Kerala - Thiruvananthapuram   

Divakaran slams Chidambaram’s statement

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Minister for Food and Civil Supplies C. Divakaran has taken umbrage at Union Finance Minister P. Chidambaram’s statement in Chennai that PDS grains were being sold in black market in Kerala.

In a statement here, Mr. Divakaran said that Mr. Chidambaram’s statement was unfortunate. His call for agitation against the State government was unbecoming of a Union Minister.

Mr. Chidambaran had said that Rs.3,500 crore was being spent by the Centre for food subsidies. However, the subsidies were not reaching the deserved. Congressmen in Kerala should be demonstrating before ration shops in Kerala against black marketing.

Mr. Divakaran said that it was not becoming of a Union Minister to have called upon the people to agitate against a State government. He hoped that Mr. Chidambaran would withdraw his statement.

He added that the government had ended black-marketing of PDS grains. However, the Centre had cut the State’s quota by 92000 metric tonnes and this resulted in shortage of grains in the State.

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