Asserting that the public distribution system remained unaffected by the ration transportation contractors’ strike that got underway on Saturday, Food and Civil Supplies Minister G.R. Anil has cautioned stringent measures against the agitators.
The State-wide strike called by the Kerala Transporting Contractors Association (National Food Security Act) in protest against the non-payment of dues has had minimal effect on ration supply, Mr. Anil said.
In a statement, the Minister said 75% of the ration allocation for the month of January has already been delivered to ration outlets. Besides, nearly 2.20 lakh ration card holders collected their ration allocations till 5 p.m. on Saturday. With this, close to 33 lakh ration card holders have been provided their allocations for the month.
A section of ration dealers have, however, claimed that several ration outlets have witnessed disruption in supply of ration commodities.
According to Mr. Anil, Supplyco has cleared its commission dues to transportation contractors fully until September last. While it has also partially disbursed commissions in November, the government has sanctioned an amount of ₹38 crore to clear the dues till December. The Food and Civil Supplies Department has already initiated steps to transfer the allocation to Supplyco.
However, the contractors are bound to experience some delay in receiving their dues on account of the bank holidays on second Saturday, Sunday and local holidays.
“The decision to go on strike at the cost of disrupting ration distribution under such circumstances is irresponsible as it is bound to create several hardships for the common populace. The contractors must withdraw from their agitation, failing which the government will adopt legal action against them,” Mr. Anil added.
All Kerala Retail Ration Dealers’ Association raised caution about the dwindling stocks in ration shops and feared the possible impacts of a prolonged strike by transportation contractors. They demanded an immediate resolution to the agitation.
The contractors have claimed that the government owed them nearly ₹100 crore by way of outstanding dues since October. Besides, the retention amount of 10% that is withheld every month and disbursed after financial audit has not been paid since 2021, they alleged.
