Kamalpur, Sept 26 (TIWN): Dept. Of Food & Civil Supplies has long been suppressing a serious scam causing direct affect on the Ration Dealers and on consumers too. But even when any Dealer complained with the authority, they had to suffer dire consequences.

 According to some Ration Dealers, on the condition of anonymity informed TIWN that they have to suffer a heavy loss every time regarding the quantity of goods as received from the Food Godowns. In every 50 kgs bag of rice minimum of 5-7kgs of rice found missing when selling the rice in retail to the consumers. In case of Sugars, every bag lacks of minimum 7 kgs. Not only that, sometime littered Sugars are found mixed. And all these consequences have to be faced by the dealers. A highly placed source of the Dept. Claimed that as the loading-unloading labourers use hooks to load and unload the bags from the lorries, so some materials got lost through the holes. Taking advantage of the situation some storekeepers and others directly sell the food- items from the godowns and later manage it by mixing litters. However, when asked, Subdivisional Controller ( Food), Kamalakanta Debbarma denied to speake on the matter and assured that he will probe into it shortly. Interestingly, this misappropriation is going on for decades and use of hooks is strictly prohibited for loading-unloading of food materials.