Chennai: In a few weeks from now, chief minister Jayalalithaa’s ambitious project of providing affordable and hygienic food to the poor through state-run eateries called Amma Unavagam would have added 360 more outlets across the state making it the largest food outlet chain in the country.
Although, the project was launched just a little over a year ago with merely 15 eateries in Chennai, the popularity of these canteens prompted the state government to expand the project across the state with 200 Amma Unavagams in the city alone.
Sixteen months later, the eateries have only grown in popularity and continue to attract a mixed crowd ranging from pavement dwellers to daily wage earners to even middleclass folk who do not want to spend a lot on their food.
“It is no surprise that Amma Unavagams are a hit across TN as we serve good food in a clean environment at an extremely low price,” says Chandrakant B. Kamble, commissioner of municipal administration who is in charge of Amma canteens across the state barring Chennai. He receives at least 200 Whatsapp messages from his field staff across the state who constantly update on the progress of Amma canteens.
“It’s not just the food that we prepare or the quantity we serve is standardised. The entire project has been envisioned in such a way that the customer gets first class treatment when he comes to our canteen to eat his meal. The look and feel of all Amma canteens are uniform with specific attention given to eating and wash areas to ensure that our customers have a good experience. Just because we are cheap, we don’t have to be shabby,” Kamble, says.
The attention to detail that has gone into the planning reflects in the customer’s satisfaction. Retired police constable Arumugan from Alandur is not a typical customer that this project might have envisioned. He is a pensioner with earning family members and owns a house. Yet, every afternoon, Arumugam walks towards the canteen neatly clad in a full sleeve shirt, ironed trousers and shoes to purchase sambar rice at Rs 5 a plate and curd rice at Rs 3 for a serving.
“I prefer here than going to any other restaurant as food is healthy and tastes good besides being cheaper than anywhere else. I don’t see a reason why I should go to an expensive place to have my meal,” he says. Until a year ago, Arumugam used to eat at a hotel located exactly opposite the Amma canteen where a limited meal is served for '20.
Since Amma canteen was set up in their neighbourhood, Hotel Paravasam located opposite the state-owned restaurant has faced a dip in customers. “Many of our customers have moved there as they serve cheaper food. Now, we are trying to restructure our business and give better variety to attract customers,” says the manager of the hotel.
Secretary of the TN Hotel Owners Assocation R. Srinivasan points out that the bigger hotel chains do not get affected by the surge in Amma canteens. “But, the small time hoteliers who cater to small budget customers will certainly be affected,” he says.
