Indian minister urges poor to eat rats to combat food prices!!!

Vijay Prakash, the welfare minister in Bihar state in eastern India, said he wanted to set up rat farms and sell the meat to upmarket hotels, street stalls and restaurants.

The project will start with stalls in rural fairs followed by "rat meat centres" in urban areas.

The 2.3 million members of the Musahar caste, one of the poorest in India, have traditionally eaten rats that they hunted in paddy fields. 

Now Mr Prakash says rich people should also sample the meat, which he said was full of protein and tasted better than chicken. 

"Some socially deprived people in Bihar have always consumed rat meat," he said. "If they can eat rats, why can't the rest of the people?"

He said the plan would tackle food prices on two fronts: by reducing the amount of grain consumed by rodents and producing a cheap form of meat.

But he also said developing rat farms would help the social development of Musahars.

"The government has decided to engage the Musahars in commercialisation of rat meat for their overall development," he said. "It will help empower them and change their poor living conditions if the venture is properly designed and clicks."

He said the poor image of rats could change.

"I discovered during a fact-finding mission about rat meat that it is a popular food item," he told The Times of India. "It is called 'patal-bageri' and its demand is high,"

Source

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