Kolkata, May 19 (IANS) After crying hoarse about the West Bengal government's poor finances, the Mamata Banerjee government is now splurging money to highlight its achievements on its first anniversary, virtually competing with Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J.Jayalalithaa's advertising blitzkrieg.
Banerjee Saturday inaugurated a a massive week-long fair on the sprawling Milan Mela ground to celebrate the successes of her government's 50 departments, while cultural functions and exhibitions were organised at Nandan-Rabindrasadan Cultural Complex and on Metro channel.
The cost of the celebrations, called Pragati Utsav, is estimated to be between Rs.15-20 crore - a substantial amount for a cash-strapped government which claims to have inherited a loan burden of over Rs.2 lakh crore and has been demanding an interest moratorium on central loans and a financial bailout package.
Huge hoardings with pictures of Banerjee have appeared in the city and the districts thanking "Ma, Mati, Manush". A book is being published showcasing the strides taken by the departments, and the ministers are set to fan out to the districts to participate in the celebrations there.
Tableaux would also be displayed across the city till May 26.
Banerjee would also confer Bangabibhushan and Bangabhusan awards on celebrities and others at a function May 20, the day the government completes a year in office.
leading advertising agencies and public relations firms such as Ogilvy & Mather, Arun Sign Services, and Sagittarius have been roped in to plan and design the stalls at Milan Mela.
Ahead of the celebrations, top bureaucrats, including departmental secretaries, and even ministers visited the venues regularly to ensure that the theme and presentation were eye-catching so as to impress the one person who matters the most in the government -- Mamata Banerjee.
Some departments have come up with 3D models on the work done in the past year, while the fire services department has hit upon the idea of audio-visual and interactive kiosks, apart from displaying some recently-acquired special vehicles with in-built patient-care units.
The government also has plans to splash advertisements in local and national dailies, just as Jayalalithaa did a few days back on the first anniversary of her government.
Incidentally, Banerjee and Jayalalithaa won assembly elections the same day -- May 13 last year.
But while Tamil Nadu's 'Amma' took the oath of office May 16 for the third time, Bengal's 'Didi' took charge four days later.
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