80-yr-old woman, who serves idlis at Rupee 1, says ‘enough for livelihood’

Agencies
September 14, 2019

Coimbatore, Sept 14: The indomitable spirit of an over 80-year-old woman in Tamil Nadu who has been selling idlis for just Re 1, for more than two decades now, has touched the hearts of many in the country ever since her story became viral on social media.

The octogenarian, Kamalathal says the mere happiness she derives in serving food at such price, earning just enough for a livelihood and contributing her bid to humanity are reasons enough for her to continue.

"I have been doing this for the past 20 years now and don't know how long this will continue. I don't have anybody in my family. I am alone. I earn Rs 200 daily. I don't aim to earn money out of selling idli at this price," says Kamalathal.

"If I had aimed to become a crorepati by doing this, I could have done that in these many years. But, I decided, no, I only earn my small livelihood," says the woman who is popularly known as the 'Re. 1 idli granny'.

With her wrinkled face and bony slender frame, Kamalathal dons spectacles and a slight hunchback as she goes about preparing idlis after waking up before the crack of dawn, working from 5:30 am and continues till noon.

Through the day she sells about 400-500 idlis and earns a mere Rs 200, which, she believes, is a modest amount for her to live on.
"I am happy when people come to me and I serve them piping hot idlis," says the 82-year-old.

Kamalathal. "I serve them idli with chutney and sambar which I prepare myself. if I had to go and earn for my livelihood, I could go out and earn Rs 200 daily, but the same amount I earn by doing this. I sell 400 to 500 idlis daily and only earn the amount which I require."

This inspirational story came to light when Anand Mahindra, the chairman of the Mahindra Group recently took to his Twitter account to share a video of her preparing idlis on a wood-burning stove and serving them to underprivileged people.

"One of those humbling stories that make you wonder if everything you do is even a fraction as impactful as the work of people like Kamalathal. I notice she still uses a wood-burning stove. If anyone knows her I'd be happy to 'invest' in her business & buy her an LPG fueled stove," the text accompanying the video read.

Kamalathal was flooded with offers of help from across the country after the video went viral, including from Anand Mahindra himself, who said that he was willing to "invest in her business and buy her an LPG." The gas connection was soon issued to her by Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited.

Kamalathal says that she finds the true reward of her selfless hard work when people appreciate her food.

"I came to this place hearing so much about these tasty idlis," says one of the customers. "I did not believe the idly was served at Re 1 until I came here. I do not know how this lady is selling them at such price, and that too such tasty idlis.

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News Network
May 8,2020

Mangaluru, May 8: Twenty-two students of Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalaya (JNV), Mudipu on the outskirts of Mangalur city, stranded in Uttara Pradesh due to lock-down reached the campus on Friday morning.

These Class 9 students (12 girls and 10 boys) had studied at JNV Amroha, Uttar Pradesh, as part of an exchange programme, 21 students of Amroha campus studied in Mudipu. 

While Amroha students could return after completing their studies, the Mudipu students were among many JNV students who were unable to return because of the lock-down.

JNV Mudipu Principal V Srinivasan said the 22 students, along with escorts, reached the campus at 7.15 a.m today.

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News Network
May 1,2020

Mysuru, May 1: Four people who brought a dead man’s body from Mumbai for cremation in his native place in Mandya district in Karnataka have tested positive for Covid-19 virus, and now the administration is trying to find out if the man himself had been an undetected positive.

According to Mandya district deputy commissioner M V Venkatesh, the deceased man was a 53-year-old native of B Kodagalli of Pandavapura taluk, Melkote hobli in Mandya district. He died after suffering a heart attack at the U N Desai government hospital in Mumbai on April 23.

The cremation took place outside the man's native village after the local administration refused to allow it inside the village.

Wanting the final rites performed in his native place, the man’s family got the body embalmed and procured all the medical records and certificates from the hospital and brought it in an ambulance belonging to the Desai government hospital.

When they reached Pandavapura taluk in Karnataka on the evening of April 24, the local administration did not allow the body to enter the village but allowed the relatives to cremate it outside the village.

And since the family had come from Mumbai, the district administration quarantined all seven of the man’s relatives, and their samples were sent for testing on 28 April.

The results showed that the deceased man’s 25-year-old son, daughter-in-law, daughter, and two-year-old grandchild are positive for Covid 19. All of them have been admitted at the Mandya Institute of Medical Sciences although they have no symptoms.

Deputy commissioner Venkatesh said that in the Desai hospital records in Mumbai there was no mention whether or not the man had been tested for Covid-19. “We are writing to Desai hospital to clarify if the deceased person was tested for Covid 19. It is also possible that the family got infected by the man’s son who works in the loan department of ICICI Bank in Mumbai and visits several offices in different areas of Mumbai,” he said.

The man’s ancestral B Kodagalli village now has been sealed off. Though tests done on other members of the family have come back negative, the Mandya administartions plans to repeat their tests.

So far 26 people have tested positive for Covid 19 in Mandya district.

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News Network
January 11,2020

Bengaluru, Jan 11: India’s second-biggest IT company, Infosys Ltd, said it found no evidence of financial misconduct by its executives following a investigation into whistleblower complaints.

Bengaluru-headquartered Infosys, which earlier on Friday raised its revenue forecasts due to upbeat demand from Western clients, said an audit committee report exonerated Chief Executive Officer Salil Parekh and Chief Financial Officer Nilanjan Roy of all allegations, including accusations that the duo prevented employees from presenting data on large deals.

“I’m very happy that CEO Salil Parekh and CFO Nilanjan Roy have emerged from this stronger,” Infosys Chairman Nandan Nilekani told reporters. “The last two years since Salil has been here the company has changed dramatically for the better.”

Parekh took over as Infosys CEO in January 2018, after his predecessor Vishal Sikka quit following a public row with the company’s founder executives amid whistleblower allegations of wrongdoing.

The company earlier said it expected revenue to grow between 10 per cent and 10.5 per cent on a constant currency basis in the year ending March 2020, compared with its previous forecast of between 9 per cent and 10 per cent.

“We continue to see momentum in the market and we have an extremely robust pipeline driven by segment leaders,” CEO Parekh told a news conference.

“With the strength of large deal wins and digital momentum, we were able to clearly see that we have support to raise our guidance.”

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