Excelsior Correspondent
SRINAGAR, Feb 16: Term-ing the National Food Security Act (NFSA) anti-people and persecution of the poor and underprivileged, National Conference general secretary Ali Mohammad Sagar today appealed the Governor N N Vohra to immediately put the NFSA into abeyance and issue instructions to the Administration to provide 35 kgs of ration to every household as per the 2011 census figures.
Addressing various public delegations, trade bodies and social workers from across the Valley at NC Headquarters here today, in Srinagar, the senior NC leader and former minister said the NFSA-induced ration crisis in the State is deplorable and unacceptable. He said various public delegations which met him have informed about their collective decision not to accept ration as per the NFSA guidelines.
“I appeal to the Governor to put the NFSA implementation into abeyance and heed to the sufferings and miseries of the people. The Government should immediately start distributing 35 kgs of ration per household as per the 2011 census figures. The NFSA implementation deprives around 4.5 lakh families of necessary, basic amounts of ration within Srinagar city alone. A continued delay by the Government to acknowledge growing public resentment and anger against this atrocity would be dangerous and counterproductive to the cause of peace and prosperity of the State”, Mr Sagar said.
The NC general secretary said the previous Omar Abdullah-led Government had opposed the implementation of the NFSA in the State after considering the implications of the Act on the people of the State. “Families belonging to both APL and BPL categories were being provided adequate ration by the previous Government, while ration allocation to the APL families will be completely halted under the NFSA guidelines. The allocation for BPL families too, takes a severe hit and is compounded by new impeding formalities and unrealistic conditions. The very factors used to distinguish between BPL and APL families are ridiculous. If a household has a gas cylinder, a mobile phone connection, a television set or a tin-roof, the NFSA guidelines deems that family as an APL family and deprives it of basic amount of ration. He also pointed out many flaws and shortcomings in the data base prepared for it.
Sagar said the previous PDP-BJP Govt enacted the law in the State by passing a resolution in the Cabinet. The previous Government led by Omar Abdullah had demanded that the Central Government should remove the unrealistic conditions in the NFSA guidelines. Since the Central Govt rejected these demands, the Omar Govt refused to allow the implementation in the State despite persistent demands from the Central Government and the then alliance partner in the State”, Mr Sagar maintained.
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