Food officer penalised for denying Atta-Dal benefit

Manmeet Singh Gill

Tribune News Service

Amritsar, January 13

The district consumer disputes redressal forum has directed an assistant food and supplies officer (AFSO)-cum-nodal officer to ensure effective distribution of the Atta-Dal scheme. Besides, a food inspector of the Food and Civil Supplies Department has been directed to pay Rs 20,000 as compensation and Rs 5,000 as litigation expenses to a local woman, who was denied the benefit.

Ashu Rani, a resident of Gilwali Gate, had filed a complaint against the state government stating that she was a poor homemaker and eligible for the Atta-Dal scheme. She stated that she hadn’t received the benefit since the launch of the scheme. She had made party the deputy commissioner, district controller for food and civil supplies, AFSO-cum-nodal officer, a food inspector and a depot holder.

A reply filed with the forum for the opposite parties, barring depot holder, stated that the Atta-Dal was a government-sponsored social welfare scheme and not on a commercial profitable business and hence the application was not maintainable in the district consumer forum.

The reply also stated that a district grievance redressal officer under the National Food Security Act for effective redressal of grievances of the aggrieved persons was already in place.

The depot holder, in his reply, stated that complainant never came to the depot when the wheat was distributed and she only visited when the available wheat stood distributed.

The forum stated that as per the scheme launched by the opposite parties, the complaint was entitled for the wheat delivery at her doorstep. The forum stated that there was certainly a deficiency in service on the part of the opposite parties and hence deprived the complainant from getting the benefit of the facility. The forum observed that it was done due to the malafide intention of the concerned Inspector and AFSO-cum-nodal officer of the department.

It stated that such deficient services and malpractice encouraged the system to go down and the delinquent official must be punished financially. The forum also directed the food inspector to allocate a quota of wheat to the complainant from the date of launch of scheme till date.

The case

• A woman complains she never got the benefits of Atta-Dal scheme. 
• Officials assert it was not a fit case to be heard by the district consumer disputes redressal forum as it was not a profitable business, but the latter finds faults in delivery of scheme.
• The depot holder concerned claims she didn't come at the time of distribution of grain.
• Forum observes that the complainant is entitled for doorstep delivery of the service.

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