Chennai 1st, Sep.: The Tamil Nadu Food and Civil Supplies Department plans to add QR codes to PDS rice bags being shipped from its godowns in order to stop the smuggling across state lines of PDS rice into neighboring states such as Kerala and Andhra Pradesh.
The officers with the Tamil Nadu Civil Supplies Corporation informed IANS that their department is planning to introduce QR codes on every PDS rice bag that is being taken out of the godowns.
The Civil Supplies department has been in the dock due to several shops that are not receiving the rice that is being delivered from godowns.
The incidents of rice being smuggled into Tamil Nadu and caught from Kerala and Andhra Pradesh territories have led the department to take note of the issue and make sure that the rice is getting to the ration stores.
An official with the Tamil Nadu Civil Supplies Corporation told IANS: “The QR codes that would be put on every PDS rice bag will make sure that the bags are delivering to only the ration shops and that no middlemen are scouting for the bags to sell in the black market.”
In addition technology, top-of-the-line and high-tech GPS will be installed in the trucks transporting PDS rice bags from godowns to stores selling rations.
Rice was being transported to Andhra Pradesh in two-wheelers through by-lanes after buying rice from holders of ration cards at cheap prices.The Tamil Nadu police have already taken in 11,091 suspects and seized goods worth Rs.3 crore from May 7 to 2021 between August 30, 2022 and May 7, 2021.
As rice is being transported to Kerala as well as Andhra Pradesh, the rice mill owners deny having any part in the smuggling, and blamed cleaners and truck drivers for being behind the scheme to make quick money.
aal/svn/
