Wasted: 10 lakh tonnes of foodgrains by FCI
Lost over a decade, the produce could have fed over 1 crore people for a year, a petitioner has found through the RTI Act
New Delhi: Over 10 lakh tonnes of food grains worth several hundred crores of rupees, which could have fed over one crore hungry people for a year, were damaged in Food Corporation of India (FCI) godowns during the last one decade.
The damages were suffered despite the FCI spending Rs242 crore to prevent loss of food grains during storage. Ironically another Rs2.59 crore was spent just to dispose off the rotten food grains.
These startling facts came in reply to a Right to Information (RTI) application filed by a Delhi resident. The FCI informed that 10 lakh tonnes of foodgrain was damaged in the godowns of government-owned agency which is responsible for procurement and distribution of food grains across the country. It comes at a time when a United Nations report has claimed that 63% children in India go to bed without any food.
The FCI informed that 1.83 lakh tonnes of wheat, 3.95 lakh tonnes of rice, 22 thousand tonnes of paddy and 110 tonnes of maize were damaged between 1997 and 2007.
The FCI said in the northern regionUP, Uttarakhand, Haryana, Jammu & Kashmir, Punjab, Rajasthan, Himachal Pradesh and Delhithe damage incurred was seven lakh tonnes and the PSU spent Rs87.15 crore to prevent the loss besides spending over Rs60 lakh to dispose off the damaged foodgrain.
Keeping in view the amount of money spent by the FCI for preservation of foodgrains in its godown, the quantum of damage is huge. Is it not a national shame? the RTI applicant Dev Ashish Bhattacharya said.
Similarly in eastern IndiaAssam, Nagaland, Manipur, Orissa, Bihar, Jharkhand and West Bengalthe damage incurred was 1.5 lakh tonnes of food grains while the FCI spent Rs122 crore to prevent it from rotting. But the damaged lot was disposed off after spending another Rs1.65 crore. In southern regionAndhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Keralathe damage incurred was 43,069.023 tonnes despite spending Rs25 crore. This damaged food grain was disposed off after spending another Rs34,867.
While damage in Maharashtra and Gujarat mounted to 73,814 tonnes, the FCI spent Rs2.78 crore to prevent the loss. However, this lot was also disposed off later at a cost of Rs24 lakh.
The data given by FCI seems manipulated. In case of Jharkhand, the foodgrain damage is 3,699 tonnes which is comparatively low than other states. But the money spent to dispose off the damage is Rs1.4 crore, which is high when compared to the other states, Dev Ashish said.PTI