George Patton, a General who led the American army during World War II, once said: Wars may be fought with weapons, but they are won by men. Men whose needs ought to be taken care of by a grateful nation in turn for their utmost sacrifice — their Life.
India’s jawans are fortunate in this aspect as they have a separate institute to look after their needs of food which is the most necessary for their sustenance in harsh climatic and living conditions apart from keeping them cheerful amidst the drudgery of army life. The Defence Food Research Laboratory (DFRL) in Mysore may not be glamourous, but it feeds hungry jawans whose life seems to be the most pretermitted in this country. Here is a tribute to the scientists who are doing a noble work.Napolean Bonaparte said 'An army marches on its stomach,' thus concisely giving the gist of a military win against an enemy – well-fed and fit soldiers. Soldiers who serve the country at extreme climatic conditions exerting themselves physically and mentally had to suffer for long due to lack of proper food. The food items, when they reached the guardians of our nation across rough terrains, would be unpalatable. In times of peace, man forgets three persons — god, doctor and soldier. And it is the nation's responsibility to constantly remember the soldier and his sacrifices, and take care of his needs. Since 50 years, the DFRL has served the armed forces by providing logistical, storage, transport and research & development support. Its services are sponsored mainly by the armed forces, apart from the Coconut Development Board in Kochi, Karnataka government's Neera project. They have also taken up many rural projects to help the village youth by providing them simple technologies and teaching them skills. Armed forces in all areas — hot, hot & humid like Assam, sub-zero conditions, etc. — need quick cooking food without elaborate processes, says Dr. Sajeev Kumar, Scientist 'E' and Public Relations Officer of DFRL, taking this correspondent around the DFRL premises. Elaborating on it, the scientist said that DFRL started preparing dehydrated products which were cooked, dried and preserved. A soldier can just boil it for a lesser time and consume it. The food needed just 15-20 minutes for reconstitution. Then the reconstitution time was reduced from 15-20 minutes to 2-3 minutes like in case of Maggi noodles. It just needs warm water to cook.
Such packaged foods weigh just 100gm to 400 gm so that a soldier can carry it easily for long distances. Western countries first started using canned foods but they were not appealing to the Indian palate due to the metallic taste of the food got from the can and the soldiers were not happy. Then they brought out food in pouches. However, the imported equipment needed to prepare the pouch-food cost nearly Rs. 3 crore, which was too costly for us. Hence the DFRL scientists themselves took up an ambitious project and indigenised the technology with every part of the equipment made here. Now it costs just Rs. 12 lakh. This was our major achievement in cost-reduction, says Dr. Sajeev Kumar.
During wars like the Kargil operation, the soldiers at the frontlines did not have time to heat the food or boil water to cook the food. In such a situation, DFRL's ready-to-eat products helped them immensely, he added, before taking the correspondent to a conference room where Director & Scientist 'G' Dr. Harsh Vardhan Batra and senior scientists of the Institute — Dr. K. Radhakrishna (Scientist 'G' and Associate Director), Dr.G.K. Sharma (Scientist 'F' and Head, Cereals & Pulses Technology), Dr. M.C. Pandey (Scientist 'F' & Head, Freeze Drying & Animal Products Technology), Dr. S.N. Sabapathy (Scientist 'F' and Head, Food Engg. & Packaging), Dr. A.D. Semwal (Scientist 'F' and Head, Central Instrumentation), Dr. Farhath Khanum (Scientist 'F' and Head, Biochemistry & Nutrition), Dr. K.V. Ramana (Scientist 'F' and Head, Food Biotechnology), A. Ramakrishna (Scientist 'F' and Head, Research Appliances), P.E. Padki (Scientist 'F' and Head, Post-Graduate Diploma), Dr. K.R. Anilakumar (Scientist 'E' and Technical Staff Officer) and Dr. Jagannath (Scientist 'D') — had taken their time out and gathered to give a glimpse of DFRL's activities. Dr. Batra answered most of the questions with other scientists answering the queries related to their field.
Shwetha: Not many people know what exactly the scientists create here in DFRL.
DFRL team: DFRL has got a broad mandate. Our mainstay is that we have to take care of all the three Armed Forces — Army is the main user of our products, and then Navy and Air Force; and very recently, the security forces involved in low-intensity conflicts, anti-terrorist, anti-naxal operations etc. like CRPF, ITBP, Special Protection Group and NSG. They are using our products for their survival and energy needs and we are continuously improving our technology. Though there are some restrictions regarding cost, we do not compromise on quality and hence we try to look for cost-reduction ways.
