Chennai, September 12: The indomitable spirit of an 80-year-old woman from Tamil Nadu's Coimbatore district who sells idlis at just one rupee each has melted the hearts of many including those in the corridors of power as she has got an LPG connection within a day of a video depicting her hardship going viral. M Kamalathal thanked the government and Anand Mahindra for this initiative. Here's what said:
M Kamalathal: I am 82 years old now & I don’t know for how long this will continue. There is nobody with me in my family. I am alone. I work from 5:30 am till 12 noon. I don’t expect profit out of this. Only little which I get,I use for my livelihood. I sell 400-500 idlis daily. https://t.co/W8zHmwnCQ9 pic.twitter.com/V0mddezCuA
— ANI (@ANI) September 14, 2019
The story of Kamalathal spread like wildfire on social media after Mahindra Group Chairman Anand Mahindra tweeted a video showing her preparing idlis in her humble cottage.
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 https://t.co/tpHEDxA0R3
— anand mahindra (@anandmahindra) September 11, 2019
"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," he wrote in the caption on Tuesday.
However, the government came forward to issue her an LPG connection, with Union Minister for Petroleum and Natural Gas and Steel Dharmendra Pradhan playing a pro-active role.
"Salute the spirit and commitment of Kamalathal. Glad to have helped her through local OMC officers in getting LPG connection," Pradhan said in a tweet on Wednesday.
Salute the spirit and commitment of Kamalathal. Glad to having helped her through local OMC officers in getting LPG connection.
Society must empower such hard working people who defy all odds. https://t.co/ZBCsnPqdpA
— Dharmendra Pradhan (@dpradhanbjp) September 11, 2019
"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," Mahindra said.
(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Sep 12, 2019 09:34 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).