Deccan Herald :Ashpreet Sethi:Thursday, January 26, 2012.
Officials did not distribute Below Poverty Line cards to the needy in Jahangirpuri circle, reveals RTI reply.
At least 1,500 Above Poverty Line and Below Poverty Line ration cards are lying with the Jahangirpuri circle Public Distribution System office since 2009, reveals an RTI reply. Activists allege that the department has taken no steps to distribute these cards till date.
The right to information was filed by Jahir Abbas, an activist, in September 2011. He had also filed another RTI application in the first week of January to identify the names of such people whose ration cards were rotting at the circle’s office so that they could be informed about it.
The RTI reply reveals that 500 ration cards in Badli area and 1,000 ration cards in Adarsh Nagar area in Jahangirpuri are lying at the office since 2009.
“As per the guidelines, after ration cards are made, an inspector is supposed to visit the area for verification.
“If he does not find the cardholders or his family during inspection, he is supposed to send letters to them individually asking them to come and collect the card from the circle office. However, in this case the department did not send any letters and it is highly impossible that the inspector could not find any of the 1,500 cardholders when he went for his round of inspection,” said Sunil, a social worker in Jahangirpuri.
However, the department says they are not at fault as they are following the guidelines. “The inspection officer had gone on his routine rounds but he could not locate the cardholders. We will not hold the cards for long and might cancel them if nobody comes to claim them,” said an official from the Jahangirpuri circle office.
Under the PDS, essential commodities such as wheat, rice, oil and sugar are supposed to be distributed through a network of shops.
“The department seems to have forgotten its agenda. This is a governance failure,” said Pushpa, a Jahangirpuri-based activist. Residents say they have tried to get their cards from the circle office earlier but every time they were told to come on some other date.
“I have been running around for almost one-and-a-half years now to get my APL card. They used to say come tomorrow or come after a week. I have lost hope now and have started buying grain from departmental stores,” said 55-year-old Reena a resident of Adarsh Nagar. Riyaz, from Badli, echoed similar concerns: “I have stood outside their office for days. They were either out for tea or eating lunch which proved that they are not interested in giving us the cards.”
According to the PDS, once ration cards are issued, irrespective of whether the cards have reached the person concerned or not, the department will send the ration to fair price shops.
“Where is the ration going if people are not able to avail it because they do not have their cards?” asked Jahir, a resident of Jahangirpuri.
Moreover, if any office is keeping the cards meant for distribution with them for over 20 days, they are liable to pay a fine of Rs 10 each day, but none of the officers has been fined yet, he further alleges.
The right to information was filed by Jahir Abbas, an activist, in September 2011. He had also filed another RTI application in the first week of January to identify the names of such people whose ration cards were rotting at the circle’s office so that they could be informed about it.
The RTI reply reveals that 500 ration cards in Badli area and 1,000 ration cards in Adarsh Nagar area in Jahangirpuri are lying at the office since 2009.
“As per the guidelines, after ration cards are made, an inspector is supposed to visit the area for verification.
“If he does not find the cardholders or his family during inspection, he is supposed to send letters to them individually asking them to come and collect the card from the circle office. However, in this case the department did not send any letters and it is highly impossible that the inspector could not find any of the 1,500 cardholders when he went for his round of inspection,” said Sunil, a social worker in Jahangirpuri.
However, the department says they are not at fault as they are following the guidelines. “The inspection officer had gone on his routine rounds but he could not locate the cardholders. We will not hold the cards for long and might cancel them if nobody comes to claim them,” said an official from the Jahangirpuri circle office.
Under the PDS, essential commodities such as wheat, rice, oil and sugar are supposed to be distributed through a network of shops.
“The department seems to have forgotten its agenda. This is a governance failure,” said Pushpa, a Jahangirpuri-based activist. Residents say they have tried to get their cards from the circle office earlier but every time they were told to come on some other date.
“I have been running around for almost one-and-a-half years now to get my APL card. They used to say come tomorrow or come after a week. I have lost hope now and have started buying grain from departmental stores,” said 55-year-old Reena a resident of Adarsh Nagar. Riyaz, from Badli, echoed similar concerns: “I have stood outside their office for days. They were either out for tea or eating lunch which proved that they are not interested in giving us the cards.”
According to the PDS, once ration cards are issued, irrespective of whether the cards have reached the person concerned or not, the department will send the ration to fair price shops.
“Where is the ration going if people are not able to avail it because they do not have their cards?” asked Jahir, a resident of Jahangirpuri.
Moreover, if any office is keeping the cards meant for distribution with them for over 20 days, they are liable to pay a fine of Rs 10 each day, but none of the officers has been fined yet, he further alleges.
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