NEW DELHI: In perhaps the first such move to add to the growing popularity of Prime Minister Modi, railway stations across the country will have 3D selfie booths to provide an opportunity for passengers to have selfies with PM Modi’s cutouts.
Opposition leader and Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge called the move a huge waste of public money. “Self-obsessed promotion by Modi govt knows no bounds! Absolutely brazen waste of taxpayers’ money,” Kharge said on X.
“Earlier, the blood and sacrifice of our brave soldiers was used by ordering the armed forces to install 822 such selfie points with a prominent cutout of Modi ji. This is at a time when the govt has not provided drought and flood relief to states. National rural employment scheme funds for opposition-ruled states are also pending,” said Kharge, calling the move a cheap election stunt.
Kharge also shared a copy of a reply obtained under the Right to Information (RTI) Act, which listed the stations under the Central Railway where temporary and permanent selfie booths have been installed. According to the RTI reply, the approved cost for the temporary selfie booths for category A station is Rs 1.25 lakh each, whereas the permanent selfie booth for category C stations will cost Rs 6.25 lakh.
There were reports that the railway board in Delhi had told general managers of 19 zonal railways to install selfie booths at stations. These were supposed to be designed with durable 3D fibre sculptures, acrylic boards, glass and integrated lighting to showcase 3D sculptures crafted from materials like fibre, clay or Plaster of Paris. The installations highlight Central initiatives such as Skill India, Ujjwala Yojana and Chandrayaan Mission.
In October, the defence ministry had issued guidelines to all its departments to set up 822 selfie points to highlight the work done by the department and said this “may contain” photos of the PM. The suggested locations for the selfie points included war memorials, museums, public transit stations, airports, markets, schools and colleges and tourist spots.