Good riddance to parliament canteen subsidy
Canteen food in India’s Parliament would no longer come at dirt cheap rates. Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla has announced that subsidies on food served in the canteen have been completely dispensed with. Besides, the state-owned Indian Tourism Development Corporation (ITDC) would now run the facility that was earlier managed by the Northern Railways.
In 2019, Members of Parliament had unanimously decided to give up the subsidy during the Business Advisory Committee meeting of Lok Sabha. Some calculations point out that revocation of the subsidy may save the Lok Sabha Secretariat Rs 17 crore a year. However, it is just not about the finances. The Parliament canteen food subsidy has long been linked to privileges that the people’s elected representatives are entitled to.
The matter grabbed headlines five years ago after an RTI reply revealed that food was being served with a subsidy that ranged from 50-90 per cent in the Parliament canteen and during a five-year period in the late 2000s, at least Rs 60 crore in subsidy was provided to these facilities. With MPs perceived as the ones largely enjoying the benefit that is paid from the pockets of Indian taxpayer, the issue led to intense debate and discussion. BJP’s national vice president Baijayant Jay Panda, then a Biju Janata Dal MP, raised the matter and urged the lawmakers to give up the subsidy, which he felt must be meant for the poorest of the poor.
He received some brickbats from his fellow Parliamentarians for his suggestion but there were also others who wanted the subsidy to end because it showed the MPs in the wrong light though this formed only 9% of the canteen sales. To save the decorum of the hallowed legislature, the practice can be done away with, they argued.
Indian MPs do not need canteen subsidy at the expense of taxpayers’ money and the decision to give it up makes perfect sense. However, the subsidised facilities are also availed by a number of Parliamentary staff, people from ministries and a host of others. Those who need the subsidy support must be covered after a careful examination.