The Bathini family will distribute their traditional “fish prasadam” to people suffering from asthma and other respiratory issues on June 8-9. The event will start at 11 a.m. on June 8 at Exhibition Grounds, Nampally, and continue until 11 a.m. on June 9.
Bathini Vishwanatham Goud, president of the Bathini Mrigasira Trust, announced that all arrangements are being made for the distribution of the fish prasadam. Asthma patients from across the Telugu states and other parts of the country come each year in June, hoping to find relief.
This year’s event marks the first since the passing of Bathini Harinath Goud, the family patriarch, who died last June at age 84 after a prolonged illness. Harinath Goud was the last of the fourth-generation Gouds to distribute the free fish medicine, continuing the tradition for three decades after his elder brothers’ deaths.
The Bathini Goud family claims to have distributed this medicine free of charge for 178 years, using a secret herbal formula given to their ancestor by a saint in 1845. The medicine is administered on “Mrigasira Karti,” which signals the onset of the monsoon in the first week of June.
The process involves placing a yellow herbal paste in the mouth of a live murrel fish fingerling, which is then slipped down the patient’s throat. It is believed to provide relief if taken for three consecutive years. For vegetarians, the medicine is given with jaggery.
Despite controversies over the years, including claims that the herbal paste contains harmful heavy metals, the Goud family insists that court-ordered lab tests have confirmed its safety. Critics, including groups promoting scientific temper, have labeled the treatment a fraud, leading the family to rebrand it as “fish prasadam.”
Even with declining numbers, many people still flock to the event each year, seeking relief from their respiratory ailments. The Bathini family has requested government departments to assist in ensuring the event runs smoothly, as in previous years.