With the Ram Mandir consecration, Ayodhya has become the land of opportunities for brands to set-up their businesses. From food outlets to shopping complexes, development is bound to take place at a fast pace in the coming months.
Religious tourism, of course, will be a prime aspect for revenue and this surge will warrant several western cuisine-serving brands setting up shop.?
One of the main frontrunners is American fast food chain Kentucky Fried Chicken (KFC). Before you get into overdrive and panic about the ¡®chicken¡¯, there¡¯s a big catch!
As per a report by Moneycontrol, the chain will have to adapt to the local preferences if it wants to set up shop in the holy city which means dropping all meat items from their menu and replacing them with vegetarian options.?
For the unversed, the 15-km pilgrimage stretch called Panch Kosi Parikrama area around Ayodhya strictly prohibits serving meat and liquor.?
¡°We have offers from big food chain outlets to set up their shops in Ayodhya. We welcome them with open arms, but there is only one restriction, that they should not serve non-veg food items inside the panch Kosi,¡± said Vishal Singh, a government official in Ayodhya.
The answer is no. All such outlets can be set up outside of the above-mentioned area i.e. the Parikrama Marg.
A similar set-up exists in Haridwar where non-vegetarian food is banned within the city but is available on the Haridwar-Roorkee highway.?
As per the same report, Domino¡¯s and Pizza Hut follow the same rule of serving veg-only food in Ayodhya near the vicinity of the temple.