Tough times or good, Amma Unavagam is a boon for low wage employees

Coimbatore: For a low wage employees like Anbu, a resident of Ukkadam, Amma unavagam, a canteen set up the then Chief Minister Jayalalitha for the people has come as a rescue.


Coimbatore: For a low wage employees like Anbu, a resident of Ukkadam, Amma unavagam, a canteen set up the then Chief Minister Jayalalitha for the people has come as a rescue.

Anbu, who begs on the Coimbatore Municipal Corporation office on being asked says that his only source of income is through begging and that he spends less money on food.

He also says during the lockdown only Amma Unavagam has helped him get food when the whole hotels in the city was shut.

“I used to walk to Coimbatore Government hospital where the Amma unavagam is and eat food for free of cost. It has come as a rescue to many people like including low wage employees”.

A labourer who works in the Amma canteen said that the canteen served food for free of cost to the public during lockdown and that many had come here.

Anbu is not alone as a sixty years old Ramanathapuram resident Balan joins the same category. Balan, a sugar factory labor says that he is fully dependent on the amma canteen and is also the regular customer there.

The step to keep open the canteens by the state government and corporation officers, have addressed many people needs.

Sumathi, a staff at Amma Unavagam at Ramanathapuram 80ft road says that while many have been locked inside home and sent back to their native, few employees here at the city have been a regular customer to our canteen as everything else was shut.



She says that over 1,200 idly’s, 300 Sambhar and Curd meals were being prepared daily three times during the lockdown and adds that all the food items gets sold for free of cost.

Pointing out to the construction workers, Sumathi says lot many of them are locked here and have been given food just because the Coimbatore corporation has asked the groups to increase the quantity of foods.

However, now the food is being sold for subsidised cost. Each idly costs one rupee while sambar and curd rice costs around five, says Sumathi.

While there are some random complaints of the quality of food at Amma Unavagam, it is those poor labourers and people that understand the need for it.

Netizens have also expressed their experience about eating at Amma unavagam saying it’s good quality food at affordable prices.

Auto rickshaw employees around Railway station and Coimbatore GH also says that Amma Unavagam is their go-to place as they also have been affected with earnings since when Ola and Rapido bike taxi take on roads, providing service to people for lower costs.

Recently we covered a Paati given hot idlies to her villagers for ₹1 and netizens raves about it. Amma Unavagams across the state serve food at such rates to larger number of people.

The government will do well to replicate Amma Unavagam in many more places and bring in more quality control to be the real Amma for labourers.

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