Four accused in PDS rice case get remand
HERALD CORRESPONDENT
PORVORIM, DEC 10
The four accused, who were arrested in connection with the dispatch of 325 bags of PDS rice worth Rs 1.27 lakh to Sawantwadi, has been remanded to seven days police custody.
According to Mapusa DySP Sammy Tavares, the four accused, fair price shop owner Devendra Shinde (Khorlim-Mapusa), Canter (MH-07-1936) owner Satish Gawas, driver Vijay Pandurang Mahale and cleaner Umesh Shirodker were produced before Judicial Magistrate First Class Mapusa on Friday and were remanded to seven days police custody.
DySP Tavares informed that the accused have confessed that the dispatch of rice from Goa to Sawantwadi was going on for several months.
When asked whether Mapusa Police will continue such checks at the Goa border regularly, DySP Tavares said it is the responsibility of Civil Supplies department to initiate steps to curb such practices.
When contacted some fair price shops in Mapusa and Porvorim, it was revealed that the dispatch of PDS rice and other goods to neighbouring states has been going on for several years. Since the Mapusa Police have arrested the culprits, the incident has come to light.
The fair price shop owners informed that every fair price shop owner gets 10 kg of rice per ration card per month from the Civil Supplies department.
“However, fair price shop owners do not receive their quota hundred percent. They are getting 60-70% of the requirement every month. The fair price shop owners take advantage of this situation and inform the ration card owners that they have received fewer quotas and do not distribute the rice to the poor people,” stated the fair price shop owners.
They further informed that not all ration card holders purchase rice every month. Since transportation cost has gone up, the margin that the fair price owner gets on sale of PDS rice is very low.
“In view of this, the fair price shop owners are tempted to sell PDS rice in the open market at a better price. The fair price shops are supposed to furnish sale details to the Civil Supplies department every month,” they said.
“But some fair price shop owners manipulate the figures and sell the remaining quantity of rice to businessmen across the Goa border in connivance with some of the officials of Civil Supplies department,” alleged the fair price owners.
“Unless the Civil Supplies department tightens the loopholes, dispatch of PDS rice and other goods to neighbouring states will continue,” added the fair price owners.
