Food Minister In Coimbatore
Food Minister E.V. Velu (second right) chairing a meeting of police officers and civil supplies authorities on Wednesday at the City Police Office.Minister for Food E.V. Velu on Wednesday called for stepping up vigil in districts that shared borders with Kerala, Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka to prevent smuggling of rice and other commodities.There was a pertinent need for stepping up vigil round-the-clock
He addressed a meeting convened to review the security arrangements and functioning of check-posts and flying squads in Kanyakumari, Coimbatore, Theni, Thiruvallur, Krishnagiri and Vellore districts that shared borders with neighbouring States. The meeting was attended by Secretary to Government for Co-operation, Food and Consumer Protection, K. Shanmugam, Inspector-General of Police, Civil Supplies CID (CS-CID), Ashish Bengra, City Police Commissioner C.K. Gandhirajan, Deputy Inspector-General of Police, Coimbatore Range, Seema Agrawal, Superintendents of Police, Coimbatore, G. Karthikeyan and N. Mayilvahanan of CS-CID and DSPs of sub-divisions that shared borders with neighbouring districts.
Mr. Velu said the Tamil Nadu Civil Supplies Corporation (TNCSC) was all set to release 1,64,000 metric tonnes of rice before March-end for distribution under PDS and food for employment scheme. Hence, there was a pertinent need for stepping up vigil round-the-clock.Mr. Velu said that as ordered by the Chief Minister, the trucks should be seized besides cancellation of the permit and driving licence.The public could inform the control rooms being set up at the office of the Minister and at the office of the Inspector-General of Police and Civil Supplies-CID regarding smuggling activity or about those holding bogus family cards.
The control rooms could be accessed either by a voice call or by fax at 95-44-25670204 (Minister’s office during working hours) and 95-44-24338974 (IGP’s office round-the-clock).He exhorted the officials to file fool-proof case against those nabbed under the Prevention of Black Marketing Act so that they were not released by the State Advisory Boards. Criminal proceedings should be initiated against those who were enlarged through habeas corpus petitions before the High Court. Cases should be registered against offenders under the above Act under sections 7 (1) (a) (ii) and charge-sheets should be filed within the stipulated time to ensure that they were awarded seven years rigorous imprisonment.
Any lapse on this count would be viewed seriously and the officials concerned would be taken to task, he cautioned.The enforcement machinery had so far registered 148 cases and arrested 76 persons under sections 6 (a) of the Essential Commodities Act of 1955. Exhorting the officials to nab those smuggling rice in buses and trains, Mr. Velu called for initiating action against all those abetting them.He congratulated the officials for arresting and initiating stringent action against seven persons who were into smuggling of rice since 2004. In 2007 alone, the enforcement machinery had arrested 1,621 persons and 892 vehicles were seized and 59 persons had been detained.During the current year in the last two months, 340 persons had been arrested, 155 vehicles seized and 20 persons had been detained, he added.
