Rajasthan: Villages to receive meals at Rs 8 under the Indira Rasoi scheme

Under the scheme 1,000 kitchens will be opened across Rajasthan, facilitating more than 10,000 employment opportunities for women

In a step towards combating hunger while also empowering women, Congress General Secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra has officially extended the Indira Rasoi scheme to rural parts of Rajasthan, according to a report by the Hindustan Times. The programme was inaugurated in Jhilai village, Tonk district on Saturday ahead of the state's upcoming assembly elections.

The scheme aims to provide nutritious food for economically weaker and vulnerable sections at Rs 8 per meal. Initially, the programme was launched in urban parts of the state, where Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot championed the cause. Now it is extended beyond urban zones to rural parts of the state with the opening of 1,000 kitchens throughout Rajasthan.

The scheme was initially launched in August 2020 by the Congress-led government under the principle that "no one should sleep hungry". During the Covid-19 pandemic, the scheme provided free nutritious meals to 7.2 million people. CM Gehlot encouraged public representatives to dine at Indira Rasoi kitchens regularly to ensure the quality of service and enhance the dignity of beneficiaries.

During the announcement of this extension, CM Gehlot added that women will run all the kitchens. These women are members of the Rajasthan Grameen Aajeevika Vikas Parishad (Rajivika), an autonomous society under the state's rural development department. The chief minister added that the kitchens would create more than 10,000 employment opportunities for women in Rajasthan.

The state government will provide Rs 5 lakh and a grant of Rs 17 per plate for establishing new kitchens. So far, these kitchens have served over 130 million plates of nutritious food to urban residents.

"All sections of people, including students and workers, are getting the benefit of this scheme," CM Gehlot said.

The chief minister also praised the efforts of more than 500 local service-oriented organisations in the state that have been running kitchens with a "no profit, no loss" approach, further extending the reach and impact of the Indira Rasoi initiative.

The Rajasthan state assembly elections are slated for the end of this year or early 2024.