Bhubaneswar: A delegation of Biju Janata Dal (BJD) MPs called on Union Minister Piyush Goyal in New Delhi Monday and sought the release of Rs 14,292.15 crore pending food subsidy to Odisha, a statement said from the party said. The delegation of MPs from both Houses, including Pinaki Mishra, Amar Patnaik, Sasmit Patra and Achyuta Samanta, among others, submitted a memorandum to the Union Minister for Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution in the presence of Parliamentary Affairs Minister Pralhad Joshi.
The BJD MPs also sought the payment of Rs 6,187 crore to Odisha towards additional interest incurred by the state till November 30 this year cumulatively.
“There is a total pending food subsidy amounting to Rs 14,292.51 crore that the Centre is to pay the Odisha government. Out of this, Rs 11,689.21 crore is towards provisional food subsidy and Rs 2,603.30 crore towards advance subsidy,” the letter from the BJD MPs read.
Apart from this, the Odisha State Civil Supplies Corporation is yet to be paid Rs 6,187 crore towards the additional interest it has incurred till November 30, cumulatively due to the delay in release and short-release of subsidy by the Union government, the letter stated.
While the responsibility for procurement of rice from Odisha rests with the Union government, in order to ensure that the farmers of the state do not face any problems, the Odisha government signed an MoU with the Union government to be a Decentralised Procurement (DCP) state and help the farmers by procuring foodgrains on behalf of the Centre, it added.