We have supplied specialised food to space missions, for Wg. Cdr. Rakesh Sharma (who flew aboard Soyuz T-11 as part of the Intercosmos programme and was the first Indian to travel in space) and even Soviet astronauts, for Chandrayaan mission etc. The scientists working in Antarctica mission are being supplied food by DFRL since many years. They stay in Antarctica for long periods ranging from six months to an year, without much contact with the outside world.
We look after the Armed Forces' food requirements during combat situations fulfilling their logistic, climatic and physiological requirements. All these vary depending on the nature of their job, place and duration where they are stationed. We take all these things into account before we design and develop specific foods.
Today's soldier does not just come from any village and join the Army. He has to operate electronic gadgets, he needs to be alert, his mind function has to be very sharp and quick. That requires some functional foods with specific nutritional requirements. We see how we can provide them easily available and natural food, not tablets or chemicals. We don't want the soldiers to be depressed when they are serving the country. Hence we have taken up research to keep them from depression. This is a new area where our scientists are working and progressing.
Our role in all sorts of disaster management is a flexible approach where we are continuously growing and proving our skills, technologies, capabilities. We are very closely working with National Disaster Management Authority and providing inputs for their operational requirements.
Another area in which we are working based upon our expertise and zeal is, rural employment generation. Our former President Dr. A.P.J. Abdul Kalam, when he visited the Institute recently, spoke about it and also about additional income for agri-based population when monsoon fails. Rather than the farmers committing suicide, we are seeing to it if we can generate alternate income so that they survive that period of calamity.
Added to that, Dr. Kalam wanted us to develop low cost processed packaged foods to take care of mal-nourishment of children.
We are also mooting on how we can play a pivotal role in midday meal to children so that pilferage does not happen and adequate nutrition is gained by the children who are our future. All spin-off technologies from DFRL go to rural and urban industries of the country helping educated youth build success stories.
We also train students who, after completion of the course, get jobs in food industry, quality control assessment etc. The job-oriented course is recognised by Mysore University and is held from September or October every year to May or June.
These are our mandates.
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| With DFRL Director Dr. H.V. Batra |
Shwetha: How are you different from CFTRI?
DFRL team: CFTRI has a different mandate from us. We have a targetted customer — Armed Forces. In the civil sector, we have all the gadgets to prepare and conserve food, whereas for armymen, guarding the country is of utmost priority and not food. But they need food to keep them in fighting shape.
To make it easier for the jawans, Dr. Sajeev Kumar has come out with a self-heating system where the pouch itself heats up the product inside it so that the soldier in a sub-zero area gets his food easily cooked within minutes.
Shwetha: What about technology transfer? Do you transfer the technology developed to private companies?
DFRL: Yes. We have been regularly transferring our technologies. Examples of industries who have used the technologies and prepared successful products are MTR, Aashirvaad, etc., who bring out ready-to-eat foods prepared by using our technology.
Shwetha: Do you yourself prepare food for the Army or transfer the job to outside industries?
DFRL: In small quantities, we prepare food for the Army. In case of emergency like Kargil war too, we had to provide a large amount of food. We have a production unit for emergency services like war or natural disaster.
Shwetha: A new invention?
DFRL: Foods that help a soldier to stay alert. Those who are fighting 24x7, don't have time to cook food. So we have prepared nutrition-rich 15 to 20 types of ready-to-eat products like bars and munches with lots of carbohydrates.
Shwetha: Foods that suppress sleep in soldiers. How do they work?
DFRL: There are some substances which block the receptors in the brain so that the person remains awake for a longer time without affecting their performance. We get the substances from natural sources.
Shwetha: Does not suppressing sleep affect the person's body? Because sleep is a natural instinct of man to get rest.
DFRL: No. Because any security-based operation needs alertness and the soldier should be necessarily awake. Like for example the Mumbai terror attack where the soldiers had to stay awake for three days and be alert, especially when there is no replacement possible. Then, in order to survive, they should stay alert and have energy.
Such foods are mainly used for small anti-naxal or such paramilitary and other operations.
Shwetha: How do you plan to increase the shelf-life of perishable foods as in our country lots of food is going waste due to improper storage methods.
