Village gets a PDS outlet after five years

Syed Muthahar Saqaf narrates how relentless struggle by people and swift follow-up action by top officials got the shop sanctioned for Regunathapatti

Collector C. Manoharan inagurates a part- time government fair price shop at Reghunathapatti village in Ponnamaravathy panchayat in Pudukottai district on Monday.

Relentless battle by the residents of Regunathapatti village in Ponnamaravathi union for the past five years demanding a part-time ration shop has finally yielded result.

District Collector C. Manoharan inaugurated the shop in the village on Monday, much to the delight of the local people. About 170 cardholders of the village had to trek 3 km to fetch the essential commodities from the ration shop at R. Palakurichi village. They had been pleading for a part-time ration shop in the village and the top district officials in 2008 assured them to get shop sanctioned in the village if the petitioners offered accommodation for the same.

The residents built a small shop by spending Rs. 5 lakh from the village fund in the same year. However, the ration shop did not materialise on please that a village should have at least 200 ration cards to get a shop. This did not deter the people of the village, who continued to pursue the matter with the district authorities time and again. They organised agitations to draw the attention of the authorities. In the last January, they stepped up the agitation and handed over the ration cards and Electoral Photo Identity Cards (EPIC) in protest against the delay in sanctioning the fair price shop. They got back the ration cards and EPIC cards when the officials assured them to open the shop by February itself.

When this assurance too was not fulfilled, the residents once again took to the streets. Last week, the people of the village squatted in a cremation ground and refused to return to the village until their just demand was conceded.

On the fourth day, top officials rushed to the spot and assured the protesters that a shop would be opened within a fortnight.

The Collector, after inaugurating the shop, said the district administration got in touch with the Food Secretary and Commissioner immediately, following which the Chief Minister sanctioned the shop at a short notice. He thanked the people for reposing faith in the district administration.

K. Nagarajan, District Revenue Officer; Manivannan, District Supply Officer; K.V.S. Kumar, Joint Registrar of Cooperative Societies; were present.

Periya Ponnan, panchayat president, thanked the officials.