I have been given complete freedom to bulldoze illegal rice trade: Manohar

Time of India

4 hours ago

With surprise checks and continuous monitoring of diversion of rice from the PDS system, civil supplies and consumer affairs minister Nadendla Manohar is on a mission to put an end to the illegal trade since taking charge in June last year.
His proactive approach has saved paddy farmers from waiting for payments for their produce, which are now being done within 48 hours. While he has initiated several reforms in the last one year, Manohar feels that supply of fine quality rice to midday meal programme for school children is one of the biggest achievements of the NDA govt. In an interview with Samdani MN, he said the govt plans to supply fine quality rice through PDS shops to prevent the recycling of PDS rice.
Excerpts...
You have been on a spree of initiating reforms since taking over...
This is one of the few depts that directly connects every household in the state. We deal with millions of poor people, children, farmers, rice millers and PDS distributors. Every day is a new beginning for us as we need to handle both the sellers and buyers without leaving anyone in distress.
Your surprise inspections of rice mills, godowns, even ships to seize PDS stocks created ripples across the state...
by Taboola
by Taboola
Sponsored Links
Sponsored Links
Promoted Links
Promoted Links
You May Like
Giao dịch vàng CFDs với mức chênh lệch giá thấp nhất
IC Markets
Đăng ký
Undo
We created a scare among illegal traders with our surprise raids and seizure of stocks. We seized about 70,000 metric tonnes of PDS rice during surprise raids, which show the volume of illegal operations handled by these traders. The chief minister (Chandrababu Naidu) and deputy chief minister (Pawan Kalyan) have given me complete freedom to bulldoze the illicit rice trade and traders. We should keep in mind that the govt is spending thousands of crores on subsidy.
However, it's a continuous process and will take time to completely contain the diversion.
Do you think it is possible to stop the recycling and diversion of PDS rice?
Yes, it is very much possible. We have designed a multi-pronged strategy for that. We also need to create awareness among the consumers. Despite our best efforts to improve the quality of rice distributed through PDS, many people do not prefer to consume it.
We are working overtime to change their perception. We are also working to remodel the PDS shops to make them profitable and remunerative to dealers by converting them into small kirana stores.
We will install CC cameras in all 29,000 shops to ensure transparency of supplies.
How did the paddy procurement process go?
It's one of the big achievements of the NDA govt as we could procure about 48 lakh metric tonnes of paddy during Kharif and Rabi by spending close to Rs 12,000 crore in the last one year.
We remitted the amount into the accounts of farmers within 24 hours. We have also cleared nearly Rs 1,700 crore dues left behind by the previous YSRCP regime.
Is it possible to procure fine quality rice for supply through PDS?
We are motivating farmers to cultivate fine varieties because majority of the stocks we procure is not suitable for consumption in the state. Farmers will produce more fine quality price when they get the desired price for the produce.
We are hopeful of bringing change in a phased manner.
How did you achieve the target of supplying fine quality rice for midday meals programme from the first day of reopening of schools?
We readied the plans in advance to roll them on time. It is one of the biggest achievements of the govt. We are supplying about 2.25 lakh metric tonnes of fine rice for the midday meal programme.
There have been complaints on services related to issue of ration cards...
There are many issues. Some are requesting a split of cards to enable them to get benefits of welfare schemes, including pensions. We are moving guardedly on such issues and trying to resolve the issues in a scientific manner.
Why did the govt abandon mobile dispensing units?
The govt took the decision after an indepth study. We found that MDUs had become a 'green channel' for diversion of PDS rice. The previous YSRCP govt plundered nearly Rs 2,000 crore in the guise of MDUs which only helped illegal traders. We have revived PDS shops so that people can take ration at their convenience. We will door-deliver ration to the elderly and physically challenged.