The Hindu                     07.04.2013

Tiruchi eagerly awaits ‘Amma Unavagam’

The concept of providing affordable food has been widely welcomed.

Although Chief Minister Jayalalithaa announced various
welfare programmes in the recent past, the scheme of establishing the
budget restaurants, popularly known as
Amma Unavagam
, through Chennai Corporation in the nook and corner of the metro is the
talk of the town, not only in the State capital, but also throughout
the State.

No sooner the
Amma Unavagams
were opened in Chennai, people of other parts of the State started
demanding similar facility in their cities and towns too. Understanding
the mood of the people, the Chief Minister a few days ago came with
another announcement that this scheme would be extended to other
corporations too, much to the delight of the residents of all the major
cities in the State. Even before the programme is finalised, this scheme
has aroused serious expectations in Tiruchi city.

Tiruchirapalli City Corporation has started scouting for places to open budget restaurants.

Although
corporation authorities are tight-lipped on the details like number of
canteens to come up, the canteens in the city are to be opened soon.

The
anxiety of the common people is not without reason. With the prices of
essential commodities skyrocketing, the lower income and middle income
groups are at their wits end to make both the ends meet. On their part,
the hotels and the other roadside eateries too have increased the prices
of eatables.

While two idlis in descent hotels now
cost Rs. 20, vadai is priced at Rs. 12, curd vadai Rs. 20, sambar idli
Rs. 24, Pongal Rs. 32, Poori Rs. 33, dosai Rs. 33, Rava dosai Rs. 33,
ghee roast Rs. 45, masal dosai and onion dosai Rs. 42, meals ranging
from Rs. 50 to Rs. 75 and special meals from Rs. 75 to Rs.100.

More than anything else, it is the rock-bottom rates of the eatables which have made
Amma Unavagams
a big hit. While a piece of idli costs just one rupee, the price of
sambar rice is fixed at Rs. 5 and the curd rice Rs. 3. Managed by
members of the women’s self-help groups, these canteens have been found
very comfortable to the office-goers, particularly those staying away
from family. Hence, this programme has evoked widespread support of the
people within a short period.

The popularity of this
project could be gauged from the fact that in the initial days, the
low-cost canteens sold 1.3 lakh units a day and queues were noticed in
all restaurants during the peak hours. The restaurants, if established
in Tiruchi, will enjoy the same patronage, says J. Alexander, a chess
coach.

Hundreds of people flock to the roadside
eateries on the Big Bazar Street and Nethaji Subash Chandra Bose Road,
which function only for two hours in the night (10 p.m. to midnight),
for the sole reason of getting cheap stuff, he adds.

Tiruchi,
due to its strategic location and the presence of renowned places of
worship and tourist spots, attracts a huge floating population
round-the-clock. The tourists and devotees visiting the neighbouring
districts too, make Tiruchi a transit point. As such, the Chief Minister
should accord priority to opening the budget restaurants within
Tiruchirapalli City Corporation limits, observe a cross-section of
people. Hailing this as a great move by the government, they say that
this project generated employment besides providing food at subsidised
prices. The State government and Tiruchirapalli City Corporation should
introduce this scheme early, many say adding that initially they should
be set up near the railway junction, central and Chathiram bus stands
and also in Government Headquarters Hospital.

With
the construction industry employing a large number of workers and the
small scale industrial units accounting for equal number of workers,
such canteens will prove a boon to them, says S. Kumar, a construction
worker from Somarasampettai.

The State government is
providing subsidy for the supply of eatables at subsidised rates. This
programme should be restricted only to poor people, says M. Akbar
Hussain, running a bicycle repair shop on the Pudukottai Road. Well off
people could still take food in these canteens, but by paying a higher
price. This would reduce the burden on the government subsidy, he says.

Senior
citizens recall that a few decades ago, the government introduced
janata meals in all hotels. The price of the full-fledged meals was
priced at Rs. 1. Although widely welcomed by the people, the scheme
fizzled out within no time, because of the absence of a mechanism to
monitor and further strengthening it. This scheme should not meet the
fate of the janata meals, cautions Jayalakshmi, a former Union
government employee.