India, May 7 -- Everyone likes rewari, but is anyone likely to street-hop in Lucknow in search of this seasonal (winter) sweet? Unlikely. Indeed, the capital of Awadhi cuisine, recognised by Unesco as a global city of gastronomy, is better known for its meat preparations. Try telling that to the Uttar Pradesh government, which has pitched rewari and malai makhan as the signature dishes of Lucknow. Meat dishes are entirely missing from the district-wise culinary map prepared under the One District-One Cuisine (ODOC) scheme. So, out go biryanis, kebabs and korma that reflect the layered and cosmopolitan history of food in India's most populous state as much as chaat preparations and sweet dishes do. ODOC is a Rs.150-crore scheme that aims to brand, market, and export the state's signature dishes. What it has proposed is a culinary genocide that seeks to erase a regional cuisine heritage with public funds. Food defines culture and history. For instance, the Awadh region of the state is a melting pot of different culinary cultures reflecting the kings, caravans, and khansamas, who passed through it or settled there over centuries. It is a history and an inheritance the state should celebrate. The rich cuisine diversity could be the topping the state's tourism economy desperately needs. The insipid taste of ODOC has much to do with the government's misplaced endeavors to promote vegetarianism. The government has even weaponised vegetarianism in the name of faith in a state where 53% women and 64% men consume meat daily, weekly, or occasionally as per the National Family Health Survey-5. Food is a thing of joy, not a faultline. Azamgarh's white carrot halwa should be relished along with its Kalika biryani; Hamirpur's Bundeli dal-based preparations, or the petha and peda of Agra and Mathura should be celebrated along with Kakori kebab and haleem. Let a thousand dishes bloom....