No plans to rename or shut Indira Canteens, says BS Yediyurappa

BENGALURU: Barely hours after opposition Congress leaders threatened to launch a statewide protest, chief minister BS Yediyurappa on Wednesday clarified that his government has no intention of shutting down Indira Canteens, a pet project of the Congress government led by Siddaramaiah. Launched in 2017, the canteens offer meals at subsidized prices.

“We have no plans to close Indira Canteens nor do we propose to change the name,” Yediyurappa told reporters. “There are also no plans to cut grants being provided to these canteens.”

But Yediyurappa said the government will go ahead with a probe into allegations of misuse of subsidy by contractors by inflating the number of people eating in these eateries. Yediyurappa has already asked the urban development department to investigate the allegations. “There are lots of complaints. If there is wrongdoing, we will take remedial measures,” he said.

The Congress called the allegations false and accused the government of conspiring to shut the canteens. Congress leaders had warned of taking to the streets if the eateries are closed down. “If there are irregularities, let the government end it. But shutting them down under the guise of corruption is not acceptable,” Siddaramaiah had said.

Contractors say an average 63 lakh people eat in these canteens every month. The government thinks it is an inflated figure.

BBMP to seek assistance

Meanwhile responding to a query,

BH Anil Kumar

, the new commissioner of Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagar Palike, which runs the canteens, said he himself had written to the finance department when he was additional chief secretary of urban development department seeking at least 50% assistance to operate the canteens.

“The BBMP has been writing to the urban development department and we had also forwarded this issue to the finance department,” Kumar said. “It has come to my notice that the BBMP council is also ready to bear some expenditure to run the canteens. I will also check available resources within BBMP to shoulder the costs of running the canteens.”