Sayantika Das, a Class II student of Malda, had planned to start cycling from Thursday a distance of around 350km to reach Harish Chatterjee Street in Calcutta to meet chief minister Mamata Banerjee and thank her for the array of schemes meant for students in Bengal.

The eight-year-old had to partially change her plans as Mamata suggested she refrain from cycling such a long distance and instead take a train to Calcutta and cycle from Sealdah station to the chief minister’s home.

Sayantika, the youngest daughter of Pradip Das, who makes a modest living by running his own car, and Uma, a homemaker, lives in Manaskamanapally of Malda town.

Currently on board a train to Calcutta with her parents, the little girl is also carrying aamsatwa (traditional mango candy), a signature item of her district, as a gift for Mamata who is reportedly fond of it.

Before leaving Malda on Wednesday, Sayantika said she wanted to thank the chief minister for introducing Kanyashree (a scheme of financial aid to girl students), Sabuj Sathi (a scheme that gives students free bicycle), scholarship schemes Aikyashree and Shikshashree, Taruner Swapno (a scheme of financial aid to students for smartphones) and students’ credit cards.

“She also introduced free school uniforms, footwear and schoolbags. All these have helped millions of students across the state. Being a student, I wanted to thank her,” said Sayantika, whose elder sisters are currently pursuing college degrees. “They both received Rs 25,000 under Kanyashree. If the chief minister had not launched it, it would have been impossible for girls in my family to study with ease.”

Her parents said that Sayantika loves cycling and is a diehard Mamata fan.

“Whenever Mamata Banerjee appears on television, Sayantika sits glued to it,” said her father Prabir.

The family had informed Malda district administration about Sayantika’s proposed cycling trip to meet the chief minister. Her parents were to come with her on a scooter.

The information reached Mamata about four days ago. On Wednesday, the girl and her parents were called to the district magistrate’s office and told that the chief minister did not want the little girl to cycle so much. Instead, the family received train tickets to Calcutta so that they could reach Sealdah on Thursday. “The girl is carrying her cycle and she will ride it from Sealdah to the chief minister’s residence. Policemen will accompany her along the route,” said district administration officer.

Uma, Sayantani’s mother, also said before boarding the train on Wednesday that she was excited. “Our chief minister loves children. We just want to thank her for fulfilling the dreams of many girls who can move ahead in life through education,” Uma said.