Ranchi: Chief Minister Hemant Soren said that providing foodgrains to the poor was the priority for the state government.
Reviewing the functioning of the Food and Civil Supplies department here he said that steps are also being taken to prevent such people who are using wrong means to take advantage of the food grains which are meant for the poor people.
He said that during the lockdown the Dal Bhaat centers run by the state government provided free of cost food to lakhs of people and the government was working for improvements of the existing Dal Bhaat centers. He said that special focus should be accorded to cleaning at these centers and suggested to discourage the use of plastic and instead Pattal should be used.
He said that under the PDS scheme the government is providing sugar to the people at subsidised rate and suggested that Jaggery should be also distributed as it is beneficial for health and it will also encourage farmers to take up sugarcane production.
The Chief Minister said that between 2016-17 and 2019-20 paddy procurement has increased by 183 percent and asked the officials to encourage construction of rice mills and godowns in the state so that the proper processing of foodgrains can be done. Food and Civil Supplies Minister Dr Rameshwar Oraon and others were present on the occasion.