Indian railway employee requests weeklong vacation to eat chicken

June 23 (UPI) -- A railway employee in India requested time off from work to eat chicken to prepare for a month of fasting.

Pankaj Raj, a TA-2 employee in the Chattisgarh district, made the unusual request for a week off to eat as much chicken as possible before Shravan, an annual festival during which practicing Hindus abstain from eating meat.

"Since Shravan is to begin soon, I will not be able to touch non-vegetarian food for the entire month. Grant me one week's leave from June 20 to June 27 so that I can eat enough chicken to build energy to work," he wrote.

Raj said he would eat chicken every day during his vacation so he would be able to reserve enough energy to complete his work during the fasting period.

It was unclear whether Raj's handwritten request was approved by his employer, but the note did feature a stamp from a station master near the bottom left corner.