What is "pakhala"

Pakhaḷa is an Odia term for an Indian food consisting of cooked rice washed or little fermented in water. The liquid part is known as Toraṇi. It is popular in Odisha, Bengal, Assam, Jharkhand and Chhattisgarh. The Bengali name for this dish is Panta Bhat, in Chhattisgarh it's called Bore Bhat, in Jharkhand different linguistic communities use different names like Paani Bhat, Paakhaal or Pakhala and in Assam it's called Poita Bhat. Eating pakhal has been recommended to prevent heat stroke in hot weather. A traditional Odia dish, it is also prepared with rice, curd, cucumber, cumin seeds, fried onions and mint leaves. It is popularly served with roasted vegetables—such as potato, brinjal, badi or saga bhaja—or fried fish.