After central advisory, singara & jalebi set to make debut on party faithfuls' menu this Martyrs' Day
Party sources said while the snacks cannot be produced in bulk like the other food items, they will be served as a delicacy as an evening snack, perhaps once between Saturday and Monday. This is a reminder to the now-withdrawn diktat against these traditional Indian snacks by the central govt.
"We are trying to offer singara-jalebi as an evening snack to the participants at least once during this period. We are taking stock of the expenditure," said Debalina Biswas, KMC borough IX chairperson, who is in charge of overall facility management at Uttirna in south Kolkata.
Around 4,500 party supporters from Purulia, Bankura, and Murshidabad will be housed there from Saturday.
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According to an estimate, close to a lakh supporters are supposed to reach Kolkata by Sunday evening to take part in the annual Martyrs' Day rally on July 21. The visitors are being accommodated in large tents and shelters set up at four main locations across the city — Central Park in Salt Lake, Gitanjali Stadium in Kasba, Uttirna open-air auditorium in Alipore, and Kshudiram Anushilan Kendra next to Netaji Indoor Stadium.
The largest of these makeshift camps is in Salt Lake, housing around 30,000 people overnight.
A party senior in charge at the camps said they arranged full-day meals, including breakfast, lunch, and dinner. As part of preparations, 200 quintals of rice and over 3.6 lakh eggs — around 12,000 crates — have been sourced. The logistics extend beyond camps, with hotels, guest houses, and dormitories near Howrah, Sealdah, and central Kolkata also being booked.
TMC functionaries said this would be one of the largest gatherings in recent times, expecting a record crowd to arrive from all 23 districts ahead of the 2026 elections. "We're here to hear Didi's message ahead of the elections. After our success in LS polls, we are confident of a victory again next year," said Rupam Sarkar, a supporter from Gangarampur in South Dinajpur, who arrived with 130 others and is staying in the Salt Lake camp.
"People began arriving on Friday. We have close to 10,000 people in our camp," said Sujit Bose, in charge of Salt Lake camp.
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