Ayodhya-Approved KFC To Operate With Vegetarian Only Menu

After the inauguration of Ram Mandir, Ayodhya has become a popular tourist spot. The devotees from across the country are travelling to the city to visit the temple and pay their respects. Due to the influx of visitors to the city many chain restaurants have come up, to offer the tourists some good food including McDonalds and Burger Singh. There is a surge in the demand for packaged products as well like Bisleri mineral water bottles and Parle biscuits.  

Another possible addition to the list is going to be Kentucky Fried Chicken a.k.a KFC, known for its fried chicken products. The US-based food giant has more than 800 outlets in India and its next destination could be Panch Kosi Marg in Ayodhya. This is the route that encompasses a 15-kilometer pilgrimage area around the temple, called the Panch Kosi Parikrama, known to cover the sacred sites connected with the Ramayana.

However, this will only be possible if they drop all meat items and keep a pure vegetarian menu. After the construction of the temple, the tier-2 city in Uttar Pradesh has strict prohibition on the serving of non-vegetarian food and alcohol inside the Panch Kosi Marg. Currently, the nearest KFC outlet to the city is on the Ayodhya-Lucknow highway. 

As per media reports, a government official in Ayodhya said that due to the restrictions of meat items KFC has set up its unit at Ayodhya-Lucknow highway. The government is ready to give a space for the outlet to this food giant if they keep a vegetarian-only menu in Ayodhya.

The official further added that Ayodhya has offers from many big food chains to set up their outlets in the city and the government is ready to accept them. The only condition for the food businesses is that they should not serve non-vegetarian food items within the route of Panch Kosi Marg.

Even the other popular food chains including Dominos and Pizza Hut serve ‘vegetarian only’ menus on the land of the Ram Temple and are witnessing a decent number of takers for their food products. As per the government reports, Ayodhya is expecting higher footfall with a weekly influx of 10 to 12 lakh visitors until Ram Navami on April 17 and the state tourism department is all set to initiate projects worth over ₹2020 crore.