Bhubaneswar: Opposition BJD and Congress today slammed Food Supplies and Consumer Welfare Minister Krushna Chandra Patra for changing his statement frequently on removal of beneficiaries from the food security schemes.
Shri Patra, who earlier stated that the persons who are filing IT returns will be removed from the PSD, today clarified that the ration card of eligible persons, who filed IT returns, will not be removed from the list.
The Minister has issued this clarification after receiving complaints from those who have filed income tax returns and their ration cards have been cancelled.
“I want to make it clear that ration cards of any eligible person will not be cancelled. We will conduct physical verification to check the income of the ration card holders who are filing IT returns,” Shri Patra told media persons here.
He said he has asked his department officers to visit door-to-door for physical verification of such ration card holders. The list of such beneficiaries has been sent to the field-level officials, he added.
Worth mentioning here that the families earning more than Rs 10,000 in rural and over Rs 15,000 per month in urban areas will not be included in the PDS.
“I want to assure that ration cards of not a single poor person will be cancelled. If someone’s financial status has been changed now or any rich person has grabbed the ration card will only be removed from the list,” he further clarified.
Senior BJD legislator Pratap Keshari Deb said, “Why the minister make such a statement and again change it? First he said the ration card of all persons who file IT returns will be cancelled. Now, he has changed his stand.”
So, before making any statement in the media, he should hold discussion with the department officers and go deep into the issue so that the reputation of his position and department will not be hampered, the BJD leader said.
Similarly, Congress MLA Pabitra Saunta said, “The double engine government has eight types of polices. The statement of the minister varies from the statement of the Secretary and other officers. It seems that there is a lack of coordination among them.”