E-Paper
Eye on Bengal polls, Mamata government to start serving ₹5 meals from today
Initially, Maa scheme would be launched in Kolkata where 16 common kitchens have been set up. The meal would comprise rice, dal, a vegetable and egg
With an eye on the coming assembly elections, the West Bengal government is set to provide meals at a nominal cost of ₹5. The scheme will be launched by chief minister Mamata Banerjee in Kolkata on Monday.
The “Maa” scheme gets its name from Trinamool Congress’s (TMC’s) slogan of “Ma, Mati, Manush (Mother, soil, people)”. “Initially, Maa scheme would be launched in Kolkata where 16 common kitchens have been set up. The meal would comprise rice, dal, a vegetable and egg and would be served at ₹5 per plate. The food would be available at a fixed time,” said a senior official of the Kolkata Municipal Corporation.
Also Read | TMC to counter BJP’s Rath Yatras with ‘Didir Doot’ tableaus in poll-bound Bengal
The scheme would gradually be extended to other towns and cities in the state. The state government has already allocated a budget for this.
Earlier, the TMC had started a community kitchen, “Didir Rannaghar” (Mamata’s kitchen) to support migrant workers who were hit due to job losses due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
The CPI (M) too had started a few hundred “Sramojibi canteen” (community kitchen) to serve vegetarian food to the poor. The party had also initiated 50 health clinics and safe houses for those who cannot afford healthcare facilities.
Even in schools, closed during the pandemic, while mid-day meals were not served, the state government continued to provide ration to the students’ families.
The state assembly elections are due in March – February this year. The BJP which had made deep inroads in the state in the 2019 Lok Sabha polls is now posing a major challenge to the ruling TMC. The BJP has set a target to win more than 200 seats in the 294-seated assembly.
