Cops deployed at a New Alipore camp after chaos
Tension escalated after KMC officials initially told them that fresh applications were not being accepted at the camp. “Initially, the KMC officials told the persons that new Annapurna Bhandar applications were not being accepted at the camp. Later, we sent a large team to control the situation,” said a senior Kolkata Police officer. Police said tables were overturned and plastic chairs damaged. Rajarhat block development officer Sudipta Biswas said the camp resumed after normalcy returned. “We have lodged a written complaint with police in connection with the incident,” he said.
The situation turned unruly at both locations, with chairs and tables damaged and officials seeking police intervention. Two persons, including a woman, were arrested in Rajarhat. The announcement angered the crowd, with some allegedly breaking chairs and tables. KMC officials took shelter at a nearby local club and sought police assistance. A large police team was subsequently sent to the spot. That made the people upset. In Rajarhat block, the Seva Setu Abhiyan camp drew a large crowd from Friday morning. Trouble broke out when some people, allegedly upset over not receiving Annapurna Bhandar benefits, created a disturbance. Rajarhat police reached the spot and brought the situation under control. A woman and a man were arrested.
On Friday, large numbers of women gathered at camps in New Alipore and Rajarhat, demonstrating over alleged difficulties in getting the scheme’s benefits.