The Vigilance and Anti-Corruption Bureau (VACB) on Thursday found large-scale illegal diversion of subsidised Public Distribution System (PDS) commodities to the open market.
It had conducted surprise checks at State-run ration godowns and depots to check pilferage of PDS goods both at the supply and distribution levels. Director of VACB Loknath Behera ordered the special drive to aid accurate targeting of State subsidy by eliminating corruption.
An anti-corruption investigator said the trucks contracted to ferry PDS goods, including subsidised kerosene, from warehouses to depots were often diverted to the premises of black marketeers.
The quality of food grains reaching warehouses was seldom tested for quality. Ration shops rarely displayed the commodities available for sale. Civil Supplies Officers hardly ever checked warehouses and ration shops.
Ration shops lacked standardised weights and measures and food grains were stored in unhygienic conditions.
An estimated 80 lakh people draw succour from PDS. Studies conducted by the VACB in the past had indicated that only 40% of the PDS commodities reached intended beneficiaries. Bogus ration cards, even those of deceased persons, are widely used to steal subsidy by showing fictional transactions on paper.
Curiously, ration shop records often show that 90% of beneficiaries drew their PDS quota on the last day of the month. The agency said future inspections would start at the point of sales and move up the supply chain to identify and plug loopholes that facilitated corruption and theft.
Vigilance investigators found surplus stock in several depots they inspected. The pattern suggested hoarding for illegal diversion of goods to the open market, often as branded and packaged products.
There are an estimated 14,300 ration shops in the State. Officials said civil supplies officials should ensure that commodities were released only in the presence of the beneficiary and trucks transporting ration goods were actively tracked from warehouse to depot.
