No more wasting food! In a bid to prevent wastage of food and to feed the needy, Piyush Goyal-led Indian Railways has implemented a commendable measure! Recently, a public refrigerator has been installed at Hubballi railway station in Karnataka. With this move, Indian Railways passengers or food plaza staff can keep surplus or excess food in the fridge, so that instead of being thrown away, the stored food can be used by needy and poor people.
The stored food in the public refrigerator will be for anyone who needs it including senior citizens, sick and divyangjan passengers. The new initiative has been well received by the public as since its launch on 15 August 2019, around 100 people have already used the public refrigerator.
According to officials quoted in a PTI report, the refrigerator is six-foot-tall with four racks. Out of these four racks, two racks are being used for cooked meals and the other two racks are being used for vegetables and fruits. The cost of the public refrigerator is Rs 80,000, an official informed. Those who are carrying surplus or extra food can leave the eatables in the fridge. The needy and poor people can take benefit from this system and have the food that is stored in the public refrigerator for free, the official added.
Moreover, a notice has also been put up on the public refrigerator, requesting station passengers and staff not to keep non-vegetarian food items and eatables which are likely to become stale. The food plaza located at Hubballi railway station has also been requested by Indian Railways to supply food items for the public refrigerator as and when a surplus amount of food is available. The South Western Railway (SWR) zone, under which the Hubballi Junction railway station falls, is also making efforts to contact NGOs in this regard.
