Supplyco family rice quota up

Minister says each family will get 35 kg a month from corporation outlets

Food and Civil Supplies Minister Anoop Jacob has said that the availability of rice for each family through Supplyco outlets has been increased to 35 kg a month.

The boiled rice allotted by the Union government under the Open Market Sales Scheme will be used for this. The sales price will be Rs.20.50 a kg. Rice currently available at Rs.16 a kg., Rs.19 a kg, and Rs.21 a kg will continue to be available. Ten kg of rice will be provided additionally to APL category of cardholders through ration shops.

The Minister said here on Monday that the government had directed Supplyco to lift 5,000 metric tonnes under the sales scheme initially. Allotments would be made to schools, hospitals, and other institutions with permits as per requirement assessed by the Director of Civil Supplies.

Godown visit

Thrissur Staff Reporter writes:

A special squad of the Food Corporation of India (FCI) that visited the godown at Mulangunnathukavu, near here, on Monday gave a clean chit to the local FCI officials on an allegation that tonnes of foodgrains hoarded at the warehouse were destroyed.

The team, led by Assistant General Manager (Quality Control) of the FCI, Alagar Swamy, said the destroyed foodgrains were rotten, which could not be used even for making poultry feed.

“What the officials had done was a usual procedure with the FCI. A few tonnes of foodgrains brought to Mulangunnathukavu were damaged during transportation. Though the FCI called tender for selling it for making poultry feed, nobody came forward. So the rotten foodgrains were buried. The officials cannot be blamed for it.” He said only 1.5 tonnes of goodgrains were buried at the Mulangunnathukavu godown, which stored tens of thousands of tonnes of foodgrains.

Meanwhile, activists of the Bharatiya Janata Party and All India Democratic Women’s Association took out marches to the FCI godown on Monday. “When the State is facing acute scarcity of rice, tonnes of foodgrains are getting rotten in the FCI godowns. The Chief Minister is turning a blind eye to this fact. He is trying to protect the interests of private rice mills,” said BJP State general secretary A.N. Radhakrishnan.