West Bengal to distribute bicycles to 12.59 lakh students under renamed scheme

West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari has said 12.59 lakh students will receive bicycles during the current academic year under the State government’s renamed Sarathi scheme. Speaking at a bicycle distribution programme at a school in Howrah on Tuesday, Mr. Adhikari said the Bharatiya Janata Party government had rechristened the previous Trinamool Congress administration’s Sabuj Sathi scheme as Sarathi.

He alleged that the former government procured substandard bicycles for students. Mr. Adhikari said the government would allocate land for a facility in Howrah to manufacture higher-quality cycles.

The Chief Minister also said ₹300 crore had been allocated as a composite grant for schools under the Sarathi scheme. The source material did not provide a breakdown of the grant or details of how it would be distributed. Mr.

Adhikari accused the previous government of awarding scholarships to a particular community as part of what he called “appeasement politics”. He said students from all communities, including Sanatani Hindus and other faiths, would receive scholarships under his government. He said the government would not provide ₹10,000 to higher secondary students for smartphones and tablets, as the previous administration had done.

Instead, he said, students would receive a higher amount to buy learning materials, without specifying the figure or mechanism. Mr. Adhikari accused Left and Trinamool Congress governments of closing National Cadet Corps programmes in schools.

He said he had spoken to Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and that NCC units would be revived in educational institutions. He said the revival would support students’ physical fitness and national safety. The report did not include a response from the Trinamool Congress to the allegations about the earlier scheme.