The State government seems to have learnt no lessons from its past experiences as the rice stocked up at residential schools has been left to rot for the second consecutive year.
HYDERABAD: The State government seems to have learnt no lessons from its past experiences as the rice stocked up at residential schools has been left to rot for the second consecutive year. During the first lockdown, most of the rice stored in the hostels decayed. Now, the situation seems to have come a full circle again. It is estimated that an average of 2,000 quintals of rice is currently stored in each district.
During the previous academic year, the government schools functioned from February to March. But due to a surge in Covid-19 cases, the State government abruptly closed both the residential and non-residential schools. In the process, abundant stocks of food grains were left to rot on the premises of these schools.
The rice stocks, which were decayed during the first lockdown, were auctioned by the State government at around `15/kg through the District Level Purchase Committees. It may be mentioned here that the State spends around `35/kg for fine variety rice and `30/kg for raw rice, which indicates that State exchequer suffers almost 50 per cent loss.
This time around, as the educational institutions have been closed for nearly two months now, there is a possibility of food grains start getting spoiled if the authorities fail to act in time. When Express brought the issue to their notice, the TS Food Corporation officials said that to avoid wastage, the rice should be distributed among the students.
