PARADIP: Irregularities in implementation of the Central government's flagship scheme Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana (PMUY) have sparked resentment among beneficiaries in Chatua village under Kujang police limits in the district.
Nearly 531 beneficiaries have alleged that they have been deprived of benefits under the scheme, which provides LPG connections to women from Below Poverty Line (BPL) households. Though they have lodged complaints with the IOCL, no action has been taken.
The women beneficiaries claimed that not only are they deprived of gas connections but also the subsidy amount, stove charges and other benefits since 2017. They also alleged supply of substandard quality stove and other equipment.
As per reports, IOCL engaged M/S Devi Indane Gramin Vitrak to supply connections to over 7,000 BPL women beneficiaries in Kujang and Erasama areas. Sources said that after initial success, the agency started supplying poor quality gas stoves and other accessories while selling the original ones in the open market.
Even the connections were given to fake beneficiaries as many genuine candidates were left out despite having their names registered and getting a consumer ID. It was however found that agency owner AK Das outsourced the gas agency work to an associate Panchanana Mohanty who has reportedly kept the godown locked for over 20 days now.
In this connection, on Wednesday, Das filed an FIR in Kujang police station against his partner Mohanty for not handing over the keys of the godown and office room since 20 days, which has affected distribution of refills as well as new connections. The IOCL on Tuesday issued show cause notice to Das.