DFRL: We are right now concentrating on perishable foods like tomato and pineapple. Due to their low shelf-life, farmers are either forced to sell them at very low prices or commit suicide unable to bear the burden of losses and debts. So we are encouraging farmers to prepare value-added products from such foods like sauces and jams with the help of local co-operative societies. Instead of committing suicide, farmers can use simple technologies, prepare products and sell them. We are demonstrating low cost food and vegetable storage in rural areas. Soon, without the use of electricity, villagers will be able to produce all sorts of foods that will stay for two months. The technology will be low cost.
Shwetha: What about food grains? How do you plan to preserve them?
DFRL: Dr. Kalam's vision includes this. Recently lots of wheat were lost in Punjab due to lack of storage methods. Now we are looking into grain storage in silos for two-three years. And the life of a silo is about 20 years.
Shwetha: You teach food technologies to rural people. Do they easily accept it and turn away from age-old methods?
DFRL: We are starting on a small scale with women entr-epreneurs and there is acceptance by villagers. After about six months or so, if permitted, we may go on a larger scale by conducting a national-level mela of rural technologies in food processing by all institutions including DFRL. State governments may like to take up these technologies and use them to help farmers and the economically backward.
Shwetha: What about the rampant malnutrition in India, especially in children?
DFRL: It is a big challenge to us as malnourished people wouldn't be so if they could afford nutritious food. About 50% of girls around the world are malnourished though they can afford good food. This is due to lack of awareness and the love for a slim body. There is a natural chemical Bromolin present in pineapple. It is helpful in reducing weight naturally. We are working on how to get it to reduce weight without leading to malnourishment. There are also herbal tea and other products which though nutritious, do not make you gain weight. We have to develop new technology wherein malnourishment can be taken care of at a low and affordable cost to the poor. There are many good research papers exploring feasible ideas in this direction but those researchers do not take it to the implementing stage.
Shwetha: What about your interaction with technology-based institutes of other countries?
DFRL: We were having some interaction with research institutes but still not on the expected lines for the very simple reason that our interaction with foreign countries is more related to technological components. They have better expertise in developing processes with the help of high-end equipments. However, we cannot take much help from them as their foods are fully different from Indian cuisine. They consume raw meat, sausages etc., for breakfast which is not possible in Indian cuisine.
Here is an example: Yogurt is nutritionally rich in protein, calcium, riboflavin, vitamin B6 and vitamin B12. It has nutritional benefits beyond those of milk. It is available in many forms all over the world and is stable at extreme temperatures. But our jawans say, "give us curd, we don't want yogurt." Their palates refuse yogurt as they are accustomed to the indigenous curd. Thus we cannot fully use foreign technology as our cuisine is different.
Thus DFRL was born...
Before Independence during the First World War, only the British soldiers of the army serving in India was supplied rations and allowances. Indian soldiers got just cash allowances and the food had to be arranged by themselves. Indian soldiers suffered from scurvy during World War I whereas the British soldiers remained unaffected. This led the authorities to supply food items to Indian soldiers also. However, during World War II, supply of rations became difficult due to rise in the cost of living. Malnutrition cases were commonly observed among Indian soldiers and food with higher nutritive values was recommended.However, after independence, our soldiers got traditionally preserved food. But it was difficult to protect food items from physical and chemical deterioration during storage, transport, handling and packaging. Indian defence troops include soldiers from rural background and diverse cultures. They often operate in either mountainous regions or in hostile weather conditions like extreme hot or extreme cold where transportation and communication facilities are not easily available. As fresh food is unavailable, they can survive only on packed food. Thus entered Defence Food Research Laboratory (DFRL) located in Mysore which provides simple-to-cook food for soldiers which can be preserved for six months to 1 year under extreme climatic conditions, apart from giving much-needed nutrition and energy.
DFRL was established in Mysore on Dec.28, 1961 under Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), Ministry of Defence, Govt. of India, with a view to meet the challenging needs of food by the Indian Army, Navy, Air Force and paramilitary forces. Before its inception, activities related to Food Science and Technology with special reference to Military Nutrition was being carried out by a small Food Group within the precincts of Defence Science Laboratory, Delhi. The lab has progressed under the leadership of its Directors Dr. P.K. Vijayaraghavan, Dr. H. Nath, Dr. T.R. Sharma, Dr. R. Sankaran, Dr. S.S. Arya and Dr. K. Santhanam, Dr. A.S. Bawa and now, Dr. Harsh Vardhan Batra.
