In Karnal, the CM flying team and the Food Supply Department have exposed major irregularities by raiding the government ration depot. During the raid, huge irregularities were discovered in the investigation of five warehouses. Hundreds of quintals of missing food were found in these warehouses. Following this, the Food Supply Department officials sealed a ration depot and a ration dispensing machine.
CM Flying Team had raided five ration depots given to a depot holder named Sumit Bhasin. The raid revealed that the depot holder had embezzled a significant portion of the ration given to the poor. About 62 quintals of millet, 82 quintals of wheat, about 1,500 liters of mustard oil and more than 6 quintals of sugar sent to the warehouse by the government have disappeared. The Chief Minister’s air squadron, along with officials from the Food Supply Department, examined five aircraft one after another.
One depot received supply from five depots.
Only one deposit has been allotted in the name of the deposit holder, Sumit Bhasin, while five deposits have been given to him. There has been a stir in the food supply department after the ration sent by the government to the depot went missing. Officials closed the ration depot and launched an investigation.
There is no shortage of fertilizers in Haryana
Refuting claims by opposition parties about shortage of diammonium phosphate (DAP) fertilizer in Haryana, state minister Shyam Singh Rana said the government has taken concrete steps to ensure adequate supply to farmers. Agriculture and Farmers Welfare Minister Rana accused opposition leaders of spreading misinformation and “misleading farmers” regarding the supply of DAP fertilizer. He said the Haryana government is committed to maintaining uninterrupted supply of DAP to improve production in the Rabi harvest season.
Congress leader Randeep Singh Surjewala on Thursday blamed the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) for the “shortage” of DAP fertilizers and said the “crisis” is due to shortage of fertilizer imports and storage due to cut in subsidies. Rana said in a statement that contrary to Surjewala’s claims, the Haryana government has already released 2.38 lakh metric tonnes of DAP, a significant fraction of the total 3.48 lakh metric tonnes required for the Rabi season of the September 24 to March 25. The Minister said wheat and mustard crops sown on about 24 lakh hectares and 10 lakh hectares respectively across the state have so far received good support from fertilizer storage. Citing departmental data, the Minister of Agriculture stressed that the state’s DAP supply corresponds to last year’s needs.
(Reporting by Amit Bhatnagar of Karnal)