Eateries such as Garam Dharam, Local, are among the some who, have heeded the government's advice and installed electric ovens.
Some restaurants in the national Capital have taken tandoor out of chicken, fish, rotis and naans. Acting on the advisory issued by the Delhi government during annual budget, some of the outlets have installed electric ovens and tandoors. A lot of them, however, continue to use traditional tandoors, unwilling to compromise on taste.
The Delhi government had announced a subsidy of Rs 5,000 to eateries to replace coal tandoors with electricity or gas-based equipment as part of its 'green budget'. The South Delhi Municipal Corporation (SDMC), too, had issued notices to restaurants to start using other alternative instead of tandoors as ash from coal contributes to air pollution.
Eateries such as Garam Dharam, Local, are among the some who, have heeded the government's advice and installed electric ovens. The owners agree that initially, they were skeptical to bring in the new equipment as it may have affected the smoky taste coal tandoors add to dishes. "Our main concern was patrons may not relish the taste of food cooked in electric ovens but our sales have remained steady, nullifying all our hesitations," said restaurateur Umang Tewari. "After months of using electric ovens, we have felt it is a positive step. The pollution is less and it is hassle-free," said Anubhav Arora, who runs a takeaway in Rajouri Garden.
Meanwhile, tikkas, kebabs and tandoori rotis still have staunch savours who refuse to follow the government's diktat, and continue to use traditional tandoors. Their main argument is to retain the smoky flavour of these dishes that cannot be replicated by using any other equipment. "This is a foolhardy initiative. Electric ovens kill the delicate flavours in tikkas and kebabs that come only from using coal. We use charcoal which is not as harmful as coal. We are also environment conscious," said a restaurateur from South Delhi. Varun Puri of Imly, on the other hand, wants the government to increase the subsidy and also give them a discount on power tariffs.
INCENTIVE
- The Delhi government had announced a subsidy of Rs 5,000 to eateries to replace coal tandoors with electricity or gas-based equipment as part of its ‘green budget’.
- SDMC had issued notices to restaurants to start using other alternative instead of tandoors as ash from coal contributes to air pollution.
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