The problem of quality of food in the canteens of Metropolitan Transport Corporation (MTC) depots, which has been simmering for a while now, boiled over into a protest on Friday.
A section of the MTC workers at the Ayanavaram depot declined to take the food at the canteen, claiming that the quality of the cooked rice was so bad that it looked like ‘plastic rice’.
The staff were seen ‘bouncing’ the rice balls off the back of the buses parked at the depot. A conductor at the Ayanavaram depot said that the quality of rice served was bad every day, but on Friday it was worse. “We found it difficult to eat it because it looked bigger than the normal rice and was rubbery. The cooked rice raised health concerns among the crew and so we refused to take the food,” he said.
The protest by the MTC workers over the ‘plastic rice’ went viral on social media and created a stir among MTC officials.
The food prepared at the canteen of the Ayanavaram depot is served in depots at Perambur, Vyasarpadi, M.K.B. Nagar and Madhavaram.
The issue of poor quality of food being served at the canteens in MTC depots has been raised time and again, said CITU and LPF members.
Irregularities in canteens
M. Chandran, president, CITU, complained that there were irregularities in the running of canteens in the 32 depots of the MTC in the city. Normally, the Health Inspector would have to visit to check the quality of food, but no health officials visit the MTC canteens, he charged.
The Labour Welfare Officer from the State Labour Department also fails to visit the depot to assess the quality of food and other employee-related issues. Previously an official in the rank of Assistant Labour Welfare Officer was appointed in each depot but the MTC discontinued it, he said.
The union members and several MTC employees informed that the issue has been taken up with the authorities at all levels, but only in vain.
The food served at MTC canteens is available at a subsidised price of ₹1 with the MTC chipping in with a contribution of more than ₹30.
Of the employee strength of 22,000 in MTC, more than half of the crew has stopped taking food from the canteens, said Mr. Chandran.
