Prison pop-up a hit with secretariat

Time of India

2 days ago

Chennai: Fort St George recently transformed into a venue for a pop-up market that sold biscuits, shoes, sarees, soaps, and idli podi made by prison inmates.
Set up by the Tamil Nadu prison department outside the Namakkal Kavignar Maligai in the secretariat, the pop-up store operating out of a bus attracted close to a thousand people, both staff and public, in the last three days.
The products sold there were exclusively made by prisoners, including lifetime convicts, as part of their correctional services sessions.
"The market usually functions from the Puzhal prison camp and police commissioner's offices, but now, we wanted to expand them to other govt offices and places of public gathering too," said P Pandian, a constable managing the market.
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Items sold here are usually cheaper than those in the market.
Shirts and chudidhar tops ranged from 400 to 600, while leather belts and bags were sold for around 200 to 300. Groundnut, coconut, and gingelly oil were sold at 250, while biscuits were sold at 25. Halwa and pickled biscuits found takers too.
Pandian said the sales crossed 1 lakh in three days. "Next, we plan to move the market to Madras high court, where we expect better sales," he said.
Secretariat officials said the concept was well-received as the products were available within the premises itself. Sathish Kumar of Purasaivakkam, who was here with a petition to the MAWS department, said the quality of cotton dresses was as good as private. "While returning, I saw the market and purchased a few bedsheets," he said.
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