Key Points

Telangana Transport Minister Ponnam Prabhakar, along with MP Anil Kumar Yadav, inaugurated 'fish prasadam' at the Exhibition Grounds, Nampally.

Prabhakar, who is also the in-charge minister for Hyderabad, was the first to take 'fish prasadam' from the Bathini Goud family.

Members of the Bathini family have set up 13 counters to administer 'fish prasadam'. A total of 42 queues have been arranged for patients, coming from various parts of Telangana, Andhra Pradesh and other parts of the country.

The distribution of 'fish prasadam', which began at 10 a.m., will continue for 24 hours.

Members of the Bathini Goud family administer the "wonder drug" on 'Mrigasira Karti', (during the first week of June) which heralds the onset of the monsoon.

A yellow colour herbal paste prepared by the family is placed in the mouth of a live 'murrel' fingerling, which is then slipped through the throat of the patient. It is believed to provide much-needed relief if taken for three consecutive years. For vegetarians, the family gives medicine with jaggery.

Asthma patients from various parts of the country flock to Hyderabad to take the fish medicine in the hope of finding relief from their respiratory problems.

Telangana's Fisheries Department has announced that it will supply 1.5 lakh fingerlings for the annual event.

The police have made elaborate arrangements at the venue for the smooth conduct of the event. They have installed 70 CCTV cameras as part of the security arrangements.

Revenue, Roads and Buildings, Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC), electricity and other departments have also made arrangements to provide necessary facilities to visitors.

The Health Department has set up medical camps and kept ambulances ready. The Fire Services Department was also kept on alert.

Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) is coordinating with NGOs, that are providing food for patients.

Special buses are being operated from Secunderabad, Kacheguda and Cherlapally stations to Exhibition Grounds.

The Bathini Goud family claims to be distributing the fish medicine free of cost for about 180 years. The secret formula for the herbal medicine was given to their ancestor in 1845 by a saint after an oath from him that it would be administered free of cost.

However, the medicine lost its popularity in the last 15 years due to controversies over the contents of the herbal paste.

Some groups, working to inculcate a scientific temper among people, termed the fish medicine a fraud. They also approached a court, claiming that since the herbal paste contains heavy metals, it can cause serious health problems.

But the Goud family claims that tests in laboratories conducted as per court orders revealed the herbal paste is safe.

After the challenge by the rationalists, the Goud family started calling it 'fish prasadam'.

Despite the controversies, people continue to throng the venue every year in the hope of finding some relief from their nagging respiratory problems. However, the numbers have dwindled over the years.

- IANS