Bihar min asks Paswan to stop announcing poll sops

Bihar minister Shyam Rajak today asked Union Food Minister Ramvilas Paswan to stop making poll announcements keeping in mind the upcoming Bihar elections, but take steps to make FCI work efficiently.
"Instead of making tall claims in view of the coming Bihar elections, the Minister (Ramvilas Paswan) should take steps and make the Food Corporation of India (FCI) work efficiently so that people get good food items on time," Rajak, the minister for Food and Civil Supplies, said in a statement here.
He said due to problems created by the FCI, the state was facing trouble in lifting subsidised foodgrain for the month of June this year.

Rajak said the state government had recently sent a letter to the Centre to ensure supply of good quality wheat among others and alleged due to shortage of labour, foodgrain was not being loaded in depots at Khagaria, Begusarai, Gopalganj and Buxar.
The minister complained that despite sending letters to the Centre to ensure supply of good quality wheat, the FCI was "pressurising" for lifting poor wheat stock in Kisanganj and Muzaffarpur.
"The Union Food Minister is playing a cruel joke with consumers of Bihar, which the state government will not tolerate," he added.