Minister for Food, Civil Supplies and Consumer Affairs (FCS&CA), Choudhary Zulfkar Ali, today called for an early start of electronic public distribution system (ePDS) and setting up of Command and Control Rooms (C&CRs) in both the direction offices of the Department.While reviewing the functioning of FCS&CA, the Minister said that aim of devising e-PDS system is to ensure greater transparency in the system. He said with the full implementation of the e-PDS system, chances of any kind of pilferage or misappropriation of food grains during the distribution process will be culled.He said that with the introduction of e-PDS system a clear picture of total amount of food allocated, and the amount of food grains finally distributed will emerge. He directed the concerned to complete the required work in this regard and start online allocation within a week’s time.
During the meeting, Zulfkar also directed for establishing of Command and Control Rooms (C&CRs) in both the direction offices of the Department. He said connecting of surveillance cameras installed in various godowns with the C&CRs would greatly help to improve surveillance and monitoring in the functioning of the Department.He said it is important to keep consumers aware about rates and scales of food grains and directed the concerned to regularly publish the rates and scales on first and 15th of every month in leading dailies of the State.Seeking update on Vigilance and Monitoring Committees, the Minister directed that both FCS&CA directors to submit the latest details with phone numbers of the committee members by May 15, while the same information would be uploaded and integrated by National Informatics Centre (NIC) by May 21, 2017.He also stressed on need for adapting a proactive approach and asked the officers to take initiatives themselves and lead their teams by example.