The Madhya Pradesh government is inspecting rice stocked across its depots after the Centre requested it to withhold them until further investigation and re-categorisation after it found samples from two districts “unfit for human consumption” and recommended action against those responsible.
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The State Department of Food, Civil Supplies and Consumer Protection was now inspecting stocks State-wide along with teams of Food Corporation of India, the department’s Principal Secretary Faiz Ahmed Kidwai told The Hindu .
“Nearly 75% of the stocks had been inspected and we will get a report within a day or two. The inspection is being undertaken across all depots and stocks have been withheld,” he said, at a time when thousands are increasingly dependent on fair price shops for nutrition in view of the lockdown-induced joblessness.
When asked if the government had acted against officials responsible in Balaghat and Mandla districts, where 32 samples were found to be substandard, Mr. Kidwai said it would be decided after the report came in.
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“It has been six-seven days since the stocks were withheld,” said Tarun Kumar Pithode, the department’s Director. “It is being inspected whether storing the paddy in the open caused the situation, the miller supplied substandard stocks, and so on.”
Deputy Commissioner (Storage and Research Division), Union Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution Vishwajeet Haldar on August 21 had written to Mr. Kidwai pointing out the analysis reports of all the 32 samples were found to be not just beyond the below rejection limit as per the uniform specifications issued by the Ministry but also beyond the Prevention of Food Adulteration Act (PFA), 1954 standards as per the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India. He sought an action taken report at the earliest.
“The stocks are found to be unfit for human consumption and in the categories of Feed-1 which is meant to be suitable for livestock feed (such as goat, horse, sheep); Feed-II which is suitable for cattle feed and Feed-III, which is suitable for poultry feed as per the guidelines for the issuance/disposal of the stocks,” Mr. Haldar noted.
Stating the analysis results pointed to grave and serious shortcomings in the rice quality, he further contended, “There have been grave lapses by district officers, officials and authorities involved in the entire channel from procurement to distribution.”
He recommended officials concerned needed to be identified and proceedings be initiated against them under the Prevention of Food Adulteration Act, 1954, or the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006. “Besides, the rice millers associated in delivery of such ‘human unfit’ stocks should be black listed with immediate effect,” he said.
During the inspection of four depots and one ration shop from July 30 to August 2, samples were collected and sent to the Central Grain Analysis Laboratory, New Delhi.
As per the records of the godowns, wrote Mr. Haldar, the receipt of the stocks from where samples were drawn were procured in May-July, while the condition of the stock represented a “different picture altogether”. “The stocks are 100% recycled old stocks and the gunnies used for storage are also at least two-three years old,” he noted.