Vijaywada Bans Non Vegetarian Food For 16 Days During Krishna River Festival, And The Citizens Are Really Pissed!

The city of Vijaywada is banned from eating meat for 16 days this month, and they aren¡¯t happy.

In the name of Krishna Pushkarams, a religious festival honouring the Krishna river, the entire city has been banned from eating meat

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Such a far reaching unilateral decision cannot be passed on religious grounds, they have argued. "How can the government decide what people should or should not eat? The government is spending crores of rupees on the river festival apart from promoting it on a large scale. This is against the secular interests of the country. Now, the ban on meat only shows that it is trying to impose the belief system of the majority people on everybody," said J Harish, a post-graduate student from a private college in the city told the Times of India.

It will also put thousands of families who make the make a living from meat

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"What will we do for 17 days? Should we remain hungry just because the government thinks selling meat will dent the spirit of pushkarams? I don't know what I should do to feed my family in those days," said I Kantamma, who sells fish near Prakasam barrage. The ban on sale of meat was passed by the Vijayawada Municipal Corporation (VMC) from August 9 to 25, but it also extends to slaughterhouses,, as well as restaurants and outlets which violate the instruction.

There is no reason to ban meat ¨C it¡¯s never been done before

"There was no ban on the meat during the 1992 and 2004 Krishna Pushkarams. When the government says that it wants to ban mean to maintain piousness, does it mean those who consume it are not pious? What sort of message is it trying to send to the public?" K Prabhakar Rao, a senior citizen from Labbipet.

And, as we already know from states which have tried to ban liquor, prohibition does not work, instead triggering off an underground economy.

"Closing the slaughter-house will open the doors for black-marketing. The purpose of the slaughter-house is to sell meat in hygienic environment. So, the sales in black market will negate the claim of the officials that the decision is taken in the interest of public health," said Ravi Sudhakar, a businessman.

Five star hotels have shot back, telling the municipal authorities that they don¡¯t have to follow this repressive law. "A few star hotel managements and restaurants have informed us that there are provisions which allow them to serve non-vegetarian dishes on all days. So we will hold a meeting with the stakeholders and take a final decision in a day or two," said a senior official from VMC.