Officials responsible for rotting of food grains to be punished: Pawar

New Delhi, July 13 (ANI): Union Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar on Tuesday said immediate action will be taken against the officials responsible for improper storage of food grains that leads to their rotting in godowns, adding that Public-Private Partnership module will be adopted to develop better storage facilities for the procured food grains.

Addressing the inaugural session on the second day of the two-day Food Secretaries Conference here today, Pawar said: "Correct identification of families below poverty line is one of the biggest challenges in the effective implementation of the Targeted Public Distribution System."

Pawar called for involvement of the local bodies in the process of identification of the eligible families.

"It is a challenge to sustain the level of production and procurement in future. The elimination of bogus ration cards is crucial to ensure that subsidized food reaches the poor," he said expressing concerns over levels of food grain procurement and the conceding leakages in the system.

Pawar also launched a smart card based system for Haryana and Chandigarh for the delivery of essential commodities. This system would provide more accountability and prevents duplication of ration cards. (ANI)