Lucknow: To ensure that people belonging to economically weaker sections get at least one square meal a day, the Yogi Adityanath government in Uttar Pradesh is thinking of introducing a 'thaali' priced at just Rs 5.
"The thaali will consist of rice, chapattis, daal, a vegetable dish and papad. All this will be made available at a price of Rs 5," UP minister Laxmi Narayan Chaudhary told PTI.
Chaudhary holds the charge of the dairy development, religious affairs, culture, minority welfare, Muslim Waqf and Haj departments in the Adityanath government.
The minister said that during a recent official tour to Chhattisgarh he happened to taste a Rs 5 meal, which was being provided by the government of that state.
"I tasted a Rs 5 thaali while on tour. I was moving from one institution to another. We made a stoppage that was spontaneous and not pre-planned. It was there we had the Rs 5 meal," Chaudhary said.
He said the food was clean, hygienic and tasted really good. "I was satisfied with the food and overall cleanliness of the place," Chaudhary said.
Last month, the Madhya Pradesh government had also kick-started its 'Deendayal Rasoi Yojana', to provide subsidised meals to the poor at Rs 5 per plate at some select outlets.
The ambitious scheme of the MP government was launched on April 7, simultaneously in Bhopal and Gwalior.
In Tamil Nadu, Amma Unavagam (Amma Canteen) is a food subsidisation programme run by the state government that is quite popular among the people.
Under the scheme, municipal corporations of the state run canteens that serve food at low prices.
