The pressure that released empty boxes

CHENNAI: Recently, Dairy Minister SM Nasar, in the presence of the media, launched 10 new Aavin products. He also explained about them, posed for a photoshoot, recorded a video and even held a press meet.

But soon, we found that the Minister had launched only empty boxes and not real products. During the function, the boxes were assembled in front of the table. When we looked inside them, they were empty.

As journalists, it’s our job to attend product launches, especially by the government. When it’s Aavin, very few journos abstain, as we get to taste some of the products that are rarely found at Aavin stores.

Among the 10 new products that were supposedly launched, the names of few got our taste buds tickling. So, imagine our surprise when some of us approached Aavin officials to taste jackfruit ice-cream, only to be told that only a few products would be available in the market immediately, and that jackfruit ice cream was not one of them.

However, the biggest disappointment will definitely be the public who’d not be finding any of the newly launched products anywhere.

When we questioned the officials about the empty boxes, they said that they were under immense pressure to release the products at the earliest, as the State government had announced the launch in the Assembly a year ago.