Union Minister of State for Food, Public Distribution, and Consumer Affairs K.V. Thomas has said that there has been a substantial increase in Kerala’s foodgrains quota over the past three years.
An official press note released for publication here on Tuesday, quoted the Union Minister as saying that the State’s quota of foodgrains meant for distribution through the public distribution system had risen by 3,45,513 tonnes over the past three years, from 10,16,724 tonnes in 2009-’10 to 12,76,878 tonnes in 2011-’12. The quantity of foodgrains meant for distribution under other schemes had also risen during the period, he said.
The State required 1.52 lakh tonne foodgrains a month for ration distribution. The godowns of the Food Corporation of India (FCI) in Kerala had the capacity to store 5,13,696 tonnes. Besides this, 22,000 tonnes of foodgrains was being stored with sufficient security outside these godowns. Those controlled by the State government had an additional 96,000 tonnes in stock. Taken together, the foodgrain stocks would be sufficient for four months and a half.
