Refurbished Annapurna Canteens soon in Telangana

HyderabadBuoyed by the success of Annapurna canteens where food is served at Rs 5 only, the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) is planning to set up a new version of these canteens at 32 locations in the first phase of expansion. These new canteens will be in the IT corridor and other GHMC circles.

According to the latest figures of the GHMC, the Annapurna Rs 5 meals scheme benefited more than 9 crore people since 2014 and the State government had spent a total of Rs 185.89 crore on the scheme.

The new version canteens will have facilities like seating arrangements, proper illumination, good interiors and ventilation.

The 'Annapurna Food' scheme aims to provide affordable and hygienic food comprising 4,000 grams of rice, 120 grams of sambar, 100 grams of sabji and 15 grams of pickle.

The scheme was implemented in about 150 centres providing around 45,000 lunches per day till the lockdown was announced due to Covid-19 pandemic.

During Covid, the GHMC supplied free Annapurna meals within its limits. The Annapurna meals were provided across 373 centres including through mobile Annapurna canteens during lunch time and in 259 centres including mobile Annapurna during dinner time. From the first lockdown to the second the GHMC provided a total of 2,29,46,080 meals from 2020 to 2021. This year, the GHMC also initiated centres at all the state-run hospitals. Similarly, up to May 2022 15,86,200 people benefited from the Annapurna scheme and the government spent Rs 4.13 crore.