Sabooj Sathi, Bangla’s flagship bicycle distribution programme, designed under the guidance of Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, has been declared a ‘Champion Project’ at the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) Prizes, given by ITU, a United Nations organisation working for the use and development of information and communication technology (ICT).
Based on the maximum number of votes cast, the scheme was selected as one of the five finalists in the ‘E-Governance’ category.
The winner will be declared at a prize-giving ceremony to be held on April 9 at the ITU headquarters in Geneva.
More than 20 lakh votes were cast for a total of 1,140 projects across 18 categories. Prizes would be given in all the 18 categories.
Under the Sabooj Sathi Scheme, bicycles are given free of cost to students from classes IX to XII studying in State Government schools. Till now, over 70 lakh bicycles have been distributed, with the number to touch 1 crore soon.
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