Ranchi: Both ruling as well as Opposition members of the Jharkhand Assembly today expressed disappointment over the inadequate supply of foodgrains to families living above poverty line (APL) in the state and demanded a satisfactory answer from the state government on the issue.
Several legislators of Bharatiya Janata Party, Jharkhand Vikas Morcha, CPI (ML), Rashtriya Janata Dal and Congress accused the state food supply minister Lobin Hembram of making a dissatisfactory answer to the question raised by the CPI (ML) legislator Vinod Kumar Singh. They were told that the government had supplied rice to 12 districts of the state till the month of June.
Rejecting the reply as dissatisfactory, the legislators said the APL families had not been supplied rice and other foodgrains at many PDS shops in several districts across the state. To this, Hembram said the government could do little if the APL beneficiaries did not receive the foodgrains from shops.
Opposition and ruling legislators said the government had earlier said that wheat allotment was zero while rice allotment was merely 15 per cent of the total expected supplies. In this condition, the claim by Hembram about adequate supply of food-grains to APL families could not be considered satisfactory and based on facts, they said.
The legislators who were apparently dissatisfied by Hembram�s reply rose from their seats and raised slogans demanding a high level probe into the alleged discrepancies in the foodgrain supply process. They said the people were not getting sufficient supply of foodgrains notwithstanding tall claims of the government.
Congress MLA Anant Pratap Dev expressed apprehension about a scam of foodgrains in the state. He said a vigilance probe should be ordered into the scam.
Jharkhand Mukti Morcha MLA Simon Marandi too, expressed dismay over the reply given by Hembram. He said it was the responsibility of the administration to supply foodgrains to the people. He said the minister should not say that the legislators should keep a watch on the public distribution system. He said action should be taken against the government officials misleading the government by giving erroneous feedback.
Assembly affairs minister Rajendra Prasad Singh meanwhile informed the house that the secretaryof the food supply department was not present in the officers� gallery. He said the government would give an answer after 2 pm. The Assembly Speaker Shashank Shekhar Bhokta expressed displeasure over the absence of the official.
