Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa's "amma canteens"

The Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa's "amma canteens", which serve cheap meals to hundreds of thousands of people daily, have become immensely popular with the poor and the middle classes

Today, there are more than 300 such eateries in the state - at least half of them in Chennai alone. They serve simple breakfast, lunch and dinner every day of the week

The canteens have helped poor and lower middle-class families massively slash their food bills and freed the womenfolk from the daily drudgery of cooking and cleaning. And their gratitude has often translated into votes for Amma.

A year after the scheme was launched, AIADMK led by J Jayalalithaa won 37 of the 39 seats in the 2014 parliamentary elections.

In May 2016, AIADMK was re-elected in the state assembly polls and analysts say the canteens are among the reasons for her victory.


AIADMK party spokesperson CR Saraswathi says Ms Jayalalithaa started the canteens to provide good, cheap food to the people  

 

• Breakfast (served from 7am to 10am) - idli (steamed rice cakes) for one rupee or pongal rice (rice cooked with lentils and peppercorn) for five rupees
• Lunch (served from 12 noon to 3pm) - sambhar rice (rice cooked with lentils and spices) or lemon rice or curry leaf rice for five rupees each and curd rice (rice cooked in yogurt with curry leaves) for three rupees
• Dinner (served from 5pm to 7:30pm) - two rotis with daal (handmade bread with lentil soup) for three rupees