Kalipada: A statement issued Sunday by Food Supplies and Consumer Welfare Minister Krushna Chandra Patra that approximately 4 lakh income taxpayers had availed the ration cards during the previous government has unnerved many ineligible beneficiaries in villages under Baliapal block of Balasore district.
Moreover, the minister’s appeal to the ineligible beneficiaries to surrender their ration cards immediately before facing action has had its effect as many government employees here were seen making a beeline at the Baliapal block to delist their names from the National Food Security Act (NFSA).
In a significant case of misuse of the NFSA, it has been revealed that several government employees in Baliapal block are fraudulently holding ration cards, depriving deserving families of food supplies.
These employees, including teachers, nurses, police officers, engineers, and clerks, have been found to be collecting rations intended to reach the poor.
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According to the state Food Supply Secretary’s report, 165 families from 28 panchayats under the block holding ration cards were found to be ineligible.
This has resulted in vulnerable, differently-abled, and financially disadvantaged households being excluded from the benefits of the scheme.
The state government is taking action to address the issue, with efforts underway to remove the names of ineligible individuals from the food supply lists. The Food Supplies and Consumer Welfare department has warned that those who fail to return their ration cards by 30 January will face criminal charges and any food grains they have received will be sold in the open market with an additional 10 percent surcharge.
Disciplinary action will also be taken against the relevant government departments, according to Baliapal Supply Officer Ambika Prasad Rath.
PNN