Rohtak varsity's food-truck at Rashtrapati Bhawan's Purple Fest

Dafeteria, the food-truck start-up of Maharshi Dayanand University (MDU), Rohtak, has been selected to serve at Purple Fest-2025 being organised at the Rashtrapati Bhawan in New Delhi from March 20 to March 30.

The Purple Fest is an annual celebration organised by the Union Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment through its Department of Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities to honour the abilities and contributions of persons with disabilities across the nation.

Dafeteria is the first university-incubated food-truck start-up of the MDU, established under its Centre for Innovation, Incubation and Entrepreneurship (CIIE).

It is run by speech and hearing-impaired as well as other students from the Institute of Hotel & Tourism Management (IHTM) and the Centre for Disability Studies.

The idea, conceptualised by Padmajai, is being operated by student-entrepreneurs Sahil and Mandeep under the mentorship of Prof (Dr) Ashish Dahiya, Director, IHTM.

Only 10 food outlets were selected from across the country to be part of the Purple Fest at Rashtrapati Bhawan, and Dafeteria is the only university-run initiative among these.

MDU Vice-Chancellor Prof Rajbir Singh and Rehabilitation Council of India chairperson Dr Sharanjeet Kaur visited Dafeteria at the Purple Fest.

Padma Shri awardee and India’s first woman paralympic medalist Dr Deepa Malik interacted with the MDU team and appreciated the initiative.

Rajesh Aggarwal, Secretary, Department of Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities, Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment, and Amit Gothwal, executive chef to the President, also lauded the Dafeteria menu and service quality.