Want to have a meal at a reputed hotel when you are broke? There is opportunity at a few hotels in Alappuzha.
Five hotels in and around Alappuzha town have lined up for the unique service under a project named ‘Food on the Wall.’ The concept, popular in certain western countries, intends to help the hungry.
Introduced by the Alleppey Round Table (ART 103), the project is intended to eradicate hunger in Alappuzha. The hotels associated in the network are Royal Park, Brothers, AJ Park, Kalpakavadi (Thottapally) and Spice Route (Kainakari). More restaurants will be added to the chain.
Powered by customers
“The project utilises the power of crowdfunding. Customers at the restaurant, who are interested in charity, may sponsor a meal, and a free meal token is generated. This meal token is then posted on a board visible to pedestrians on the road. This meal token is the ‘food on the wall,” says Gopal Gireesan, the chairman of the organisation. Anyone who is in need of a meal can pick up the free token, present it at the hotel counter and collect the meal as parcel. ART is currently sponsoring a few meals a day in every participating restaurant. The project is expected to become self-sustaining in the future.
“The idea was borrowed from Coffee on the Wall, a successful project in the United Kingdom,” he says. Having worked in the UK and seen its success, he wanted to emulate it in Kerala, with the support of a private company, Greenergy. “The purpose is to help set up free food distribution centres for the needy. We are initially targeting a few restaurants in the town to act as independent units,” he said. Launched a week ago, the programme is slowly gaining people’s attention. One person sponsored coupons at a hotel on the occasion of his birthday, Mr. Gireesan said. Whenever coupons are not utilised, the food packets are distributed at hospitals. A tie-up with autorickshaw drivers is being planned to expand the number of beneficiaries.
