Emirates brings 'Hindu meal' option back on menu after severe backlash

Barely a day after Emirates withdrew the "Hindu meal" option from its menu, the Dubai-based airline reversed its decision on Wednesday, July 4. The carrier decided to reintroduce the Hindu meal as the decision to take it off the menu did not go down well with many Indians.

Why was Hindu meal taken off the menu?

'Hindu meal' was one of the options available in the wide range of special request meals which various international carriers offer to long-distance fliers. These are planned and prepared based on the passengers' religious and medical needs.

According to Emirates, it decided to drop the Hindu meal option from its in-flight menu based on a review of onboard products and services offered to passengers.

"As part of our continuous review of the products and services available to customers, Emirates can confirm that it will discontinue the Hindu meal option. We constantly review our offering, taking into consideration customer uptake and feedback. This helps us improve service efficiencies," the airline had said in its statement.

When the news made headlines on Tuesday, July 3, a section of people on Twitter said that they are not pleased with the announcement. While some have lashed out at the Dubai-based airlines, others have said that they will not fly with the carrier.

The Gulf carrier which had earlier stated that it takes serious note of customer feedback scrapped of its earlier decision and brought and withdrew its earlier decision. Here's what the statement said, as quoted by PTI.

Based on feedback from our customers, Emirates confirms we will continue to provide a Hindu meal option, to make it easier for our Hindu customers to identify and request this option.

"Food and drink form an integral part of any Emirates flight experience and our menus are created by leading chefs to reflect the culture and preferences of Emirates' diverse customer base," the carrier asserted.

Other vegetarian options that cater to Emirates' Indian passengers

The airline still has an option called the Indian Vegetarian Meal (VML) for vegetarian passengers. It incorporates flavours from the Indian sub-continent and uses varied vegetables, fresh fruit, dried fruits, legumes, milk products, cereal, grains and vegetarian gelatin. This meal is reportedly devoid of all kinds of meat or by-products, fish, shellfish, eggs and animal gelatin.

Emirates also serves the vegetarian Jain meal (VJML) for the Jain community who are pure vegetarian. It is prepared with a selection of Indian ingredients like fresh fruit and stem vegetables (which grow above the ground). It contains no animal products, by-products or any type of root vegetables such as onions, mushrooms, ginger, garlic, potatoes, carrots, beets, radishes, etc.

 People who fly with this airline can also opt for the Kosher Meal option (KML), which is prepared according to Jewish preferences or choose from medical and dietary meals like Bland Meal, Low Salt Meal, Diabetic Meal, Non-Lactose Meal, Fruit Platter, Gluten Free Meal, Low Cholesterol or Low Fat Meal, Vegan Meal and Raw Vegetable Meal.