BARGARH: Moved by the plight of poor who often find it tough to get food at affordable price, railway contractor and social worker Guddi Rao has started his own ‘Aahar’ centre near Bargarh railway station.
The outlet ‘Sai Aahar Kendra’ serves lunch at Rs 10 per meal. The menu is similar to government Aahar centres. But customers at Guddi’s outlet also get pickle along with their meals.
There are few places where daily wagers like coolies and rickshaw pullers can have food that suits their budget.
“While meals at eateries near the railway station cost anywhere between Rs 50-70, the food is also not worth the money,” he said.
Guddi had been chalking out a feasible plan to start the centre for the last one year. He has taken a store on rent opposite the railway station and employed five people to manage the centre. While cooking is done at the back of the outlet, meals are served at its entrance. It is open from 10 am to 3 pm every day.
Guddi believes it is the right time to start the centre as it would bring respite for labourers and farmers who will soon arrive in the city for paddy procurement. He said cooking meals for 300 people costs Rs 4,000.
While most of the amount is covered by sale of meals, Guddi is willing to bear the rest of the expenses. “I just want to recover my staff’s salaries,” he said.
Initially, 300 meals will be soled at the centre every day. But it will be ramped up to 600 meals once people become aware of the outlet.
On the first day, while 150 people brought their meals, the rest were given the food free of cost. Besides maintaining hygiene in the cooking area, he has also placed a dustbin outside the store and keeps the food covered at all times.
The social worker is known across the district for maintaining a private cremation ground including a firewood godown near the railway station which he started last year after buying the land.
While Guddi is involved in cremating unclaimed dead bodies since 2002, he has also been providing firewood to people since the last few years. Besides he is also involved in a number of social activities from blood donation to rehabilitation of stray animals.
At present, there is only one government Aahar centre near Women’s College here which serves 600 meals everyday.