Press Statement
The Polit Bureau of the Communist Party of India (Marxist) has issued the following statement:
Retain Sugar Supply Through Ration Shops
The BJP-led government has taken one more step to curtail the public distribution system. The decision of the government to stop supplying sugar to families above the poverty line through the ration shops will deprive a large section of the people from buying sugar at lower rates. The so-called above poverty line category itself is an arbitrary one and mainly consists of people who have limited incomes. Already income tax payees have been excluded from the supply of sugar under the PDS.
Step by step, the BJP-led government is dismantling the public distribution system by cutting subsidies. The recent decision will reduce the subsidy on sugar by more than half.
The Polit Bureau of the CPI(M) demands that the government not proceed with this decision and retain sugar supply under the PDS for all categories of ration card holders.