UP: Ponty Chadha may get anganwadi food supply contract

Emoryne

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posted on 12 years ago — updated on 1 second ago

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Ponty Chadha's company has been distributing anganwadi food for the last seven years in Uttar Pradesh.

Lucknow: The Akhilesh Yadav government is facing tough questions for awarding the contract of Anganwadi food supply to liquor baron Ponty Chadha. The Uttar Pradesh government's decision makes a mockery of the Supreme Court order that the food supply for small children and pregnant women should be given only to self-help groups, mahila mandals and village communities.

Ponty Chadha's company Great Food Value has been distributing anganwadi food for the last seven years in Uttar Pradesh. Chadha won the contract for the first time from the previous Mulayam Singh Yadav government. The contract was worth Rs 13,000 crore then, and later Chadha was favoured by the Mayawati government too. Now once again, his company has won the technical bid floated by the Akhilesh government.

Now only the financial bid remains to be opened. But the move has already created some problems for Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Akhilesh as a Samajwadi Party MLA is reported to be not happy with the decision. MLA Sharda Pratap Shukla has written to the chief minister on the issue.

The matter is now in the court, which will hear the matter on November 20. The petitioner has alleged that the state government has deliberately made the contract in a way which only a big business enterprise can fulfil.

According to the terms only those enterprises which have a turnover of at least Rs 25 crore with a manufacturing unit in Uttar Pradesh can apply for the anganwadi food supply. The question being raised is how self-help groups and pastoral industry will meet the condition. The allegation is that Chadha's company is taking advantage of this particular condition. In fact, the Government of India distributes free food under the Child Development Nutrition Policy.

The food is to be distributed from anganwadis. In 2004, the Supreme Court has ordered the contract should not be given to large companies and suppliers to avoid stale food. The court's order was aimed at developing rural industries and entrepreneurial skills among the rural women. But it seems the UP government might rely on Chadha’s company. Samajwadi Party General Secretary says that his party respected the court and would follow its orders. He said that either any NGO is able to deliver the food, then the government will let it handle the entire scheme.