All set for ‘Fish Prasadam’ distribution today

Hyderabad: All arrangements have been completed for ‘Fish Prasadam’ to be administered on June 8 and 9 at Nampally Exhibition grounds. As many as 32 counters have been set up for the distribution while heavy security arrangements have been made by the police.

Members of the Bathini Goud family administer the ‘wonder drug’ on ‘Mrigasira Karti’, which falls during the first week of June which heralds the onset of the monsoon according to the Hindu calendar. The prasadam is distributed by the Bathini family free of cost. Over 500 kilos of prasadam is made every year.

Asthma patients from various parts of Telugu states and other places in the country take this prasadam in June every year in the hope of finding relief from respiratory problems. Bathini Vishwanatham Goud, president, Bathini Mrigasira Trust, said that all arrangements for the distribution of fish prasadam have been completed.

The family claims to have been distributing this medicine free of cost for the last 178 years. The secret formula for the herbal medicine was given to their ancestor in 1845 by a saint after he took an oath that it would be administered free of cost.

Bathini Goud said, “The prasadam will be a yellow colour herbal paste prepared that is placed in the mouth of a live ‘murrel’ fingerling, which is then slipped through the throat of the patient,” he said. Adequate amount of prasadam has been kept ready to ensure everyone who comes to the venue receives it. People from different faiths and from different parts of the country come and take the prasadam, he added.

Bathini Goud said, “People come from all over the state, country and also from abroad come for the fish prasadam. We have arranged to distribute fish prasadam to two to three lakh people and it is better if local people come later in the day. We give prasadam once a year and only on the day of Mrigasira Karti.”

The asthmatics gulp down a live ‘murrel’ fish with a yellow herbal paste in its mouth, which is believed to provide the much-needed relief if taken for three consecutive years. For vegetarians, the family gives the medicine with jaggery.

As a part of arrangements, barricades were set up and measures were taken to ensure uninterrupted power supply. Adequate drinking water will be provided by the HMWS&SB and the GHMC sanitation staff will ensure cleanliness. Health camps will be organised by the Health department, and ambulances will be available. Separate counters will be set up for the general public, the elderly, the physically challenged and children.