The work by DFRL scientists get regularly published in the international journals of repute. A good number of patents are also being filed every year. Post Graduate Diploma Course: To benefit food processing, the laboratory runs a 10-month Post Graduate Diploma Course in Food Analysis and Quality Assurance affiliated to Mysore University, the students of which are employed in food industry.
Bars, chikkies, fruit slices: A 'snacky' refreshment
The lab does not just produce meals, but also snacks — nutritionally balanced and high in energy — like cereal and fruit bars, chikkis, halwa, egg biscuits, fruit slices and so on to keep the soldiers on their toes and happy. Earlier, these energy bars were used by sports-persons who were involved in strong physical activities and therefore, needed greater source of energy during peak performance. But today, due to the increasing focus on nutrition and healthy food habits and an increasing number of people involved in greater physical activities, energy bars have become a perfect choice as energy sources.
These energy bars are prepared either using compression technology or using different binders of choice.
The bars contain wide range of nutrients as well as sufficient amount of proteins, fats, and carbohydrates and are available in smaller packets or pouches, light in weight, very convenient to carry.
There are different types of energy bars referred to by different names such as protein bars, meal replacement bars, granola bars, neutraceutical bars, breakfast bars, health bars and so on.
DFRL has developed different types of energy bars such as compressed tasty bar, composite cereal bar (protein rich), sweet and sour tasty bar, flaxoat tasty bar (rich in soluble fibre), soya-fortified oat bar, ergogenic bar (energy dense), barley bar (rich in soluble fibre ß-glucan), omega-3-rich bar (rich in omega-3-fatty acids), fibre enriched bar, coco-cocoa delight bar (antioxidant and fibre rich), and bars for desert and high altitude to cater to the requirements of the Armed Forces.
Each bar provides maximum health benefits with a calorific value ranging from 400-540 kCal with shelf-life of 6-15 months.
Serving tasty chapathis to jawans
Preservation of chapathis has great importance in operational pack rations of Armed Forces. The freshly prepared chapathis have limited shelf-life of 12-24 hour and later becomes unpalatable due to moisture loss, development of off-flavour and microbial spoilage. Hence, attempts were made to preserve chapathis using antimycotic agents like sorbic acid, propionic acid and other ingredients with shelf-life of one year.
These chapathis, however, were not acceptable due to bitter aftertaste of preservative and brittle/hard texture during storage. To overcome this, chapathis were prepared by lowering the concentration of sorbic acid along with natural biopreservative nisin.
With an aim to prepare chapathis without additives and having a shelf-life of one year at ambient temperature, the DFRL team started extensive research and developed chapathis with natural sensory attributes and additives using thermal processing.
Chapathi makers: Leg-operated, semi-automatic and automatic chapathi making machines are the major inventions of DFRL. The leg-operated machine produces 200 chapathis per hour. It may also be used to prepare pooris and papads.
Non-veg delights: The jawans, who miss home-made non-vegetarian food neednot despair as DFRL has also taken up producing yummy non-veg dishes like chicken pulav, meat chunks (mutton & chicken) which can be reconstituted into meat curry, shrimps etc., as also instant mutton soup and chicken soup powders rich in protein which can be consumed after adding hot water. The Army personnel deployed in icy heights like Siachen and Kargil can now expect mutton and chicken biryanis or non-veg sandwiches with all nutrients and home-made taste.
Freeze dried food and drinks like fruit juice powders, fruit slices, herbs juice, electrolyte drinks flavoured with orange, apple, cucumber etc., quench the thirst of Army personnel who sometimes have to walk for long distances carrying a heavy backpack.
Testing kits: Kits to test milk, meat, microbial presence like E.coli etc., have been developed by DFRL which can be very beneficial to farmers, industries and also the Health Department which can use them to check the quality of the food at hotels and meat-sellers.
Moving ahead with technology
DFRL doesnot just produce foods. It has been trying its hands, very successfully, at developing various technologies. Retort pouch processing, Food additives, Cold shock dehydration, Accelerated freeze dehydration, Flaking, Fluidised beds — Drying of cereals, pulses and vegetables, Spray drying, Hurdle processing and preservation, Intermediate Moisture (IM) foods, Microencapsulation, HTST processing, Extrusion, Thermal processing of food in aluminum containers (canning), Combination dehydration, Stack encapsulation, Extension of the shelf life of fresh fruits & vegetables, Self-heating system, High pressure processing, Pulsed electric field processing, Infrared processing, Irradiation etc.Nanotechnology: The programme on nanotechnology — studies on the application of nanotechnology in nutrition, food additives, biotechnology and packaging (estimated cost Rs. 18.25 crores) will be taken up soon.
