K Kamalathal, the 80-year-old woman behind the viral video on social media, whose indomitable spirit helped her run a business single-handedly, is now offered complimentary LPG connection from the union government. She hails from Tamil Nadu's Coimbatore district and sells idlis for one rupee to the lesser privileged people. Touched by her grit and determination, the government is gifting her complimentary LPG connection to help her sustain her generous business.
80-year-old Kamalathal sells idlis for just one rupee per piece to daily wage workers. While it helps them save money for their families, Kamalathal has been running this eatery for 30-35 years now, India Today reports.
Recently, Mahindra Group Chairman Anand Mahindra also tweeted a video showing Kamalathal making idlis in her extremely small cottage. The video zoomed in to her traditional stone grinder and showed us how the lady makes batter and masalas, how she uses wood-burning stove to make idli and sambar.
The tweet went viral and made a huge impact on social media with netizens praising her story. This prompted the Union Minister for Petroleum and Natural Gas and Steel Dharmendra Pradhan to come forward to issue Kamalathal an LPG connection.
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Dharmendra Pradhan also took to Twitter to share his view, “Salute the spirit and commitment of Kamalathal. Glad to have helped her through local OMC officers in getting LPG connection.”
Anand Mahindra wrote in his post, “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 fuelled stove.”
Anand Mahindra replied to Dharmendra Pradhan’s post, saying, “This is superb. Thank you Bharat Gas Coimbatore for giving this gift of health to Kamalathal. As I have already stated, I am happy to support her continuing costs of using LPG...And thank you @dpradhanbjp for your concern and thoughtfulness.”
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The elderly woman wakes up early every day, before sunrise. Her only concern is to feed the needy. She said the last time she raised the idli price was 15 years ago. Initially, it was 50 paise but she had to raise the price given the ever-increasing price of the ingredients. “Profits are not my priority but feeding the people is what drives me to work,” she told India Today. “I use eight kg of rice for the batter,” The Hindu quoted the octogenarian as saying.
We salute your indomitable spirit, Kamalathal!
Feature Image credit: newindianexpress
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