New Delhi, December 28 (). Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta said on Sunday that the newly constructed ‘Atal Canteen’ has received encouraging response from the public. Within 72 hours of the launch of the scheme, food worth Rs 5 has been served to 64,446 people.
CM Rekha Gupta shared this information through a post on social media.
CM Gupta on Thursday inaugurated 45 of the 100 Atal canteens proposed in the national capital on the occasion of the birth anniversary of former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee. In the days that followed, MLAs inaugurated additional canteens in their respective constituencies.
The aim of this initiative is to provide affordable and nutritious food to the people at highly subsidized rates.
According to government data, food was served to 17,587 people on December 25, of which 8,604 were served lunch and 8,983 were served dinner.
According to a statement issued by the government, till 7.30 pm on December 26, a total of 15,805 people availed food at Atal canteens, of which 10,696 people came during lunch hours and 5,109 people came during early dinner hours.
Union Minister Manohar Lal, BJP leaders Ashish Sood and Tarvinder Singh Marwah were present at the inauguration ceremony, who were seen having food in the Atal canteen on the occasion.
While addressing the gathering, CM Gupta paid tribute to former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee and described him as a ‘man of the era’ born 100 years ago.
He said that as his 101st birth anniversary approached, the government deliberated on the best way to honor his legacy, resulting in the decision to launch Atal Canteens.
“The decision to open Atal Canteen was deliberately taken on this important day,” he said.
Describing this scheme, Gupta said that people can have food in the canteen for just Rs 5. He clarified that the consumer pays Rs 5, while the actual cost of the meal is around Rs 30, of which the government provides a subsidy of Rs 25.
He said that Union Minister Manohar Lal was the first to take the food slip, and then he took it.
The Chief Minister described the food served in the canteens as ‘Satvik’ and stressed on its nutritious and healthy quality.
Later, the CM said in a post on social media platform ‘X’ that the initiative was inspired by the vision of service, good governance and welfare of the poor.
“This initiative will ensure that Delhi becomes a capital where people get food with dignity and no one sleeps hungry,” he wrote.
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ASH/DKP
