Nation pays Rs 60.7 crore for MPs' lunches at Parliament canteens: RTI

New Delhi: Parliament canteens serving to Members of Parliament got a total subsidy of Rs 60.7 crore during the last five years with items like ‘puri sabji’ being sold at 88 percent subsidised rates, an RTI reply shows. [caption id=“attachment_2309074” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] Parliament canteens serving MPs got a total subsidy of Rs 60.7 crore during the last five years.. PTI[/caption] The item list received under the Right to Information Act reveals that Parliamentarians, earning over Rs 1.4 lakh with perks, are relishing items like ‘fish fried with chips’ at Rs 25, mutton cutlet at Rs 18, oiled vegetables at Rs 5, mutton curry with bone at Rs 20 and masala dosa at Rs 6 with rates subsidised by 63 percent, 65 percent, 83 percent, 67 percent and 75 percent respectively. The cost for procuring raw items of dish like stew vegetables comes to about Rs 41.25 while the MPs are getting it for Rs 4 which is a subsidy of about 90 percent. For the non-veg meal raw items are procured at Rs 99.05 while the prepared dish is served at Rs 33 to MPs with 66 percent subsidy, the reply provided to RTI activist Subhash Agrawal shows, adding that the present rates of dishes have not been revised from 20 December, 2010. ‘Papad’ costs Rs 1.98 but sold at Rs 1 in these canteens with a subsidy of almost 50 percent. The RTI response shows that the canteens in Parliament serve 76 mouth watering dishes ranging from simple boiled egg to various mutton and chicken dishes which have been subsidised from over 150 per cent to about 63 percent. The only item which is sold for a marginal profit is ‘roti’ for which raw items cost 77 paisa while sold at Rs one, it said while ‘khomani ka meetha’ being served at market price of Rs 15 for piece of three, it says. The canteens which are being run by Norther Railway procure raw items from Government run agencies like Kendriya Bhandar, Mother Dairy and DMS etc. The reply shows that canteens received a subsidy of Rs 10.4 crore, 11.7 crore, 11.9 crore, 12.5 crore and 14 crore during the years 2009-10, 2010-11, 2012-13, 2013-14 respectively which totals to around Rs 60.7 crore. PTI