Rajasthan tackles hunger with Indira Rasoi scheme, 63.6 mn meals served

So far, 63.6 million meals have been served under Indira Rasoi scheme, of those include 7.8 million between April 1 and June 30 this year

The Indira Rasoi (kitchen) scheme, launched in August 2020 by the state government on the theme “No One Sleeps Hungry” and with the price of each meal served being Rs 8, is becoming popular in Rajasthan.

At the time of the launch, the state government tweeted: “Life will change with Indira Rasoi Yojana … this is the promise of the Rajasthan government.”

So far, 63.6 million meals have been served under this scheme. Those include 7.8 million between April 1 and June 30 this year.

The kitchens have been set up at community buildings, railway stations, bus stands, hospitals, markets, chokdi (a place where labourers gather in search of work), and other places, mostly in government buildings.

Each plate has 100 gm dal (pulses), 100 gm subji (vegetable), 250 gm chapatti (Indian bread), and pickle.

Currently, 358 kitchens are functioning in 213 local bodies.

Looking at the success of this scheme and the number of people benefiting from it, the state government has decided to increase the number of kitchens by 642, bringing the total to 1,000.

The target is 138.1 million plates a year. A provision of Rs 125 crore was made when the scheme was launched. That was increased to Rs 250 crore in the recent state Budget.

A senior official said of the proposed new 642 kitchens, places/buildings had been identified for 625 and the process is on to find place for the rest.

Lala Ram (55) from Jaipur, who ate at an Indira Rasoi, said: “At a time when everything is becoming so costly, getting this at such a low price is unbelievable.”

Ram Prasad (28) said: “I saw a person asking for money to have food and I made him sit at an Indira Rasoi and ordered a meal. He loved it.”

According to the MIS report for 2022-23, of the seven divisions in the state, the serving capacity of the Bikaner division, where it is the highest, is 1.589 million, against which 1.497 million have been served, which is 94.20 per cent.

Udaipur has a rate of 66.10 per cent, which is the second-highest.