Mysuru: Marking Kanakadasa Jayanti, the Mysuru City Corporation’s (MCC) ambitious plan to provide free breakfast to all it’s over 2400 pourakarmikas daily took off today with Mayor Pushpalatha Jagannath launching it near Madegowda Circle in Rajivnagar coming under Ward11, represented by her, at a function this morning, by having breakfast with the pourakarmikas.

The launch venue was specially decorated with flowers and rangolis. Pourakarmikas had drawn huge colourful Rangolis, thus displaying their artistic skills.

Speaking to SOM after the launch, Mayor Pushpalatha Jagannath said that she was very much delighted to see the restart of the MCC’s ambitious scheme of providing breakfast to all it’s pourakarmikas who toil to keep our city clean and hygienic.

Noting that although the scheme was introduced last year, the Mayor said that the scheme was discontinued after there were many complaints from pourakarmikas about poor quality and quantity of breakfast being served to them. Now, the MCC after coming up with a new plan, is determined to provide nutritious, tasty and hygienic breakfast to all pourakarmikas, she said and added that the MCC authorities will make a regular check of the quality of food if there are any complaints.

On the first day today, the menu was uppittu, kesaribath and a sweet. The pourakarmikas were also provided half-a litre mineral water bottle.

The MCC will incur an annual expenditure of Rs. 1.83 crore for the scheme. The tender for providing the breakfast has been awarded  to a Hyderabad-based mass caterer Rao Raghuveer Singh Seva Samiti for a period of one year. 

All civic workers, including 2,168 pourakarmikas working in the sweeping and cleanliness section and 238 working in the underground drainage section will be served with 400 grams of quality and nutritious breakfast everyday between 8 am and 10 am at designated points in all the 65 wards. 

The breakfast is prepared at a catering facility at Rajarajeshwarinagar in Dattagalli second stage and  delivered to all designated points in time. 

A total of 18   chefs and 12 assistants and  cleaning personnel are involved in the making of breakfast, which will be served on a areca plate. 

The  menu, changes every day and will include uppittu, ricebath, four idlis, bisibele bath, curd rice, tomato bath and lemon rice, to be served on designated days.

When the scheme was first launched last year, the responsibility of serving the breakfast was entrusted to Indira canteens. But  as regular complaints on poor quality and quantity of food began to reach the MCC, the civic body discontinued the scheme itself after some days. 

Now, the MCC after coming up with a new plan, has introduced the scheme afresh, which has brought cheers to over 2,400 civic workers.

Meena, a pourakarmika  woman from Bharath Nagar said that the breakfast provided to them when the scheme was introduced last year was of poor quality, which gave rise to many health issues, with many civic workers complaining about abdominal problems. As they refused to eat the breakfast, the MCC discontinued the scheme. But they are now delighted that the scheme has been restarted, she said and added that what the pourakarmikas needed was a quality and hygienic breakfast.

Pointing out that as they have to leave their homes early in the morning, they cannot prepare breakfast, Meena said that they cannot have their breakfast at hotels either as they cannot afford it most of the times and also hotels will be far off from their workspots. She thanked the MCC for the scheme, which she said will be of huge benefit to the civic workers.

Rathna, another pourakarmika woman, said that most of the times she would work hungry without having breakfast as hotels were far from her workspot and she had little time to walk to a hotel. Now, she is feeling delighted that the MCC has come to their help by providing free breakfast daily, she said and thanked the Mayor and the MCC Commissioner for the launch of the breakfast scheme.

MCC Commissioner Gurudatta Hegde, Additional Commissioner Shashikumar, Zone 8 Assistant Commissioner Kuberappa, Health Officer Dr. Jayanth, catering Contractor Manjunath and others were present.