NEW DELHI: The Delhi government will launch the Atal Canteen Scheme on the birth anniversary of former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, providing nutritious meals at affordable prices to the economically weaker sections. Announced in the city’s maiden budget earlier this year, the scheme will begin at 100 locations across the capital, with meals at just Rs 5.
Chief Minister Rekha Gupta said on Friday that the first phase of the scheme will see the opening of 100 Atal Canteens at pre-identified sites, with operations entrusted to selected organisations.
An inter-departmental committee has finalised recommendations regarding site selection, menu, distribution system and management framework.
Each centre will serve 500 meals in the morning and 500 in the evening, with the menu including dal-chawal (lentils and rice), vegetables, and roti. The government will provide subsidies to ensure high food quality. The chief minister said that the distribution will be managed through a digital token system, eliminating the need for manual coupons. CCTV cameras will monitor all centres in real time via DUSIB’s digital platform.
Kitchens will feature modern appliances, LPG-based cooking systems, industrial RO water and cold storage. Food quality will be tested by FSSAI- and NABL-accredited laboratories, and implementing agencies will submit monthly reports covering food distribution, employee health certificates, fire safety certificates, and valid FSSAI licences.
CM Gupta described the scheme as a step towards ensuring dignity for every poor and working citizen of Delhi.
“Atal Canteen will become the soul of Delhi, a place where no one has to sleep hungry,” she said. The initiative, she added, is inspired by Vajpayee’s belief that “poverty is not merely a lack of money, but a lack of opportunity.”
She emphasised that the scheme is more than a food distribution programme, calling it a commitment to social equality. The Atal Thali Yojana aims to ensure that no citizen in the capital goes hungry while maintaining dignity and access to nutritious, clean meals.