Govt faces heat over subsidy on Parliament canteen food

At a time when the Narendra Modi government is taking steps to cut subsidies, there is a shocking response to an RTI query. It has been revealed that many of the food items served in Parliament canteen are sold at just one-tenth of the cost of raw-materials used in preparing them.

For instance, the cost for procuring raw items for a dish like vegetable stew comes to about Rs 41 while the MPs are getting it for just Rs 4, which is a subsidy of about 90 percent.

The canteens in Parliament got a total subsidy of Rs 60 crore during last five years, revealed the RTI plea.

Talking about the issue, Union Parliamentary Affairs Minister M Venkaiah Naidu said that he would discuss the issue and make attempts to reach a solution.

"I don't deny it as a Minister. There's the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha, and everyone should be attentive about this," he added.

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M Venkaiah Naidu

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The RTI activist, whose plea made the revelation, slammed the government over the issue, saying, "They tell others to give up on subsidies, but Parliament canteen gets heavy subsidy. The government should end this."

Meanwhile, Aam Aadmi Party leader Alka Lamba said it was shocking that such subsidy was given in Parliament canteen, pointing that the food was already cheap for the members.

Interestingly, some Members of Parliament had a year ago complained about bad quality of food in the canteen, alleging that it served stale food. The MPs had said that they fell ill after eating the food.