Kottayam: During a surprise raid conducted at the packing centres of Supplyco, the vigilance have found many irregularities in packing of items included in the free Onam kit. The raid was conducted as many complaints arose pointing out that the Onam kit worth Rs 500 were packed with food items worth Rs 300 only. The vigilance team found that the food items and grains were of low quality and quantity in sharp contrast to the offers.
The vigilance officials conducted the surprise raid 'Operation Kit Clean' in the packing centres of Supplyco and the ration shops which distributed the kits in Kottayam, Alappuzha and Idukki districts. During the raids conducted in Pala, Ponkunnam, Pambadi and Changanassery in Kottayam, the quantity of the items were found to be less than what was offered. Moreover, the price of the kit was found to be less than Rs 500 according to the price list of Supplyco.
As there was suspicion regarding the quality of jaggery being sold in Changanassery, its samples were sent for tests in the lab at Thiruvananthapuram. The weight of jaggery was less than what was shown on the packet and the manufacturing and expiry date were not marked. Following this, the food safety officer directed to distribute the jaggery only after test results came out.
In the packing centres at Thodupuzha, Arakkulam and Peerumedu in Idukki, the quantity of jaggery, sugar, green gram and red cow peas were lower than what was written on the packet. There was a difference of 50 grams to 200 grams in the weight of items. The price of the kit was only Rs 404 as per the Supplyco price list and Rs 446.5 as per market price.
In Alappuzha, the quantity of jaggery was upto 100 grams less than what was offered in Ambalapuzha and Cherthala. Also the packing was being done in unhygienic surroundings. The price of the items in the Onam kit was only Rs 457 in Alappuzha.
The vigilance team also found that the free kit worth Rs 1,000 given to fisherfolk contained items worth Rs 650 only.
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