Ranchi, February 19 JMM MLA Hemlal Murmu raised the issues of manpower shortage and the "malfunctioning" of the biometric system in remote areas under the Food and Public Distribution Department in the Jharkhand assembly on Thursday.
The Littipara legislator claimed that there is a shortage of supply officers at the block level and marketing officers in the public distribution system.
He stated that the biometric system, introduced by the department for rations, is "not functioning properly in remote areas due to the lack of internet."
"The biometric system relies on the internet. In several remote areas, there is no internet or tower. As a result, consumers face significant difficulties in obtaining their rations. I want to know from the government what mechanism has been developed to address this problem," Murmu said.
In response to the MLA, Food and Public Distribution Minister Irfan Ansari said that 255 out of the 260 sanctioned posts for block supply officers were vacant.
"We are taking this as a special case and recruiting BSOs. There are nine vacant posts for marketing officers, which will be filled soon," Ansari said.
Regarding the biometric system, the minister stated that the Point of Sale (POS) devices were initially enabled with 2G internet connectivity, but they have now been upgraded with 4G connectivity.
"We hope that consumers will not face any difficulties in obtaining their rations," he said.
During question hour, Jamshedpur West MLA Saryu Roy raised the issue of manpower shortage in Bazar Samitis in the state.
Out of the 900 sanctioned posts, only 105 people are working, and they are primarily involved in rental collection.
In response to Roy, Agriculture Minister Shilpi Neha Tirkey said that a detailed regulation is being drafted for Bazar Samitis.
The regulation aims to provide better markets and prices to farmers.
The Jharkhand assembly's budget session began with the speech of Governor Santosh Kumar Gangwar on Wednesday.
The session will continue until March 19, with 17 working days.