August 31, 1998

Strict vigil puts a curb on diversion of subsidised kerosene.

By Uday Mahurkar

It's just a small concession, but it's made a world of difference to the life of Shanabhai Rathwa, 38, a tribal of Kanwat near Chota Udepur in central Gujarat. His family now gets 10 litres of subsidised kerosene every month instead of the five it got till recently from the public distribution system (PDS). Not only does the food get cooked faster now, Rathwa and his family are spared the daily drudgery of trekking to the nearby hills in search of fuelwood.

Several miles away, in Ahmedabad, businessman Sanjay Patel too has reasons to smile. He has discovered to his delight that he is able to get much more mileage from his car with the same amount of petrol. The sudden fuel-efficiency of his car baffled him -- till he became aware of the Gujarat Civil Supplies Department's unique clean-up drive.

Rathwa and Patel are amongst lakhs of beneficiaries in Gujarat -- both rich and poor -- of a drive to streamline the PDS and check black-marketing and subsequent diversion of subsidised kerosene for adulterating diesel. The drive, launched in central Gujarat in March this year by state Minister for Civil Supplies Jaspal Singh, has begun to yield rich dividends. Thanks to the strict enforcement of the Prevention of Black- marketing and Maintenance of Essential Commodities Act, as much as 125 lakh litres of subsidised kerosene (worth Rs 6.25 crore at the subsidised rate of Rs 5 per per litre) was prevented from illicitly falling into the hands of petrol pump owners and industrial users between April and July. Kerosene is used by them for a variety of purposes, including textile processing and polishing of tiles.

It was because of this unexpected surplus in the state Government's kerosene stocks that tribals like Rathwa were able to get five extra litres. Jaspal's decision to release the surplus kerosene for rural and tribal areas of central Gujarat was rooted in the fact that their dependence on wood for fuel was wreaking havoc on the state's forests. Says Singh: "The allocation of more kerosene should considerably ease the pressure on jungles."

The Civil Supplies Department devised a two-pronged strategy -- targeting kerosene dealers at one end and petrol pump owners and industrial users at the other -- to ensure the drive was a success. And to insulate the department from outside pressures, the minister has announced that a complainant could call him personally at any hour and prompt action would follow. The strategy has proved fruitful. At least 80 persons have been booked across the state for allegedly adulterating petrol and diesel and blackmarketing and hoarding of kerosene and other essential commodities. Besides, over 40 petrol pumps have been sealed for allegedly selling petrol contaminated by kerosene, while action has been initiated against an equal number for tampering with the meters.

But it wasn't easy. Old hands at deceiving the poor consumer, the hoarders and blackmarketers were well-entrenched. The way they operated was revealed by a kerosene dealer in Vadodra, who has been hit by the drive. His monthly allocation of subsidised kerosene is 2.6 lakh litres, which he was fully lifting till March. He diverted over 30 per cent of this to petrol pump owners, hoteliers and industrial users at a market price of Rs 8-10 per litre, making an additional monthly profit of nearly Rs 3 lakh. However, since April this year, several dealers like him have stopped lifting their full quota because petrol pump owners have been refusing to buy kerosene illicitly for fear of being booked for adulteration -- if proved guilty they can be detained for six months.

The state Government's battle to clean up the PDS has highlighted the ills connected with it across the country. According to a study recently conducted by the Centre, nearly 35 per cent of the total subsidised kerosene worth Rs 6,500 crore released to the states annually gets illicitly diverted to wrongful users. In effect, this means that nearly Rs 2,500 crore worth of subsidy on kerosene goes waste because the beneficiary is not the needy consumer -- for whom it is meant -- but the uncrupulous profiteer. However, as Singh says, "I don't think any changes are required in the law to streamline the PDS. The only answer is strict enforcement."

With the Gujarat Government planning to extend the drive to the rest of the state, there could be fresh trouble for blackmarketers and hoarders. And better times still for the Rathwas and Patels.

Issue Contents | Write to us | Subscriptions | Syndication

© Living Media India Ltd