Parliamentary Committee Urges End to Irregularities in Ration Cards for Non-Indigenous People in the Chittagong Hill Tracts
A parliamentary committee has recommended removing irregularities in the distribution of ration cards among repatriated refugees and non-indigenous people living in cluster villages in the Chittagong Hill Tracts, and giving the cards to genuine beneficiaries.
The recommendations were made on Thursday (5 November) at a meeting of the standing committee on the Ministry of Chittagong Hill Tracts Affairs of the 13th Jatiya Sangsad, held at the Jatiya Sangsad Bhaban. The meeting was chaired by the committee's president, Abdul Wadud Bhuiyan.
Present at the meeting were committee members including Minister for Chittagong Hill Tracts Affairs Saching Prue, Mostafa Kamal Pasha, Dipen Dewan, Shahjahan Chowdhury, Mohammad Zahirul Islam and Masum Mostafa.
Ration card distribution in the Chittagong Hill Tracts was discussed at the meeting. Taking into account allegations of irregularities in card distribution among repatriated refugees and non-indigenous people in cluster villages, the committee stressed confirming the list of genuine beneficiaries.
At the same time, the committee asked the ministry to present at the next meeting the government's steps for those affected by the Sajek issue, the ministry's vacant posts, and information on irregularities and corruption during the previous two governments.
It recommended presenting detailed information at the next meeting on how many posts are vacant in the ministry and its subordinate offices and what initiatives have been taken to fill them.
The committee also recommended reporting at the next meeting on any irregularities or corruption in the ministry and its subordinate offices during the Awami League and interim governments, and the steps taken on them.
The ministry was asked to present at the next meeting what steps it has taken for the people affected by the Sajek issue.
The honorarium of para-workers working in the sustainable social services project in the Chittagong Hill Tracts was also discussed. The committee recommended raising the reduced honorarium to a respectable rate in line with the rising cost of living.
The meeting decided to hold meetings in December with the three hill district councils, the Chittagong Hill Tracts Regional Council and the Chittagong Hill Tracts Development Board, and to visit the areas concerned.
The division and balanced distribution of the budget allocated to the ministry in the current fiscal year, irregularities in food grain allocation, spending plans and various development projects were also discussed in detail. The committee recommended that the ministry take necessary measures on these matters.
The secretary of the Ministry of Chittagong Hill Tracts Affairs, officials of various concerned offices and officials of the Jatiya Sangsad Secretariat were present at the meeting.
