Chouhan says red wheat fit for animals, sells it to poor

The BJP Government had lodged protests about the inferior quality of wheat to the Prime Minister, even threatened to reject the stocks. Later, Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan had ‘raided’ an FCI godown in Bhopal and declared the imported wheat unfit for human consumption.

But still the state distributes the wheat under the Mukhya Mantri Annapurna Yojana by reducing the per kg price from Rs 4.50 to Rs 3. The scheme was launched with much fanfare by involving the entire Government machinery and the party organisation. But at the launch, the focus was only on the price and not quality.

Even after admitting that it was distributing the same inferior wheat, the Government has no option but to continue with the distribution. “We have no choice, we have to choose between supplying the red wheat and not supplying anything at all,” admitted a top official of the state Civil Supplies Department.

The Maharashtra Government’s move has come at a time when MP is fiercely procuring wheat from farmers to avoid a repeat of this year’s embarrassment. In a proactive measure, the Government has announced a bonus of Rs 100 in addition to the MSP of Rs 1,000.