COPYCAT CREDO

Rajasthan chief minister Ashok Gehlot these days can be seen dining at Indira Rasois, where one can have a meal for Rs 8, the government subsidising Rs 17. With a Rs 14 crore budget, 870 such kitchens are already running; the number is expected to go up to 1,000 by March. Gehlot has urged local leaders to have meals here too, both to bond with fellow diners and check quality. Selfhelp groups have been roped in to run the rasois. Incidentally, Gehlot’s slogan to serve meals respectfully is borrowed from predecessor Vasundhara Raje’s mobile Annapurna rasois. He had stopped the scheme first, only to realise perhaps that the way to the electorate’s heart is via their stomachs.