Thrissur: Freedom Food Factory, the enterprise selling food prepared by inmates at Kerala’s prisons, has decided to expand its customer base by partnering with the online food delivery chain ‘Swiggy’.
The initiative will be rolled out of Thrissur’s Viyyur Central Jail, The Indian Express reported.
Presently, food such as biryani, roti and curries are sold from the counter outside the prison.
The idea is the brainchild of Rishiraj Singh, presently posted as the Director General of Police (Prisons). Singh opined that since the food prepared by the prisoners was popular among the people, it must be taken to homes.
A special menu has been decided for online delivery while the over-the-counter system will continue. Priced at Rs 127, the ‘Freedom Combo Lunch’ includes 300 gms of biryani, a roasted chicken leg piece, three rotis, one chicken curry, pickle, salad, a cupcake and a mineral water.
“We will start the online delivery system on July 11 and will see how it goes. Our initial plan is to sell about 100 combos a day. If there’s more demand, we will increase supply. Swiggy said their men can deliver the food in a six-kilometre radius of the prison,” The Indian Express quoted Nirmalanandan Nair, the superintendent of the Viyyur central jail.
The present daily sales figure stands at 25,000-30,000 rotis, 500-600 chicken biryanis and 300 vegetable and chicken curries through its counter.
Around a hundred male inmates cook the meal under the supervision of prison official to ensure food quality. A new kitchen was built at a cost of Rs 50 lakh with state-of-the-art appliances.
The inmates are paid daily wages of Rs 150 and revenue from the food business is used to refurbish and maintain jails.
