No substandard food should reach quake victims: PAC to govt

KATHMANDU, June 23: The Public Accounts Committee (PAC) of parliament has directed the commerce ministry to ensure that no international or domestic agency distributes substandard food to the earthquake victims.

The House committee issued the directive after the World Food Program (WFP) was found to have distributed rotten rice in Gorkha and Kavre districts."WFP has distributed substandard food to the earthquake victims in various districts. So, we had to take this decision to make sure that no other national or international agency distributes sub-standard food to the earthquake victims," PAC Chairman Janardan Sharma said at the committee meeting on Monday. He said that the committee will further discuss the matter and decide on action to be taken against the WFP.

Earlier, Minister for Commerce and Supplies Sunil Bahadur Thapa said that the ministry has already directed the Department of Commerce and Supply Management (DoCSM) to test the quality of food items being distributed by the WFP and take action against it through diplomatic channels.

"As the WFP is a UN body, the government cannot take action against it directly. The government has to follow certain UN protocols. The government will take necessary action against the WFP through diplomatic channels," said Thapa. He said that the ministry has already asked the WFP to launch an internal probe and take action against its responsible officers.

"Our teams are currently testing samples of food distributed by the WFP in Laprak, Gorkha. Similarly, we are also studying the report submitted by DoCSM on substandard food distributed by the UN body in Kavre two weeks ago," said Secretary at the commerce ministry Naindra Prasad Upadhaya.

Dhan Raj Gurung, a Nepali Congress lawmaker, said, "We will die of hunger but we will not eat rotten rice. The government should take action against the UN body."

Mamata Giri, another CPN-UML lawmaker, said poor quality food items were being distributed to the victims as the concerned body has not been testing the quality of food items distributed by the WFP.

"Many places are already reeling under food crisis. But WFP is distributing rotten food. In this situation, the locals will have no choice but to eat rotten food. The government should ensure that no substandard food item reaches the quake victims," she added.

A parliamentary committee team on Sunday had found 542 tons of substandard pulses at WFP go-down in Khujura of Banke district.

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