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Everyone loves a hot, cheap meal: Amma Canteen then vs now
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Amma Canteens were started as a welfare measure to provide people with healthy, hygienic meals at highly affordable costs. Over the decade, their number has come down across the State, the quality of food has been watered down, the supplies have been whittled down. Yet, they remain popular in some areas.
Over a decade after the Tamil Nadu government opened Amma Canteens to improve food security for people of the State, the outlets are still operational, though signs of distress are visible everywhere. In terms of government support and clientele, not to mention the quality of food, they are a pale shadow of what they were.
Launched on February 24, 2013, on the birthday of then Chief Minister Jayalalithaa, Amma Canteens (or Unavagams) initially opened in Chennai. Soon, they were expanded to different towns and cities. In the city, the number grew to 407. The municipalities and the corporations ran the canteens, subsidised heavily with the provisions offered by the Civil Supplies Department. The target was to operate 1,000 outlets. Idlis and pongal for the breakfast, with piping hot sambar and chutney, and sambar rice and curd rice for lunch — all priced under ₹5 — were made available to daily-wage workers, students rushing to schools, people of itinerant communities, those leaving for work early in the morning, and even software employees living away from their home towns.
V. Vasudevan, an autorickshaw driver in Chennai, captures the present through the prism of the past: “On a busy day, stopping by any Amma Unavagam in the city would be the healthiest break for many. But, these days, many canteens are closed and some do not operate regularly. Earlier, side dishes were practically unlimited, but now they are restricted at certain Amma Unavagams.”
The State government operates Amma Canteens in several districts. Chennai leads with 399 canteens, followed by Salem, 15; Tiruchi, 14; Madurai, 12; Coimbatore, 10; Tiruppur and Tirunelveli, 10 each; and Thoothukudi, 8. Around Chennai, there are two canteens each at Tambaram, Pallavaram, Maramalai Nagar, and Kancheepuram and one each at Chengalpattu, Anakaputhur, Pammal, Madurantakam, and Sembakkam. Before the bifurcation of Vellore district that included the present-day Ranipet and Tirupattur districts, 11 canteens were opened by Jayalalithaa in 2015. Cheyyar, Arani, Vandavasi, Tirupattur, Jolarpettai, Vaniyambadi, Ambur, Gudiyatham, Peranampattu, Ranipet, Walajapet, Arakkonam, Melvisharam, and Arcot have one canteen each. This is not a comprehensive figure: the status of many canteens remains unknown.
Purpose not served: These days, many canteens are closed and some do not operate regularly. A canteen in Thoothukudi.
| Photo Credit:
N. RAJESH
Free food during floods
These days, pongal and idlis are served for breakfast. For lunch, tomato rice, curry leaf rice, and lemon rice, apart from curd rice and sambar rice, are served. Dinner options include chapathi and dal. The prices have been the same since 2013: idli is priced at ₹1 apiece, two chapathis are priced at ₹3 with side dish, curd rice with pickle at ₹3 per serving, and other rice varieties at ₹5 per serving. These canteens also came to the rescue of people during the floods in 2015 and 2023 and during the COVID-19 lockdown, when they provided free food to those who were stranded.
In Chennai, 399 canteens have been functioning since 2022. Deputy Mayor M. Magesh Kumaar says some outlets in remote areas had to be closed because of low footfall. It may be recalled that after coming to power, the DMK said it would not disrupt the functioning of these canteens. In 2020, the then Chief Minister, Edappadi K. Palaniswami, launched three Amma Canteens on wheels in Chennai. Each vehicle cost ₹5.6 lakh. The status of these vehicles is also unknown. However, a councillor says the issue will be discussed at the next meeting of the Greater Chennai Corporation (GCC) Council.
Initially, the government hit upon the much-lauded strategy of tasking women’s self-help groups with running these canteens. Cost-cutting, downsizing, poor building infrastructure, reduction in supplies, and lack of salary increases have been the complaints of the workers over the years. AIADMK organisation secretary and former Minister D. Jayakumar says he has received complaints about the decline in food quality at these canteens, and the government must address the issues.
Kannamma (name changed) was employed for 10 years at a kitchen that supplies to the canteens at Korattur and Madanankuppam. She had taken a break from the work because of health issues. She claims that the Korattur canteen initially received 20,000 customers a day and the number had come down to 4,000 a day a couple of years ago. It now hovers around 1,400-1,500 a day.
