Chennai, Oct 25 : DMK leader and Leader of the Opposition Udhayanidhi Stalin has accused the TVK government in Tamil Nadu of selling polished free ration rice for Rs 30 per kg under the label of premium-quality Sanna Raga Ponni rice. He alleged that consumers across the state had raised complaints about the quality of rice sold through cooperative outlets.
In a social media post on Saturday, Udhayanidhi questioned the government’s rice procurement process and demanded transparency in the distribution and sale of subsidised rice.
According to the DMK leader, the government introduced Sanna Raga Ponni rice at Rs 30 per kg through cooperative outlets to help people cope with rising rice prices. However, he claimed that ordinary rice distributed free through the public distribution system was being polished and sold as premium-quality rice.
He also alleged that a TVK MLA faced questions from the public over the quality of rice in the Cumbum region and left the spot.
Udhayanidhi further questioned the limited availability of the subsidised rice scheme. He pointed out that Tamil Nadu has around 2.28 crore family cardholders, but the rice supply was reportedly restricted to just 250 locations, with a maximum limit of five kg per family.
Recalling the DMK government’s earlier welfare measures, Udhayanidhi cited former Chief Minister M Karunanidhi’s special public distribution scheme introduced in 2007. He said the scheme used an open tender process to supply essential commodities such as palm oil, dal and pulses at subsidised prices.
The allegations have raised questions about the quality, availability and procurement process of subsidised rice in Tamil Nadu. The claims were made by Udhayanidhi Stalin, and independent verification of the allegations was not provided in the report.
