BJP state president in West Bengal Dilip Ghosh on Wednesday criticised Mamata Banerjee’s ‘Maa Kitchen’ saying that Bengalis didn’t have any income so meals were provided at rupees five.
Ahead of the assembly elections in the state, the West Bengal Chief Minister on Monday virtually launched the ‘Maa’ kitchen under which her government would provide a meal at a nominal cost of ₹5 mainly to poor people.
Hitting out at Banerjee, Ghosh said, “People of West Bengal buy rice worth rupees two per kg. That’s provided by the central government. In other states people can afford to buy rice and wheats at higher prices. But here we don’t have income because there’s no job and industry.”
“That’s why they have started the ‘Maa Kitchen’. Even after 10 years of running the government, they still have to give people rice at rupees two per kg and a meal of egg at five rupees. They need to answer why people here are so poor. Because Bengalis don’t have jobs. Whatever money the Centre had sent, went to the TMC party fund,” the Medinipur MP added.
“The government will bear a subsidy of ₹15 (per plate) while people will get it at ₹5,” Banerjee said. Self-help groups will operate the kitchens from 1 pm to 3 pm every day and such kitchens will be set up everywhere in the state gradually, the chief minister said.
“I will go and taste it one day,” Banerjee said. People will get the meal on a first-come-first-serve basis.
The state government has allotted ₹1,00-crore for the scheme, said Banerjee who is also the Trinamool Congress supremo. “It started on an experimental basis and there may be initial hiccups,” Banerjee said.
The ruling Trinamool Congress had in September last year launched a similar initiative named — ‘Didir Rannaghar’ in the state to provide meals at ₹5 to migrant workers who lost their jobs during the lockdown.