KOZHIKODE: The fisherfolks in the district, which has one of the largest coastal areas in the state, are struggling for two square meals a day due to the disruption in the ration supply. They are unable to meet their daily needs as they have to buy essentials from private shops, said Bharatheeya Malsya Pravarthaka Sangham state vice-president N.P. Radhakrishnan.
“Most of the 20,000 fishermen and their families here depend on the public distribution system. Only a few people, whose family members are better employed, are safe,” said Mr Radhakrishnan. There are 39 fishermen villages in the district and they will have to limit their food requirements, he added.
Urban poor badly affected too:
KOCHI: The crisis in the public distribution system has badly affected not only the rural folk, but also the urban poor who are worried over the confusion about the new list of APL and BPL and scarcity of foodgrain. The people’s representatives in local bodies have to address hundreds of complaints on the PDS crisis. The corporation councillors from west Kochi, where most of the urban slums are located, said that most of the priority customers in the BPL list were shifted to the APL category and were struggling with no ration.
“The slum dwellers in my division are worried a lot over the confusion in the ration distribution. As many of them were shifted to the APL category, they are unable to buy foodgrain at higher price. With the ration distribution coming to a halt, the price of rice in the open market has also increased,” said Zeenath Rasheed, councillor from Kalvathy division.
There are complaints on the quality of ration rice being distributed. “The 5 kg rice we got recently from the ration shop was of very poor quality. It can’t be given even to cattle,” said Mumtaz, resident of west Kochi. The state government should take immediate measures to address the grievances of ration card-holders and ensure the supply of December quota of foodgrain, the people’s representatives said.
