Punjab govt defies provisions of NFSA: Preneet

Congress MLA Preneet Kaur today criticised the Punjab government for allegedly adopting step motherly treatment to Blue card applicants of her home district and "defying" the provisions of National Food Security Act (NFSA).
The Patiala MLA claimed that the state government has already issued Blue Cards in Bathinda, Mansa and Muktsar districts with 99 per cent, 90 and 80 per cent beneficiaries respectively.
On the other hand, in Patiala district only 30 per cent applicant-units have been covered, the former union minister alleged.
In Patiala town, out of 76,000 applicants, only 7,200 Blue Ration Cards have been issued, she said.

"In other words, more than 70 per cent applicant-families of Patiala district stand rejected," she said.
Families living below the poverty line are entitled to Blue Cards, under which they can avail special subsidies.
She alleged that Punjab government has deliberately ignored the provisions of NFSA which provides a cap that not more than 60 per cent population should be covered.
"Now, we demand that the same analogy and criteria should be employed for the applicant-families of Patiala district as have been applied for the applicant-families of Bathinda, Muktsar and Mansa districts, and all of them be issued Blue Ration Cards, without any loss of time," she said.