Bengaluru: The Karnataka State Mango Development and Marketing Corporation (KSMDMC) has tied up with India Post to deliver a 3 kg pack of kashaya ingredients to your doorstep. The 3 kg pack will cost Rs: 600 and there will be instructions on how to make and drink the kashaya the print reports. The Kashaya is designed to but it is not clear if it is destined to boost your immunity!
It is a traditional recipe consisting of 8 ingredients – pepper, dry ginger, cumin, cinnamon, clove, garlic, turmeric, and jaggery. Apart from the Kashaya, you can use them for cooking too – if you don’t feel like drinking the Kashaya.
The Corporation says customers can place orders on its website and deliveries will start next week.
While the Kashaya will help boost immunity it is also expected to boost the earnings of the spice farmers of the state.
Speaking to ThePrint, C.G. Nagaraj, Director of KSMDMC, said the initiative will be extremely beneficial to the state’s spice farmers. “One packet will weigh around 3 kg and cost Rs 600. The farmers from the Malnad region of Karnataka, famous for its spices, will be using our online platform to sell their products,” Nagaraj said.
“Just like others, spice farmers are also undergoing losses. Through this, we will be able to encourage sales. The success of the sale of mangoes through the post was very encouraging,” he added.
Meanwhile, the cradle of Ayurveda practice says this is the best way to keep infections under control. It has been promoting Ayurveda to promote immunity keeping in mind the Central Government’s Ayurveda action plan that the government had released on 11 April, the fulcrum of which was recommending Ayurveda practices to all demographics of its population.
The Ayurveda immunity program
The print reports that the Kerala government’s Ayurveda action plan has the motto “Karuthalode Keralam, karuthekan Ayurvedam”. Translated, it means “Ayurveda can protect Kerala”.
As part of the plan, the state has implemented four kinds of Ayurvedic intervention — Swasthyam, Sukhayushyam, Punarjani and Niramaya.
Swasthyam intends to strengthen the individual protection against Covid-19 among various classes of the population below the age of 60 considering the intensity of risk to exposure whereas Sukhayushyam intends to protect individuals above the age of 60. Punarjani intends to ensure speedy recovery in convalescent Covid-19 cases.
On Nirmaya, the social media page, the state government has been uploading exercise modules and other informative material along with media reports of the activities undertaken so far.
The Ayurveda dos and don’ts
From avoiding snacks to advising the popping of dry fruits, homemade chips, and boiled bananas, the Kerala government has put out a list as part of its advisory on building immunity.
It has also formed a list of essential Ayurvedic drugs for prevention and convalescent care of Covid-19. But while circulating the list, it warned the public and officials that under no circumstance can these drugs or therapies should not be used as a cure for Covid-19.
“Eat food only when you are hungry” tops the list of general lifestyle instructions in the government’s document on setting the essential drug list (EDL). It has also advised people to consume rice gruel at least once a day, while asking them to “avoid or restrict” non-vegetarian food.
“In curry, pastries, snacks, tiffin, soups, wherever possible, use green gram (cherupayar) liberally. Minimize the use of black gram,” it adds.
The document also suggests cooking special beverages along with herbs. For instance, it suggests boiling of water with dry ginger, coriander seeds, basil leaves, muthanga, panikoorka kayila, ajwain seeds and turmeric.
“The quantities need not be that specific. Make it a tasty herbal drinking water called ‘chukku vellam’. All members of the family can quench their thirst with this,” it states.
It also promotes ‘chukku kappi’ — coffee with dry ginger — as a a simple digestive and medicinal beverage.
“Those who are familiar with diluted milk, or milk as such, try it with a piece of dry ginger (chukku) and a pinch of turmeric powder while boiling it,” the document states. “It is more helpful to improve respiratory health. Goat’s milk has an edge over cow’s milk in this regard.”
