Mohinder Verma
JAMMU, Jan 3: In what could be the testimony of urgent issues remain confined in the official files due to slackness of those at the helm of affairs, the Consumer Affairs and Public Distribution (CAPD) Department has failed to take decision on the disposal of Rs 1.33 crore worth rotten and sub-standard ration in Leh district during the past nearly two months. This lackadaisical response is notwithstanding the fact that case was forwarded to the department for final decision on priority basis on the ground that the decayed ration was posing high risk of infecting the fresh stock in the stores.
Reliable sources told EXCELSIOR that earlier the rotten and sub-standard ration remained lying in the stores for years together because of the failure of the local officers of the CAPD Department to bring the same to the notice of higher authorities and now the decision on disposal is being delayed at the level of Administrative Department.
The rotten ration issue came to the notice of the Leh district administration few months back and accordingly each and every store was inspected to assess the prevailing situation. Thereafter, the Assistant Director, in a detailed report, informed the district administration that there was huge stock of sub-standard/rotten food grains in various stores/sale centres in the district, which was declared as unfit for human as well as livestock consumption by the Public Analyst, Public Health Laboratory Kashmir in the year 2007 vide report No. CAPD/Sample/Deteriorated/1183-87 dated September 17, 2007, sources said. However, the local CAPD authorities could not specify the reasons behind keeping the rotten and sub-standard ration in the stores despite being found unfit for consumption”.
In the report, the local CAPD authorities cited bad and improper storage conditions in some rented sale counters and flash floods of 2010 as the reasons behind such huge stocks of food grains getting decayed and becoming unfit for consumption, sources informed.
On the basis of this report, a committee comprising of Assistant Director CAPD, Chief Animal Husbandry Officer, Chief Medical Officer and District Treasury Officer was constituted and after threadbare discussion Administrative Department was requested, in the month of November, for issuance of orders for disposal of food grains, sources said.
“In the communiqué, it was stressed that decision should be taken expeditiously in order to prevent the fresh stocks from getting infected and provide sufficient space for future dumping”, sources said. However, no decision has been taken by the Administrative Department during the past two months and the fresh ration remained stocked with the rotten food grains.
Pointing towards the Government Order No.318-GAD of 2006 issued by the then Commissioner Secretary, General Administration Department, sources said, “a committee, which is required to recommend disposal of deteriorated food-grains as per this order has already accomplished its task. Moreover, the requirement of getting the ration analyzed from the suitable laboratory has also been fulfilled”, adding “it is only due to the delay in taking decision at the level of Administrative Department that rotten ration is still lying in the stores”.
According to the official figures, 5083.89 kilograms of sub-standard and 2396.01 kilograms of rotten rice is lying in the CAPD stores in Leh, Nyoma, Nubra, Khaltsi, Kharu and Durbuk blocks. Similarly, 4489.11 kg sub-standard and 1779.21 kg rotten atta, 83.27 kg sub-standard and 59.27 kg rotten sugar and 956.95 kg sub-standard and 32.05 kg rotten salt is lying in the stores. The total value of rotten and sub-standard ration has been worked out at Rs 1.33 crore.
Despite repeated attempts, Minister for CAPD, Ch Mohammad Ramzan and Director CAPD, Kashmir, under whose jurisdiction Leh district falls, could not be contacted for their comments on delay in disposal of the rotten ration. However, Assistant Director CAPD Leh, Mr Gaylson confirmed that formal order about disposal of ration was awaited from the Secretariat.
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