Children are not the only people unhappy with the ban on Maggi noodles.
The detectives investigating the red sanders racket in Chittoor district are complaining that the ban has come as a hiccup to their interrogation of two Chinese men in their custody on suspicion of being smugglers of the contraband wood.
Even since their detention, police have struggled to break through the language barrier to extract information from Chen Yi Fian and Yang Ping. As for the food problem, police found Maggi noodles handy in keeping the detainees well fed. But, with the ban now in force, they have had to turn to a local make of noodles, which isn’t quite kosher for the Chinese men, police officials say.
Of the two, Chen has been more discomfited by the sudden removal of Maggi from his menu. Unlike Yang, he has had little time to adjust to prison rations, and Maggi became his staple food. Chen was arrested by the Chittoor police in New Delhi on May 30 and is currently being interrogated at Chittoor and Madanapalle.
Since Andhra Pradesh imposed a ban on Maggi, Chen’s minders had to requisition noodles from a local hotel in Chittoor, which made the prisoner dizzy. “Noodles form the main part of the menu of the Chinese. We are getting him used to South Indian items like dosa, puri and idli, but Chen’s preference is noodles,” the official said.
Chen came to India as a tourist and, fearuful of a Delhi Belly, developed a taste for Maggi noodles. But since the ban on Maggi, Chen has been off colour. “He finds the local noodles sticky. We are going to try some other brands,” an officer said.
The other Chinese detainee, Yang, has had more time to adjust to prison food, although he too turned to Maggi to get by.
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