Andhra Pradesh: PDS rice turns lucre for beneficiaries

Rampachodavram(ASR District): Huge quantities of PDS rice that was unearthed within 10 days in Alluri Sitarama Raju district confirms that the clandestine business of diverting PDS rice to black market is rampant.

It should be noted that the revenue officials seized about 300 kg ration rice that was being illegally sold by a trader at Guthulaputtu weekly market on November 17; 1,500 kg ration rice that was illegally stored in a house in Addatigala on 20; and about 1,500 kgs ration rice that was being transported at Sabari Bridge in Chinturu on November 27. Apart from this, sale of ration rice in small amounts in markets and shops is a regular phenomenon in many places.

The State government is supplying 5 kg rice to every member of the family with white ration card at the rate of Rs 1 every month. Apart from this, to support people during Covid times, the Central government had distributed rice free of cost under Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Yojana. Through these two schemes, each family of four members got 40 kg rice per month for just Rs 20. Since the rice quality is not suitable for consumption, some of the beneficiaries are selling it in the open market at Rs 10 to Rs 15 per kg and use that money to buy other essentials.

With this, a parallel brokerage system was established to purchase ration rice from beneficiaries. The middlemen will buy ration rice from beneficiaries and sell it to big traders and millers. This ration rice is polished in mills and sold back to the public as fine rice. The rice supplied by the government at Rs 1 per kilo, after changing hands, is being sold at Rs 30 to Rs 40 per kilo. This rice is sold as fine rice in cities at Rs 1,200 to Rs 1,500 per bag (25 kg). In this way, thousands of tons of rice are being diverted to the black market every month.

On the other hand, people of most of tribal villages could not get ration items ad they do not access to ration shops and they have to travel long distance to ration. There is a provision that ration card will be cancelled if ration is not taken for three consecutive months. All these is contributing to black market.

District Civil Supplies Officer Sivaprasad confirmed that black marketing of ration rice cases is on the rise and they have stepped up vigilance after noticing sale of ration rice on large scale. He said they are inquiring about the illegal sale of rice from tribal areas. It is a crime to sell or buy free and subsidised rice supplied by the government in the open market, he added.