The other programme in the pipeline is on the development of food products to improve combat efficiency at high altitudes. In addition, the programme to develop systems and products for detection of bio-threat pathogens and toxins in food and water is also submitted for the approval. By this, anti-hunger RTE foods, convenience mixes and drinks and establishment of their shelf-life, development of ready-to-eat bars / chocolates with natural / synthetic ingredients to keep troops awake and alert will be developed.
Know what our jawans eat
Meals-Ready-To-Eat (MRE) for Indian Army: This ration does not require any cooking since the contents are thermally processed. It can be consumed readily after a little warming if required. The pack consists of chapathis, sooji halwa (300 g), vegetable pulav (300 g), potato peas curry (300 g), chocolate bar and tea (3 servings). Items like spoon, tissue paper, matchbox, specially designed foldable stove and fuel tablets for warming the food are also included.MRE for Marine Commandos of Navy: They may land in unknown and hostile territories as part of their duties. Hence they need specialised rations with required calories, easy to carry and of high quality. DFRL's food for them is based on mutton, chicken and a vegetarian food. The ration packet provides approximately 3300-3800 calories / day and weighs less than a kg.
One Man Compo Pack: It consists of early morning tea, breakfast, mid morning tea, lunch, evening tea and dinner. It is easy to reconstitute by using hexamine fuel tablets. Weight is 880g.
Mini Combo Pack Ration: It contains Sooji Halwa mix (100g) and pre-cooked dehydrated vegetable pulav (125 g) along with 3 times tea, weighing about 400 g.
Survival Ration: It consists of 2 pieces of soft bar each of 100 gm, 3 pieces of chikki each of 50 gms and 3 pieces of chikki (Jaggery base) each of 50 gms.
Main Battle Tank (MBT) Ration: Being a major achievement of DFRL, it helps in the survival of a soldier who is in closed conditions for 3 days. First and second day ration packs weigh 2 kg each and provide 4000 calories and third day ration weigh 1.5 kg and gives 3000 calories.
Operation Vijay: DFRL processed and supplied 50,000 survival rations and 30,000 MRE rations to the Army for Kargil operation at a very short notice of only 48 hours. Besides, it supplied 1,000 MRE rations to Navy and 125 MRE rations to Air Force Station, Pune.
Other food items: There is less oxygen at high altitudes. Armymen in areas like Siachen and Kargil in the Himalayas suffer from acidity and feel their stomach always full. Thus they tend to lose appetite, eat less food and lose weight. DFRL found solution for this by developing appetiser foods and drinks which can be consumed 30 minutes or one hour before a meal. These are based on lemon, ginger, ash gourd, cumin or curd-based. Sea-buckthorn grown in Himalayas are rich in minerals and antioxidants which help in controlling ageing, cataract, diabetes. Biscuits and squash are prepared using its fruits and leaves.
Tender coconut water: DFRL has developed a technology to preserve tender coconut water for up to six months at room temperature and up to nine months under refrigeration with thermal treatment and a bio preservative.
Minimally processed vegetables: It is a latest technology by which a variety of tropical, subtropical and temperate vegetables like cauliflower, cabbage, carrot, beet-root, potato, sweet potato, sponge gourd, ridge gourd, radish, papaya raw, mango raw and French beans etc., are proce-ssed. It does not include any thermal treatment. This retains the freshness of vegetables for a longer period. They are safe from microorganisms besides being rich in ascorbic acid.
DFRL's technologies for food preparation and preservation include: Freeze-Thaw dehydration technology (6.25 tons of instant khichadi was supplied to victims in Gujarat earthquake); Self-heating packets with three components — one of food and other two of a special liquid and a chemical powder. By connecting the liquid and the chemical powder compartments, heat is generated due to chemical reaction. This heat is transferred to the compartment of food and cooks it in a few minutes; Packaging the food using technologies like hot air drying, foam-mat drying, freeze drying etc., retort pouches, jute bags or high density polyethylene woven sacks, etc.
Preserving environs: DFRL has also developed a biodegradable package material as the normal material may pollute the enivornment in high altitude areas like Himalayas.
