NEW DELHI: Delhi Pradesh Congress Committee (DPCC) president Devender Yadav on Wednesday criticised the BJP-led government under Chief Minister Rekha Gupta over the Atal Canteen Scheme, saying the urban poor need jobs and adequate wages, not subsidised meals.
Yadav said unskilled workers require a minimum daily wage of Rs 500 to survive, questioning the intent and scale of the scheme. “Providing 500 meals in the morning and 500 in the evening at one Atal Canteen is merely a token gesture, especially when thousands live in each JJ cluster across Delhi,” he said. He also flagged concerns over the scheme’s estimated annual cost of Rs 7,104 crore, calling it disproportionate to the limited number of beneficiaries.
According to Yadav, the launch of the scheme reflects an admission by the Delhi government that unemployment and inflation have pushed the city’s poor towards a hunger crisis. He said the economic distress caused over the past 11 years by the BJP at the Centre and the AAP in Delhi cannot be addressed through subsidised food alone. Emphasising dignity and income security, Yadav said Delhi needs a legally guaranteed urban employment scheme. “Even a Rs 10,000 crore employment programme would be more meaningful, as it would provide real job security and prevent people from slipping into extreme poverty,” he said.