No more space for unloading rice
Source: The Sangai Express
Imphal, October 03 2013:
With the district administration unable to lift their share of PDS rice in time, FCI and CAF&PD godowns are now full with rice and there is little space for unloading rice brought in trucks by FCI.
An official from the CAF&PD informed The Sangai Express that district administrations are unable to lift PDS rice in time because of sick financial condition of PDS agents.
At the same time, in the absence of adequate godowns, authorities cannot ship in three months' quota of PDS rice in advance.
The current system is, rice procured by FCI are taken over by CAF&PD and then the same commodity is allocated to district administration for distribution to public on monthly basis in quick rotation.
The system tends to collapse whenever there is any lapse on the part of either FCI, CAF&PD, district administrations or the agents.
Even though there was shortage of rice in the past, FCI is now shipping in rice in abundance but the same commodity has been eluding the public on account of the agents' failure to lift the PDS item in time.
Nonetheless, the Government has initiated measures to build FCI godowns in each and every district.
Once these district level godowns materialise, PDS rice for three months' quota can be shipped in in advance.
However, construction of FCI godowns is making little progress at present.
One FCI source informed that there is no empty godown at present.
He said that all godowns are now full with rice.
If the Government takes over the rice procured without undue delay, the problem being faced by transporters due to unavailability of space for unloading rice can be removed.
The Government does not claim the monthly quota in time and the process of lifting rice is too slow, said the source.
He further informed that there is a provision to lift one month's allocation of rice within 50 days as well as in advance.
For instance, allocation for the month of September could be lifted starting from August 1 till September 20.For October, PDS rice could have been lifted from September 1 till October 20 .
Lifting of PDS rice allocated for the month of September has just finished and lifting of the same commodity for October has just begun.
It is reported that rice stored in FCI godowns are checked every three months to see if it is compatible with the figure maintained in the stock register.
Nonetheless, it is being meticulously examined that the verification process does not poses unnecessary trouble to transporters awaiting their turns to unload rice at FCI godowns, added the official.