Shimla/Hamirpur, Dec 26 (PTI) The Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha has set up ‘Namo’ tea stalls in all 12 districts of Himachal Pradesh to create awareness about the Centre’s development and welfare schemes, a spokesperson said Tuesday.
Forty-two Namo tea stalls were opened on Tuesday.
Leader of Opposition Jai Ram Thakur took a sip of tea and chatted with people at a Namo tea stall in Sirmaur district. The BJP’s state unit chief Rajeev Bindal had tea at a kiosk in Mandi district, Karan Nanda — the party’s media in-charge in Himachal Pradesh — told PTI.
The Shimla unit of the Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha (BJYM) — the BJP’s youth wing — set up a Namo tea stall near the IGMC taxi stand and at the Ridge ground. Tea was served to about 500 people at the stalls while the Namo app was downloaded on the phones of more than 300.
This is a unique effort that has given the BJYM an opportunity to connect with the public, its state unit chief Tilak Raj said in a statement.
Besides promoting the Centre’s schemes, the BJYM will also make people aware of the state’s government’s “anti-people decisions” that have affected the pockets of commoners.
Ahead of the Lok Sabha elections, the Namo tea stalls — named after Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the “architect of the present India”– have been set up at Gandhi Chowk in Hamirpur, Indrapal Chowk in Nadaun, main market in Bhoranj, and Badsar Bazar and Sujanpur Bazar in Hamirpur district, the BJYM said.
The idea is to have “gup-shup aur chai (tea and discussion)” over the development schemes and initiatives launched for the welfare of the weaker sections, a BJYM spokesperson in Hamirpur said.
The tea stalls will play a major role ahead of the Lok Sabha elections, another BJYM office-bearer in the district said and added that the BJP’s youth wing will organise several activities at these kiosks.
In the run-up to the 2014 general elections, the BJP had launched “Chai pe Charcha (teatime chats)” outreach programmes in which senior party leaders, including then prime ministerial candidate Modi, held meetings over tea with people at hundreds of locations simultaneously across the country in a bid to increase its vote share. PTI COR BPL SZM
This report is auto-generated from PTI news service. ThePrint holds no responsibility for its content.