Problems aplenty at Tamil Nadu's Amma unavagams

From poor infrastructure to increasing working hours of canteen staff, problems are aplenty at Amma Unavagams. 
(Top) A man having lunch inside an Amma Unavagam on Demellows Road in Chennai;
(Top) A man having lunch inside an Amma Unavagam on Demellows Road in Chennai;

CHENNAI: From poor infrastructure to increasing working hours of canteen staff, problems are aplenty at Amma Unavagams. While lack of adequate funding has been a major issue for one of the most popular projects launched by late chief minister J Jayalalithaa, regular customers are slowly shying away from the outlets due to lack of variety in the menu. Express takes a look at the state of Amma Canteens across  Tamil Nadu...

The fishermen of Tsunami Quarters in Ennore were regular customers at the Amma Unavagam in Chennai Corporation’s Ward 3 of Zone 1 since it was set up two years ago. But, of late, they prefer to eat at other food stalls. ‘‘I only come here when I have absolutely no money. Otherwise, I go to the nearby stalls as they provide chutney and kuruma which the Amma Unavagam doesn’t,’’ said R Devarajan, a fisherman.

It is complaints such as this that have affected the patronage of Amma Unavagams across the State, although the canteens remain vital to certain segments. With idlis available for Rs 1, chapatis for Rs 1.50 and rice varieties for Rs 3, the canteens are beloved by students, labourers, the poor and homeless — groups late Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa had in mind when she created the scheme in 2013. 

While 200 canteens were set up initially, now there are 407 across the State now. The popularity of the Amma Unavagams was such that the project was replicated in Karnataka as Indira Canteens. While the project was seen as a welfare initiative and never intended to make profits, its sales have been declining. According to the 2019-20 Tamil Nadu Budget, the income from Amma Canteens for 2017-18 was Rs 30.46 crore. In 2018-19 it decreased to Rs 27.05 crore. The income estimate for 2019-20 is 
Rs 29.40 crore. 

The entrance of an Amma Canteen in Madurai |
DEBADATTA MALLICK, express

Take the six-year-old canteen in Burma Nagar in Chennai’s Zone 1. A member of the Self Help Group (SHG) there said six years ago, daily sales ranged from Rs 10,000 to Rs 15,000. ‘‘Today, we make Rs 900 at breakfast, about Rs 550 for lunch and Rs 600 in the evening to make a total of Rs 2,000… In four years, a number of idlis sold per day has fallen from 1,500 to 650’’ she said.   

Decline across the State

This decline in patronage can be seen in other cities as well. “Every day we sell 1,200 idlis and 250 plates of sambar and curd rice. Earlier we sold around 300 plates of the rice varieties. There has been a marginal dip in sales”, says a worker in the Jan Bazaar Amma Canteen in Tiruchy.

The SHG members who run the canteens said a failure to upgrade their menu and poor maintenance had led to a fall in patronage. However, official responses indicate that changes in menu have been put off and cuts in food stock made to reduce losses. Ironically this has left the project hamstrung. Cuts in food stock purchases seem to have been made across the board, affecting even canteens which enjoy good patronage such as the Amma Unavagam functioning out of the Coimbatore Medical College Hospital premises. This particular canteen is the most popular of the 12 in Coimbatore district with 1,250 idlis getting sold out in hours. 

“Patients or visitors who come a bit late are forced to leave hungry and some chide us for not preparing more food to meet the demand,” said a worker who did not wish to be named. The staff at the canteen said they were allowed to take only 50kg of rice per day for cooking breakfast and lunch.

Infrastructural woes
Infrastructural woes are also a concern. Staff said customers stopped coming as fans don’t run and tables aren’t replaced. The 2019-20 budget allocated for maintenance costs is Rs 12.7 crore, Rs 2 crore more than in the previous year’s revised estimate. Express visited several canteens in Chennai and found many infrastructure issues. 

‘‘It has been three months since the exhaust fans stopped working. We are not able to stand in the kitchen to make chapatis,’’ said an SHG member at a Zone 1 canteen, adding that the 12 members had pooled their own money to repair the fan, in the hope that they would be reimbursed later.
In Zone 5, an Amma Canteen in Choolai had no tables. In the same canteen, the roof was broken and taps weren’t working. ‘‘Funds are insufficient. The salary for 12 staff is about Rs 1.1 lakh while our canteen hardly makes Rs 50,000 a month,’’ said an SHG member in Ennore.

These issues affected customers’ perception of the canteens. In Madurai, Latha, a housewife at  Ramarayar Mandapam where there is a canteen said, “The canteens must be maintained properly. Unfortunately, the appearance of the canteen is such that it makes people hesitant to enter into it.”

Old menus 
Express spoke to SHG members working at the canteens in Madurai, Coimbatore, Chennai and Tiruchy. All were united in the view that a change in menu would improve sales. “Many of our regulars say they want a change. How long can anyone eat the same food? The government needs to update the menu,” said a worker at an Amma Unavagam near the railway junction in Tiruchy.

Customers agreed. P Krishna Kumar, an auto driver in Flower Market in Coimbatore said, “I am a regular customer of this canteen. Though the food is priced at nominal rates, as a customer I would like to have a variety of food.” Senior officials in Coimbatore, however, said, “Any change of food menu must come from the top.” 

“In my opinion, the present menu is enough. Adding more items to the menu will cause wastage,” said Raj Kannu, who is in charge of the Amma Canteen at the Madurai Government Rajaji Hospital. 
This appears to be a key concern of officials — how to fund the scheme while keeping costs low. “It has been difficult to manage funding. We are using common funds to run the canteen,” said a senior official in Ponmalai Municipal Corporation.According to an estimate from one zonal office in Tiruchy, which runs two canteens, the average cost was around Rs 3 lakh a month, while revenue was around Rs 1 lakh.

Stagnant wages, longer shifts
SHG members have been forced to face the brunt of the revenue problem, many said. When thecanteens were opened the daily wage was set at Rs 300 in Chennai. Six years later, there has been no hike, they said. As the jobs are not permanent, the SHG members complained they had no job security. The Chennai corporation has also been trimming the staff. “For every zone, we have just been cutting two workers. We have no plans to cut stafff at the moment,’’ said an official.

Shift timings too have changed. ‘‘One year ago, they cut the number of shifts from three to two. We start at 5 am now and go till 1 pm. This has made it difficult for us to get our children ready for school,’’ said the SHG member in Burma Nagar. In Coimbatore, the shifts are from 4am to 10am and 9am to 4pm, forcing the women to travel to work in the wee hours. Their wages are only Rs 250 per day. 
“We are not happy with this low paid job but still we continue doing it as a service to the people,” lamented an SHG member in Coimbatore.

Still loved by regulars
Despite all the problems plaguing the Amma Canteens, they still have their regular customers. For K Rajivi, an ITI student in Madurai, the Amma Canteen is where he can be assured of a hearty breakfast at low prices. 

“For the last two years I have regularly been having my breakfast here. The quality has never dipped. All I spend is Rs 4 for breakfast. Is there any other place in the city, where I can have food for the same cost?” asked Maghendran, a college student in Tiruchy. 

Affection for Jaya
Although the canteens are bleeding, the way it has empowered women has left the workers with a special affection for Jayalalithaa. ‘‘If she was there, she would have surely upgraded the menu and would have taken care of us,’’ said an SHG member in Ennore.

(With inputs from: Deepak Sathish in Coimbatore, Baranidharan C in Erode, Vinodh Arulappan in Madurai and Jayakumar Madala in Tiruchy)

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