How Many Fingerlings Will Be Supplied for ‘Fish Prasadam’ in Hyderabad?

Hyderabad, May 28 (NationPress) The Fisheries Department of Telangana is set to provide 1.5 lakh fingerlings for the much-anticipated annual 'fish prasadam' distribution, which will take place on June 8 and 9. The renowned Bathini Goud family will oversee the distribution of ‘fish prasadam’ aimed at assisting individuals suffering from asthma and other respiratory ailments at the Exhibition Ground, Nampally.

The Minister in charge of Hyderabad, Ponnam Prabhakar, conducted a review of the preparations for the event on Wednesday. He instructed all relevant departments to organize all necessary arrangements to facilitate the attendees taking ‘fish prasadam’.

Minister Prabhakar emphasized the need for collaboration among various departments including police, Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC), Revenue, Roads and Buildings, and Electricity. He also directed officials to establish medical camps and have ambulances ready, ensuring that the fire services department remains on standby.

The minister called on law enforcement to implement stringent security measures at the event venue, recommending the installation of barricades to manage queues and to create special provisions for women and the elderly.

Officials from the Fisheries Department notified the minister that 1.5 lakh fingerlings will indeed be provided. Given the expected influx of attendees from various states, the meeting also addressed the need for adequate drinking water and restroom facilities. The minister requested GHMC to partner with NGOs to supply food for those coming to receive ‘fish prasadam’.

Special bus services will be available from Secunderabad, Kacheguda, and Cherlapally stations to the Exhibition Grounds. The Bathini Goud family has announced that the distribution will commence at 10 a.m. on June 8 and continue for a full 24 hours.

Every June, asthma patients from across the Telugu states and beyond flock to Hyderabad to partake in ‘fish prasadam’, seeking relief from their respiratory issues.

The family has urged that the government departments facilitate the event as they have done in previous years for its successful execution. The Bathini Goud family asserts that they have been offering this fish medicine free of charge for nearly 180 years. The formula for the herbal remedy was bestowed upon their ancestor in 1845 by a saint, under the condition that it would be administered without cost.

On Mrigasira Karti (the first week of June), members of the Bathini Goud family administer this ‘wonder drug’. A yellow herbal paste prepared by the family is placed in the mouth of a live murrel fingerling, which is then slipped down the throat of the patient. It is believed that this procedure provides significant relief when taken for three consecutive years. For vegetarians, an alternative with jaggery is offered.

Despite controversies surrounding the herbal paste over the last 15 years, which led some groups to label it a fraud and raise concerns about its safety, the Goud family maintains that laboratory tests conducted per court orders have confirmed the paste's safety.

In response to critiques from rationalists, the family began referring to it as ‘fish prasadam’. Regardless of the skepticism, many continue to visit the event annually, hoping for relief from their persistent respiratory issues, though attendance numbers have seen a decline in recent years.