Date:23/02/2006 URL: http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/2006/02/23/stories/2006022302131900.htm

Back TUCS employees seek compensation for handling PDS

Our Bureau

Chennai , Feb. 22

THE employees of the century-old TUCS (Triplicane Urban Cooperative Society) have represented to the Tamil Nadu Government seeking payment of service charge for each family ration card the cooperative handles in the public distribution system (PDS).

In a representation to the Chief Minister, Ms J. Jayalalithaa, the Coordination Committee of the TUCS Employees' Union has requested that the TUCS be paid Rs 18 as distribution expenditure per family card.

TUCS, which celebrated its centenary in 2004, operates 214 rations shops under the PDS and services over 3.16 lakh families through the family cards.

It incurs a loss of Rs 1.20 crore annually on account of PDS and because of the unviable remuneration it receives from the Government. The losses have now mounted to Rs 20 crore, and the State Government should compensate this loss to protect the cooperative society from the interest payments.

The Government should compensate the TUCS or relieve it from servicing the PDS. The union also requested compensation for the recurring monthly expenditure such as Rs 2.62 lakh on rent, Rs 1.21 lakh on electricity and office expenditure of Rs 3,000.

The committee urged the Government to permit the ration shops to pack the commodities in retail packs to prevent losses. Women self-help groups could be involved in packing the commodities.

It has also sought the Government's intervention for a wage hike and treating the 798 employees of TUCS on a par with the employees of the Tamil Nadu Civil Supplies Corporation. The wage revision that was sought with effect from October 2004 should be implemented.

The services of employees who had been on contract or temporary rolls should be regularised, they said.

To improve the services offered by TUCS, the committee sought permission to use the assets of TUCS to raise low-interest loans to upgrade facilities in the self-service shops. The TUCS owns about Rs 100 crore worth of land and buildings, which can be profitably utilised.

The procurement system for stocking the fair price shops should be streamlined. The monitoring system should be with a single agency to prevent irregularities, they said.