Financial Dispute Halts Services at Eleven Indira Canteens in Bengaluru
Bengaluru: Eleven
Indira Canteens across various wards in Bengaluru have ceased serving meals due
to a financial disagreement with the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP).
Chef Talk, the contracted food supplier for these canteens, disclosed that the
BBMP owes them approximately Rs 65 crore in unpaid bills. Despite repeated
appeals for settlement, Chef Talk reported a lack of response from the civic
body, prompting them to suspend operations.
BBMP
Commissioner Tushar Girinath refuted Chef Talk's claims, asserting
discrepancies in the attendance records maintained by the BBMP marshals
compared to the contractor's assertions.
We have
operationalized 184 out of our 198 wards. Seven locations were inactive from
the start, and some mobile canteens are functional, except for a few. One
contractor has filed a legal claim for Rs 65 crore, which we contest due to
discrepancies in attendance records, Girinath clarified.
The affected
canteens, situated in Basavanagudi, Padmanabhanagar, Bhairasandra, VV Puram,
Siddapura, Hombegowda Nagar, Jayanagar, Vidyapeetha, Ejipura, and Adugodi
wards, serve as crucial community resources. Initiated by the Siddaramaiah
government seven years ago on Independence Day, Indira Canteens were
established to provide economical meals to disadvantaged citizens.
Earlier this
year, during the inauguration of a new Indira Canteen at Bengaluru
International Airport, Siddaramaiah had expressed plans to expand the
initiative with 188 additional canteens statewide.