Kozhikode: “Operation Sulaimani” is an initiative by the Kozhikode district administration to provide food free to the people in need.
N Prasanth, district collector is the architect of the project.
Inspired by the movie Ustad Hotel”, the district collector roped over 125 Kerala Hotel and Restaurants Association and also non-governmental organizations to become a part of project to eliminate the hunger.
Meal coupons are distributed through village offices to the people in need and when they walk into any restaurant in the city, they will be served with utmost dignity.
“We cannot ask a hungry person to get his hunger attested by a certified gazetted officer! That is why we insisted on the philosophy that ‘no questions will be asked’. If you ask for a food coupon, you will get it, it is as dignified as that,” says District Collector adding that the project called ‘Operation Sulaimani’, eponymous of Kozhikode’s very own local black tea, served with a dash of lemon and cardamom.
“There is no food wastage nor do we have to worry about the safety of the food. If we had chosen to build a large kitchen to supply free food, we would have all these problems. But we just decided to use the existing system and make the best use of it,” he said.
The collective responsibility of the team ‘Operation Sulaimani’ is serving smiles since 2015.