Starting 30th May 2021 social welfare organisation Durgapur Adda young Association (DAYA) started a 10 rupees canteen by the name of “Aharjo Canteen”. The initiative was taken to feed the poverty stricken daily wage earners residing near Durgapur Railway Station with nutritious lunch during the ongoing lockdown days.
In 10 rupees, they were given adequate quantity of rice, dal, vegetable curry and egg curry to fill their appetite.
The livelihood of the people living in the area adjacent to the station is largely dependent on trains and buses; the train-bus has been closed for more than a month due to the corona lockdown. DAYA started the food canteen realizing the financial hardships and plight of the people there.
The canteen used to open from around 12:15 in the noon. But the people used to form queue from about 11:30. Whether it is scorching heat of the sun or rain, people refuse to leave the line, to get the food as early as possible. For most, that was the only proper meal of the day.
Hadn’t there been lockdown, we wouldn’t have got such insight into the magnitude of human sufferings. After 31 days of uninterrupted running, the ‘Aharjo Canteen’ was closed as the lockdown was almost lifted and train-buses started to ply.