KOLKATA: West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari on Tuesday announced free bicycles for 12.59 lakh students entering Class VIII from the next academic year.
The Trinamool Congress (TMC) government, led by Mamata Banerjee, had launched the bicycle distribution scheme as ‘Sabuj Sathi’ in 2015 for students of state-aided schools. The BJP government has renamed it ‘Sarathi’.
Announcing the project under the ‘Sarathi’ scheme at a programme in Howrah, Adhikari said industrial units or bicycle manufacturers involved in the scheme would be provided land in the state free of cost.
Adhikari distributed bicycles to students at a school in Howrah and alleged that the previous government had procured “substandard” bicycles under the ‘Sabuj Sathi’ scheme.
“Earlier, parts of bicycles were brought from Jalandhar in Punjab. The previous government used to give contracts to one relative of the former chief minister and some others known to her to manufacture cycles with these parts. We have stopped this system,” he said.
“We will allot land to set up a facility that will manufacture high-quality cycles in Howrah. As many as 12.59 lakh students will get bicycles this academic year under the Sarathi scheme,” Adhikari said.
The Chief Minister said Rs 300 crore had been allocated as a composite grant for schools under the scheme. He also accused the previous government of providing student scholarships to a particular community as part of its “appeasement politics”. He said the system would be streamlined and students of all communities would receive scholarships.
Adhikari advised students to use mobile phones as little as possible until Class XII. He also said his government would not provide Rs 10,000 to higher secondary students for smartphones and mobile tablets, as was done by the previous government. Instead, he said, a higher amount would be provided to purchase learning materials.
Accusing the CPI(M)-led Left and TMC governments of closing NCC programmes in schools, Adhikari said he had spoken to Defence Minister Rajnath Singh about the matter.
He said NCC units will be revived in educational institutions across the state to improve students’ physical fitness and promote national safety.
“We must be fired by nationalism and be inspired by the ideals of Syama Prasad Mookerjee, who was instrumental in the carving out of present West Bengal. Today youths must remember his contribution and sacrifice in saving the homeland of Sanatani Hindus,” Adhikari said.
