Dr Raja Muzaffar Bhat
Corruption in Indian Public Distribution System (PDS) has been there for decades. Lot of steps have been taken in the past to curb this menace, but not much success was achieved. In Jammu & Kashmir corruption and black-marketing of subsidized ration continues even now, but because of some drastic measures taken by the Secretary Food Civil Supplies and Consumer Affairs (FCS & CA) during the last several months, it seems the entire PDS would be streamlined. The vigilance committee appointed on the direction of the Supreme Court in 2010 had in fact slammed the Public distribution system (PDS) in the country. The committee in its report had said that PDS across India was marred by rampant corruption, black marketing and diversion involving a vicious cartel of food and civil supply officials from top to bottom. The report had accused Govt ration store officials, fair price shop owners and middlemen of black-marketing and loot. The central vigilance committee headed by former Supreme Court judge Justice D P Wadhwa in its report said the Rs 28,000-crore subsidy annually spent by the Centre was being pocketed by vested interest and suggested drastic action to stem the rot.
“It (corruption) is in fact a cancerous growth and has to be chopped off. Patchwork methods will not do. The Central Government gives a whooping sum of ? 28,000 crore to subsidize food for the poor. But till the recommendations given by the committee are put in place, the poor will go on suffering at the hands of corrupt officials, dishonest ration shop owners, transporters and possibly to a large extent by unscrupulous millers as well” said the report
The digital touch
Around the year 2017-18 J&K Government procured electronic Point of Sale (ePoS) machines for all Government run ration depots across J&K. It included private fair price shops as well. The then Minister for Consumer Affairs J&K Chowdhary Zulfiqar termed introduction of ePoS machines as one of the biggest reforms in bringing transparency in the PDS, but he could not introduce the PoS machines at the ration stores in spite of huge money utilized to procure them. It took the Government more than 2 ½ years to actually put these machines into use at ration depots. The credit goes to the Administrative Secretary of the FCS & CA Department. Some months back when our volunteers exposed a PDS scam in Loolipora village in Chadoora Tehsil of District Budgam, the Government then decided to make effective use of ePoS machines and aadhar linking all consumers. We had been constantly updating the Secretary Food about the mismanagement and corrupt practices of the employees of his department. He took some steps like constituting an inquiry committee, penalizing some officials ets. We thought at one point of time thought he was not interested in addressing the issue , but when he in fact has been serious about making e-POS machines operational at all ration stores and this could be inferred from the Govt order No: FCS & CA /PMU/15/2018-19 (part file) Dated 1.10.2020 wherein he directed the Directors of FCS & CA Jammu / Kashmir divisions to ensure all transactions are done through electronic point of sale device (e-PoS). Secretary informed the Directors that FPS automation was to be achieved by 2019 Dec which was then extended to March 2020 but the same was achieved only recently. In response to this order an official communication of Assistant Director FCS & CA Baramulla vide Order No: 13-ADFCS & CA of 2020 Dated: 6.10.2020 wherein he has given a clear direction to all his Tehsil Supply Officers (TSO’s) to ensure PoS machines are put into use. The operative part of the letter reads as
” It becomes imperative to issue the receipt printed from PoS devise to consumer and in case of non-availability of thermal paper at the time of making sale the consumer should be shown the transaction details from the PoS devise itself”
I believe all other Assistant Directors too have issued similar orders. If they haven’t, the Administrative Department must take action against these officers.
How a PoS device works ?
The Point of Sale (PoS) device is Aadhaar-linked which is now used at ration stores. The device displays price, the weight of items and the credentials of the consumer. The field officials of the department of Food and Civil Supplies were reluctant to use these machines as there was no space left for corruption, mismanagement and black-marketing. The Govt storekeepers as well as fair price shop owners are now supposed to sell the ration on the fixed rates to consumers plus his or her category under Priority Household (PHH) or Non Priority Household (NPHH) is also very much visible on these machines. At the end of the transaction the consumer is supposed to get an electronically generated receipt which would show all these details. I have been told that ration storekeepers who have started using the PoS devices don’t give any receipt to the consumers as the same is blocked.
Social audit by Kerala Govt
With an aim of ensuring transparency in the public distribution system (PDS), the Food & Civil Supplies Department Kerala signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS) for conducting social auditing to ensure a smooth ration distribution system. A pilot social audit on the National Food Security Act (NFSA) was conducted last year in ChengalChoola area of Trivandrum, Kerala. The TISS report found that several beneficiaries were deprived of their true entitlements under PDS. The audit report, full of poignant pictures of the living conditions of the people revealed that food-kit distribution had been discontinued but was resumed a week before the audit, many receiving them for the first time. Though all Asraya beneficiaries (Kerala Govt scheme for poor) were eligible for Antyodaya Anna Yojana (AAY), the audit found that only 44% got them. A similar social audit conducted by RTI Movement volunteers also revealed a lot of mismanagement in Loolipora and Tarzoo areas as mentioned above. In order to ensure transparency in PDS, J&K Govt also needs to undertake a massive social audit in association with some reputed institutions as complaints against Govt storekeepers are constantly pouring in. Recently one more store keeper from Charar-e-Sharief circle in Budgam was suspended by the Administrative Department as he was found to be involved in serious offences and looting poor consumers. The storekeeper who had been appointed in the department only 5 to 6 years back had been looting people by giving them only 50 % of subsidized ration and selling the rest of the ration on exorbitant rates. The money made from this illegal business went into his pocket. One of the aggrieved Mohammad Shafi Hajam a BPL consumer from Kutbal Thera village of Charar-e-Sharief circle of Budgamdistrict complained against the official and within 3 to 4 hours of the complaint the official was suspended by Secretary Food and attached with the Administrative Department. Penalty proceedings have also been initiated against him. In the past we had not experienced such quick action by an administrative secretary and this is ensuring transparency in the public distribution system (PDS).
Re-verification
Govt employees and well off people have been included in Below Poverty Line (BPL) or even Antodaya Anna Yojna (AAY) categories. The market rate of the rice per kg is Rs 22 and Govt provides the same to BPL and AAY families @ Rs 3 / Kg. Rs 19 subsidy per kg is borne by Govt and ultimately the taxpayers have to bear the brunt. Why shall a well off consumer who has a decent income get a subsidized rice @ Rs 3 / Kg and a man like ShafiHajam as mentioned above be looted and then vilified and humiliated when he or she questions a ration storekeeper for being sold ration on exorbitant rates or being provided less ration ? These influential people are actually snatching the right of poor and disadvantaged people who are deprived of this entitlement. Under order No : FCS & CA/Bud/2020/1128-34 Dated 1.10.2020 the Assistant Director FCS & CA Budgam assured to undertake re-verification of BPL, AAY beneficiaries within 3 weeks but till date the re-verification is yet to be initiated. The DC Budgam had actually directed for this re-verification in 2017 and it took Food officials 3 years to issue an order and actual work is still not done.
Conclusion
I appreciate the digital touch Secretary Food & Civil Supplies has given to PDS in J&K. Digitization is the only solution to ensure corruption free administration. Public Distribution System (PDS) cannot be corruption free unless everything is digitized and PoS machines are made operational in toto. People should be made aware about working and functions of PoS devices & the e-portal wherein all the details of consumers are available. This needs a massive digital literacy programme plus social auditing..
(The author is Founder and Chairman of Jammu & Kashmir RTI Movement)
feedbackexcelsior@gmail.com
Follow our WhatsApp channel
