Paneer thali, chicken biryani likely to be on Parliament menu

NEW DELHI: A paneer thali with chapati, sweets, dal, pickles and jeera rice for ₹105, a south Indian thali of idli, vada, mini dosa and utthapam with sambhar and chutney for ₹110, both prepared by a Bengali Marketbased private restaurant are among the food boxes lawmakers and others in Parliament can choose from during the upcoming monsoon session that starts Monday with stringent health protocols.

Parliament staff and media will have to place orders and pay a day in advance, officials familiar with the matter said.

The officials added that they really don’t know how many people will avail the food box option, given that most people are wary of eating out during the pandemic.

Non-veg food boxes will also be available — ₹150 for a chicken cutlet, croissant, boiled vegetables and a dab of butter, or ₹100 for chicken biryani and raita will be available.

With the northern railway-run parliament canteen closed due to the coronavirus disease and no cooking allowed in the Parliament complex for this session, the food served will be sourced from outside. Railways will distribute and serve the food inside the House complex, and manage the payments.

These, officials insisted, are temporary measures during the extraordinary circumstances and the best option after considering various factors. In the next session, the government’s tourism arm ITDC will take over the House canteen.

As the Bengali Market-based restaurant only specialises in vegetarian food, non-vegetarian items will be prepared at an MPs’ canteen in North Avenue, close to the Parliament estate.

“This canteen was closed for the past few months. But it will be opened if the non-vegetarian menu is approved. Meanwhile, two cooks from parliament canteen have been deployed there to help the staff,” an official said.

The breakfast menu — cheese rolls, sandwiches, veg patties, samosas, and kachoris — will be brought to parliament complex before 7.30 am. The lunch will be brought by 1 pm, said officials.

The Rajya Sabha secretariat has already issued a circular to its officials saying those “desirous of availing the food items may place the order and make payment to northern railway one day in advance.”

There will be no weekend breaks during the 18-day long session that ends on October 1.

PARLIAMENT STAFF AND MEDIA WILL HAVE TO PLACE ORDERS AND PAY A DAY IN ADVANCE; BREAKFAST MENU WILL BE BROUGHT TO PARLIAMENT COMPLEX BEFORE 7.30AM, AND LUNCH BY1 PM