Odias celebrated Pakhala Dibas on March 20 to promote their traditional cuisine. Pakhala is a dish made of cooked rice fermented in water. The initiative started in 2015 has gained popularity worldwide, with social media flooded with pictures of people enjoying the food. From ultra-rich families to working-class people, everyone relishes Pakhala. The dish’s origin is traced back to the Lord Jagannath Temple, where deities are offered different types of Pakhala, mostly ‘Dahi Pakhala’ after the ‘Bada Singhara Besha’ (flower attire) when the Lords go to sleep. Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan took to Twitter and posted a picture of Pakhala, writing, “Savouring on some #Pakhala for lunch to mark #PakhalaDibasa. A popular and simple Odia fare, this is not just a staple food for us Odias but also an integral part of our cultural identity. It is also one of the favourite foods of Mahaprabhu Jagannath.”