'Naidu govt sold food-for-work scheme rice'

In a scathing attack on the alleged fiscal mismanagement by the previous government, state finance minister K Rosaiah on Monday said that the Naidu government played fraud by selling the rice released under Government of India's food-for-work (FFW) scheme to raise the money for payment towards transportation, handling and the like.

According to Rosaiah, the issue came to light when the Congress government probed into the reasons behind the shortage of about 2 lakh tonnes of rice in the godowns as against the account books.

"When the civil supplies department repeatedly requested the Naidu government to release money towards transportation and other necessary costs to enable them to lift the FFW rice, these people suggested them to sell the rice through public distribution system for the necessary funds," Rosaiah said.

"When the question of furnishing the utility certificates to the Centre to get further rice under the FFW scheme came up, the same officials have now approached the government to release Rs 259.92 crore to the department, so that they could purchase the rice to set right the accounts. Had any individual done this mischief, he would have been behind the bars now. Is this the model of your fiscal management?" an angry finance minister retorted to the reported comments by the Telugu Desam Party (TDP) leaders that the government is showing revenue surpluses by not spending the money.

"We are trained to spend the money as far as our own pockets permit, and that too not on extravagant and non-priority items unlike Naidu who is known for his spending spree using others pockets," Rosaiah said.

Even in the effective four months during the first half of the current financial year after the new government took charge, the expenditure on several priority sectors like irrigation and agriculture have been exceeding compared to the first six-month period of the previous financial year, the minister argued.