangladesh, was among the things that the ABVP was fighting for.

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News Network
April 16,2020

Bengaluru, Apr 16: Special Investigating Team (SIT), headed by Joint Commissioner of Police (Crime), Sandeep Patil, subjected former underworld don turned social activist Muthappa Rai in connection with gangster and underworld don Ravi Poojary's criminal cases.

Sandeep Patil, Joint Commissioner of Police (Crime) said that the Assistant Commissioner of Police, Venugopal and police inspector Bulletin have questioned Rai in his house for more than two hours about Ravi Poojary case.

Muthappa Rai was allegedly one of the accused in builder Subbaraju murder case. They both were allegedly close in the initial days and they were like a team, said a senior officer. So Rai was questioned about their connection. Rai, who reformed himself many years ago, is into business and social service at present.

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