Curiosity over civic poll results pervaded every street corner in the city. It was not just the political parties and their candidates, who stayed glued to the television sets, many, especially employees, daily labourers and commercial establishment owners were closely following the results at tiffin centres and eateries.
Cashing in on the people’s interest, many tiffin centres, eateries and even tea outlets installed television sets to attract customers. As the elections results started coming out on news channels, people in groups hit the tiffin centres to follow the developments over a bite.
“I did not expect such keenness among people. Thanks to the municipal elections results, it was quite a hectic day till late in the afternoon,” says Kumar, a tiffin centre owner at One Town. Watching the proceedings, people were seen indulging in open discussions, debates and analysis on the rise and fall of political parties and candidates.
“It is good to discuss and share opinions with friends and colleagues. And there cannot be a better place than a tea outlet or a tiffin centre for this,” feels Manohar, a sales executive.
It is a general practice for hotels and restaurants to set up television sets to attract visitors during cricket matches or the ongoing IPL tournament. Election results have turned out to be yet another occasion for many roadside shops to make the extra money.
“The motto is to make things convenient for people. We too need to keep track of results and it also helps us in business,” says Venkateswara Rao, a tiffin centre owner in Suryaraopet.
