Odisha colleges told to cut cooking oil use, skip puris, vadas and bondas

The Odisha government has asked principals of all government-run and government-aided colleges to cut the use of cooking oil in campus canteens and avoid high-oil breakfast items such as puris, vadas and bondas.

Higher Education Department Deputy Secretary Ramesh Chandra Behera issued the directive to college principals on Friday, citing persistent global supply-chain disruptions and the impact of geopolitical conflicts on food, fertiliser and fuel supplies.

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In his letter, Behera said the world had faced repeated supply-chain disruptions and crises since the Covid-19 pandemic. The conflicts in Ukraine and Iran had further contributed to supply-side pressures on food, fertiliser and fuel, he said.

"No country in the world is immune to the economic impact of the crisis," Behera wrote.

The department said several countries had taken steps to curb fuel demand and noted that India was also facing the "negative consequences" of the prolonged crisis.

Behera said Prime Minister Narendra Modi had made a public appeal to citizens to make small contributions towards addressing the challenges facing the country.

The Higher Education Department directed principals to issue instructions to college hostels and canteens to reduce the use of cooking oil while preparing meals for students.

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"Avoid high-oil menu items like puris, vadas and bondas in breakfast, reduce deep-fried food without compromising nutrition and promote use of traditional ghee, mustard oil and groundnut oil over imported palm/sunflower/soyabean oil," the department told the principals.

The directive also extends beyond college campuses. National Service Scheme (NSS) and Youth Red Cross (YRC) volunteers have been asked to organise awareness programmes in their communities to encourage households to reduce the use of cooking oil in everyday meals.