PIONEER NEWS SERVICE | Dehradun
The Dehradun district magistrate Savin Bansal has stopped the salaries of assistant regional officer ( Food) Ajay Rawat and senior marketing officer Vishnu Prasad Chaturvedi and ordered an adverse entry against them after finding several irregularities in a foodgrain warehouse in Gullarghati during a surprise inspection on Wednesday. He also ordered departmental action against them. Bansal also ordered the destruction of several quintals of grain that reportedly failed testing during the inspection.
The inspection also revealed that the warehouse was not maintaining records properly and was not adhering to the prescribed standards. Bansal also found that storage conditions were inadequate as there was no proper arrangement to protect the grain from rodents and no traps were installed for rodent control. Expressing dissatisfaction, he instructed officials to implement necessary measures immediately.
The DM further questioned why the issue had not been reported to higher authorities and asked for copies of any related correspondence if it had been brought to their notice. Besides this, he also found discrepancies in the weight of the stored grain. The total weight, including sacks, was supposed to be 50.58 kilogrammes but only 50.15 kilogrammes was recorded, which was below the standard. The DM had wheat and rice samples collected on the spot for further examination.
Bansal said that the warehouse serves not only Dehradun residents but also multiple districts in the Garhwal region. He stated that any negligence affecting public health, particularly children, women and the elderly, will not be tolerated and strict action will be taken against those responsible.
