Fund-starved civic body mulls move

Owing to a severe fund crunch, the Chennai Corporation is now exploring the possibility of reducing the number of Amma canteens in the city.

The civic body, which is unable to settle bills of contractors for completed infrastructure projects worth ₹700 crore, is likely to reduce the number of canteens from 407 to 200. However, the decision to close many of these canteens has been deferred owing to worries about the political impact of such a move ahead of the local body elections. According to a study done by the Corporation Health Department, many of the canteens inaugurated in the second phase located in the vicinity of other canteens that were commissioned in the first phase, causing a dip in sale.

The sales in many of the Amma canteens range from ₹10,000 to ₹12,000 per day. Though the rice purchased is subsidised, other expenses are met from the general fund of the Chennai Corporation.

The expenditure, however, for such canteens is around ₹20,000 per day.

The average revenue per day from canteens that have poor patronage is around ₹2,000. Each of the workers receives a wage of ₹300 per day.

The number of workers in each of Amma canteens ranges from 10 to 40. Canteens in hospitals such as the Rajiv Gandhi Government General Hospital have more than 40 workers.