By Express News Service
VISAKHAPATNAM: Demanding the reopening of Anna Canteens, Telugu Desam Party (TDP) workers led by party MLAs and leaders staged a ‘Vanta Vaarpu’ protest programme at Anna Canteens across the city on Friday. As a part of the protest, the leaders and party members cooked food and distributed it among the people.
Speaking at the Anna Canteen in MVP Colony, Visakhapatnam East TDP MLA Velagapudi Ramakrishna Babu said former Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu has started these canteens to feed the poor and needy. “The aim of the canteen is to serve all the poor people with good food. A healthy full meal was given to them at Rs 5,” he said.
“However, the YSRC government closed the canteens due to only political considerations. As the canteens were launched with a noble cause, it is necessary that they should be reopened,” Ramakrishna Babu said.
The Anna Canteens were closed on August 1 and the service providers were asked to stop the supply of the meals after the last meal on July 31.
The closure of Anna Canteens drew sharp criticism from women employees of the canteens as they said they would lose employment and they do not have any alternative employment.
In Rajamahendravaram, the local TDP leaders protested in front of Anna Canteen in Subrahmanyam Maidan, opposite RMC.
In Kurnool, TDP leaders staged a dharna in front of the Collectorate here on Friday demanding reopening of the canteens across the State.
Similarly, at Allagadda, former minister Bhuma Akhila Priya, along with the party workers, staged a protest in front of the tahsildar office. TDP Kurnool constituency in-charge TG Bharat has said that the poor people hit hard.