Govt. likely to delay aid to Consumerfed

It will first have to fix responsibility for losses and streamline functioning

The State government is unlikely to cough up funds from its coffers again to streamline the functioning of the Kerala State Cooperative Consumers’ Federation (Consumerfed) till the management sets its house in order.

Official sources told The Hindu here that the federation would have to wait for some more time to resume business in full swing. In the wake of the demand of the managing director (MD) to make the president and board of directors also culpable for the loss and maladministration on the basis of his findings, the government will have to fix the responsibility on various counts and take stock of the situation before doling out funds to revive its functioning.

As per the managing director’s appraisal, all tenets governing the institution in the cooperative sector were thrown to the winds and the attempt was to place the onus for the irregularities on the employees. Since the director board had held 60 meetings in the past five years and discussed even minor issues, it would not be easy to escape the blame for the present crisis, sources said.

Rs.14.26-crore loss

The government, as part of the market intervention initiative, had granted permission only to sell 13 essential items at subsidised rates through its outlets across the State.

Working fund tapped

But the management had sold more commodities by channelising Rs.273 crore from its working fund. The loss in this score had been pegged at Rs.14.26 crore. The government has to reimburse Rs.409.61 crore to the federation as subsidy for the 13 essential items.

Expanding the list of commodities being sold through its outlets during the festival seasons could not be deemed as a lapse and may even be considered as a commendable effort to arrest the spiralling inflation. It is justifiable to a considerable extent in the case of a cooperative institution founded mainly for market intervention. But what went wrong was its foray into strange terrains in which it had no working knowledge and that rocked the foundation of the federation, sources said.

The government is likely to withhold the release of subsidy and that will again block the payments worth Rs.400 crore due to major suppliers of the federation. A political intervention had become imperative to resolve the crisis, but no such initiatives seemed to be in sight, the sources said.

More than fixed items sold at subsidised rates

MD alleges bid to blame staff for irregularities