The city has one of the highest concentrations of higher educational institutions, trade and industries, making it a hub for students and professionals from other cities and even other States.
The huge number of students and professionals alike found it difficult to find food on Tuesday what with a number of restaurants and eateries choosing to down shutters as a fallout of the sentencing of Ms. Jayalalithaa in the disproportionate assets case by a Bangalore Special Court.
Reasons for the closure of restaurants and eateries were the rumours of a general strike call given by the AIADMK. The hoteliers had also expressed their solidarity seeking the early release of the AIADMK leader.
A call was given to close hotels on Tuesday to express solidarity with Ms. Jayalalithaa, and also as a precautionary measure due to rumours of a strike, said an office-bearer of the Tamil Nadu Hotel and Restaurants Association. Some restaurants opened after 6 p.m. on Tuesday, he added.
A civil service aspirant said that several of his acquaintances’ friends’ had invited them over for food.
Another professional said that he had managed with packaged ready-to-eat food such as noodles for the past couple of days. Several inmates of working women’s hostels and boarding houses with restaurants also faced difficulty in getting food. In many areas, even bakeries and tea shops were closed.
A woman professional said that only one bakery was opened in her area. But the place was full of men and she found it uncomfortable to buy items from there.
Even the few outlets that opened on Tuesday morning downed their shutters after rumours about the general strike call. The proprietor of a food outlet said that while they initially opened on Tuesday, they changed their mind after calls from office-bearers of their association. He said they were incurring a loss of nearly Rs. 50,000 every day they remained closed.
