Samosa, biryani, tea: District poll panels fix varied menu, for LS polls expenditure

New Delhi: Candidates in Punjab’s Jalandhar can spend Rs 15 for a cup of tea and the same price for a samosa they offer to people during public meetings and campaign trails in the Lok Sabha elections.

However, those in Madhya Pradesh’s Mandla can spend Rs 7 for a cup of tea and another Rs 7.50 for a piece of samosa, considered a staple snack in many parts of the country.

With polls to elect the 18th Lok Sabha approaching, district poll panels are fixing the rates for expenses as part of the election expenditure monitoring process.

The candidates will have to manage their expenditures within the prescribed limit. These rate cards often become a subject of “meme-fest” on social media about the prices not being in sync with the current inflation level.

In most states, including Andhra Pradesh, the expenditure ceiling for a Lok Sabha candidate is set at Rs 95 lakh. However, in Arunachal Pradesh, Goa, and Sikkim, the limit is slightly lower at Rs 75 lakh per candidate. Similarly, for Union territories, the expenditure ceiling ranges from Rs 75 lakh to Rs 95 lakh per candidate, depending on the region.

In Jalandhar, chole bhature has been capped at Rs 40 while mutton and chicken have been priced at Rs 250 and 500 per kg respectively. Desserts like dhodha (Rs 450 per kg) and ghee pinni (Rs 300 per kg) are also on the menu besides lassi and nimbu pani priced at Rs 20 and 15 per glass respectively.

The cost of tea is low at Rs 5 in the rate card of Balaghat in Madhya Pradesh but the samosa is priced higher at Rs 10. The Balaghat rate card also has idli, sambhar vada and poha-jalebi priced at Rs 20 while the cost for dosa and upma has been fixed at Rs 30.

In Thoubal district of violence-hit Manipur, tea, samosa, kachori, khajur (dates) and gaja (dessert) have been priced at Rs 10 each.

Candidates in the northeastern state’s Tengnoupal district will have to stick to Rs 5 for black tea and Rs 10 for milk tea. The list has a wider spread of non-vegetarian items with duck and pork priced at Rs 300 and Rs 400 per kg respectively. Chicken (broiler) and fish like rohu, mrigal and sareng, are also on the list.

In Chennai, the price of tea has been raised from Rs 10 to Rs 15 and coffee from Rs 15 to Rs 20, while the rate of chicken biryani has been reduced from Rs 180 to Rs 150 per packet compared to 2019.

In the expenditure card for Gautam Buddha Nagar (Noida/Greater Noida), vegetarian thali comes for Rs 100, a samosa or a cup of tea for Rs 10, kachori for Rs 15, a sandwich for Rs 25, and a kilogram of jalebi for Rs 90 per kg.

North Goa candidates can have batata vada on menu at a cost of Rs 15, same as that for a samosa.