Excelsior Correspondent
JAMMU, Aug 4: Expressing concern over the alleged inapt handling of food matters, the former Union Minister, Prof. Chaman Lal Gupta said that the representatives of this region owe greater responsibility because the rationing system in the State was adopted over 75 years back in wake of an agitation in Jammu in which as many as nine persons were killed.
In a statement issued here, today he said this agitation was followed by another food agitation in 1967, in which thousands of Jana Sangh workers led by great Dogra leader Pt. Prem Nath Dogra had courted arrests and the Government had appointed a commission on regional disparities. But it is unfortunate that intriguing moves are there to create hurdles in the supply of rations and a messy situation has been created on various accounts to that there is little regular supply of the rationed commodities.
Prof. Gupta pointed out that it was over two years back that the extension of National Food Security Act (NFSA) was announced with a bang that over 70 percent consumers would get rations at most cheaper rates viz. Rs. 2/- per kg Wheat and Rs. 3/- per kg Rice.
But it is pity that despite expiry of two long years most of the rationees have not been provided the ration cards notwithstanding the repeatedly fixing the target dates. In the absence of ration cards a big loot is going on and those who were entitled to get these rations at rate of Rs. 2/- and Rs. 3/- per kg are being charged Atta/Wheat first at Rs. 8/- and Rs. 10/- per kg and later on these rates were enhanced to Rs. 13/- per kg Atta and Rs. 15/- per kg Rice.
Prof. Gupta alleged that a big bungling has been committed in preparing the lists of rationees to the extent that the people with low income in most cases have been put in line with families of High Income Categories and thus deprived them of their due.
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