Delhi Chief Minister on Tuesday wrote to Prime Minister Narendra Modi interesting for the central authorities’s approval for the doorstep supply ration scheme. The Delhi authorities had on Saturday claimed that the Centre had “stalled” its ambitious doorstep delivery of ration scheme that would have benefitted 72 lakh ration cardholders in the national capital and termed the move “politically motivated.”
In his letter, Kejriwal mentioned that his authorities is prepared to implement all of the adjustments that the central authorities had demanded within the scheme. ‘Approval for the same may kindly be granted so that ration can be delivered to people at their doorstep. ‘
“All the governments, so far, have made the poor stand in queues for ration for the past seventy-five years, please ensure that they do not have to continue standing in queues for the next seventy years, else neither you nor I will be forgiven”, Kejriwal wrote.
The chief minister also underlined that he has always supported the prime minister in matters of national interest and argued that the doorstep delivery ration scheme was in the interest of the country and therefore ‘prime minister must support him’.
“On behalf of the 70 lakh poor in Delhi, I appeal to you with folded hands not to stall the scheme, the scheme is in the national interest, please grant approval for the same,” Kejriwal wrote.
The doorstep supply of ration scheme is without doubt one of the most formidable and flagship programmes of the Arvind Kejriwal authorities that has hit many roadblocks via the years. The most up-to-date impediment was when the Lieutenant Governor of Delhi, Anil Baijal returned the file to the elected authorities with recommendation for reconsideration. It goals to ship the ration to 72 lakh beneficiaries at their doorstep.
In a pointy assault on Prime Minister Modi, Kejriwal, within the opening paragraph of his letter asks why has the latter stalled the scheme. “The doorstep supply of ration was about to be applied in Delhi from the approaching week. Under this scheme, as a substitute of getting to stand in line in entrance of ration retailers and undergo humiliation for the ration, the federal government would have home-delivered packaged ration. All preparations had been finished. Tenders for a similar had been additionally awarded. However, out of the blue simply two days earlier than roll-out, it was stalled. People are asking, why did you do that?”
According to Kejriwal, the fact that the scheme was stalled days before its implementation pointed to the power and reach of the ‘ ration mafia’. “Had the doorstep delivery of ration scheme been implemented, the ration mafia would have been eliminated. However, look how powerful the ration mafia is? In Delhi, they got it scrapped just a week before it was to be implemented,” the chief minister wrote.
The scheme has been scrapped because it lacked prior approval of the central authorities, the chief minister additional wrote contesting the identical and argued that the federal government of Delhi had sought the approval of the central authorities, not as soon as however 5 occasions. The chief minister additionally underlined that the GNCDT of Delhi is properly inside its authorized rights not to search any approval from the central authorities for the implementation of the scheme.
“People are asking if pizza will be residence delivered, burgers will be residence delivered, garments and smartphones will be residence delivered, why can ration be residence delivered to the poor,” he provides.
Kejriwal then brings the ongoing case in the high court related to this case to the attention of the Prime Minister. Pointing out that the central government is also a party to the case which has been cited as one of the reasons for stalling the rollout of the scheme. Arguing that this cannot ever be a ground for the scrapping of the scheme, Kejriwal argues that while the ration dealers had moved the High Court for a stay on the implementation of the scheme, the high court had not granted the same so how can the central government ‘grant a stay?
“If the central government stand with the ration mafia, who will stand with the poor, Sir?” Kejriwal tells Modi in his letter. He additionally highlighted that the central authorities had not raised any objection to the scheme within the excessive courtroom regardless of being a celebration.
The central authorities’s place on the doorstep supply of ration scheme of the Delhi authorities is that the latter is free to have any such scheme, give it any identify however it ought to be separate from the PDS scheme below the National Food Security Act. The central authorities can also be keen to present the required foodgrain for a similar if the federal government of Delhi so requires, it had mentioned. Addressing this query, Kejriwal tells the Prime Minister, “Since when are you and I separate? Since when is the central authorities separate from the Delhi authorities? Since when have your schemes been separate from ours? Everything belongs to the nation, to the folks of the nation. Will there be two schemes on the identical difficulty – one run by the central authorities and one run by the state authorities?”
Kejriwal also assured the prime minister that contrary to reports in the media the government of Delhi is not adding any charge that has not been allowed by the central government.
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