‘Supplies cut down’
She says, “Provisions are not provided regularly. Earlier, the workers could request for the provisions whenever there was a requirement; now, there is a schedule to be followed. For instance, roughly four years ago, 45 kg of toor dal would be used a month for preparing sambar and sambar rice. This has been reduced to 5 kg a month. As against four litres of curd a day, we now use just one litre. The same holds good for the supply of sesame and groundnut oil, wheat, and rice. As a result, the quality has come down.” Ward 84 councillor J. John confirms her statement. A list prepared at one of the canteens near Ambattur reveals that 16 kg of polished rice, 4 kg of parboiled rice, and 6.5 kg of urad dal are used for serving 1,000 customers.
Even the utensils and kitchen equipment have not been replaced in a decade and are beyond repair, she adds. Often, the workers would have to pay out of their own pockets for repairs, without any reimbursement from the Corporation.
The initial Corporation budget estimate for the financial year 2022-23 indicated an expenditure of ₹22 lakh for canteen equipment, but the revised estimate showed no expense. Similarly, ₹2 lakh was projected as expenditure for equipment in 2023-24, but the revised estimate showed no expenditure under this head.
Muniyammal, a member of an SHG who works at a canteen in south Chennai, says toilets have not been repaired since the rain last year. The tiles had broken and are slippery at many canteens, including those in Tiruvottiyur, Pattaravakkam, Ambattur, Maduravoyal, and Korattur. The building of the Pattaravakkam canteen has developed cracks.
G. Shanthakumari, chairperson of the Standing Committee (Public Health), GCC, says that after an audit of the canteens in the Chennai Corporation limits, all the shortcomings will be set right at an estimated cost of ₹5 crore. “Those centres with good sales, but lacking amenities, will be prioritised and those that are in the worst condition will come next. Cluster kitchens will be established and free biannual health clinics for workers will be introduced,” she adds.
When the government undertakes repairs to the canteen buildings, it should ensure barrier-free access for persons with disabilities, says C. Jayaprabha of the Differently Abled Research and Development Organisation.
The canteens at Vaniyambadi, Arani, Ambur, and Tiruvannamalai are said to lack proper power backup. They are poorly lit, and have dirty floors and leaky taps.
D. Karthikeyan, Secretary of the Municipal Administration and Water Supplies Department, says he has received no complaints about the Amma Canteens so far. He adds, “Regular audits of the canteens are taking place and will continue. A meeting can be held with the respective local bodies for addressing the problems.”
Still relevant
There is no doubt that these canteens still play a key role in feeding people who struggle for a square meal every day. S. Rajendran, an economist at Gandhigram Rural University, notes that the Amma Canteens do not operate on a profit model. They are based on a welfare concept aimed at providing food security to the urban poor. He also suggests that the project be expanded with funds from private agencies, under the corporate social responsibility initiative, or from NGOs or philanthropists.
K. Parthsarathy, 41, of Ennore says thousands line up every day at the outlet at Thalankuppam in north Chennai, though the taste of the food has come down over the years. “Despite the mushrooming of roadside eateries, many people, especially pushcart pullers and small vendors, prefer the Amma Canteens. However, poor maintenance of these canteens is a big worry,” says V. Mariappan, a trader at Vellore. M. Murali, 67, a lorry driver, feels that an Amma Canteen is a healthier option than roadside stalls. He is unhappy that he is not able to spot as many canteens as before while driving through the State.
Even if taste goes for a toss and healthy eating is not a consideration, the cost is. S. Velmurugan, a construction worker in Tiruchi, says, “I have been coming here for the past one year to have breakfast. Although the menu is outdated, the quality of the food is good. I pay only ₹5 for breakfast.” This would not be possible anywhere, he adds. These canteens have also fed lakhs of patients and their attendants at government hospitals, and still do. S. Mangala Eswari of Virudhunagar says the Amma Canteen at the Tirunelveli Medical College Hospital became a saviour for her family when she admitted her mother-in-law there for treatment.
Even as the government continues to navigate the challenges of running these canteens, it must focus on providing affordable, nutritious food to the people.
(With inputs from D. Madhavan in Vellore, P. Sudhakar in Tirunelveli, C. Palanivel Rajan in Madurai, Ancy Donal Madonna in Tiruchi, M. Sabari in Salem, Avantika Krishna in Coimbatore, and R. Srikanth in Chennai)
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