Guwahati: The Assam unit of the Congress party has accused the Bharatiya Janata Party-led state government of distributing only five kg of rice to the beneficiaries of National Food Security Act (NFSA), instead of adhering to the Central government’s announcement of providing them an extra five kg of rice and a kg of dal per month for free under the scheme.On March 26, finance minister Nirmala Sithraman had stated that aside from raising the monthly quota of five kg rice at a subsidised rate to seven kg to the 80 crore NFSA beneficiaries, they would also be given a monthly quota of five kg food grains and one kg pulses free for three months, to ensure the availability of food to the poor during the lockdown for COVID-19.Assam Pradesh Congress Committee (APCC) president and Rajya Sabha member Ripun Bora, in a video statement to the press on April 8, said, “The state government is giving only five kg of rice under NFSA while that should have continued anyway as it is a national scheme. It has no connection with Coronavirus. What was announced by Nirmala Sitharaman (to address the crisis arising out of Coronavirus), that five kg of rice and one kg of dal would be additionally given to the beneficiaries of the scheme, is not being followed in Assam.”Bora said the state Congress has submitted a 15-point memorandum to chief minister Sarbananda Sonowal highlighting not only that ‘anomaly’ but also ‘gross discrimination’ and ‘saffronisation’ in the distribution of relief to the poor and needy people in the state on account of the lockdown.Accusing the government of not handling the distribution of essentials to the poor in a systematic and transparent manner, Bora, in the six-minute-long video statement forwarded to various media organisations, also accused the BJP government of asking party leaders to ready the list of the beneficiaries by identifying only party workers and supporters instead of allowing the panchayats and respective department officials to do so, which, he said, had stopped the benefits from reaching all needy persons.“We have been requesting the prime minister and the state government to ensure distribution of the relief in an organised and transparent manner. However, it has not given any heed to it. Therefore, we have again put together a 15-point memorandum to the state chief minister on April 8. We have stated that the government has only included BJP workers and their supporters in the list of beneficiaries of the schemes. Congress workers and supporters or non-BJP people have been kept out of it.”Also read: As Mills Delay Payments Like Every Year, Lockdown Adds to Sugarcane Farmers’ WoesThe Congress leader also accused BJP leaders in the state of diverting the ration distributed though the public distribution system (PDS) to their respective constituencies by “threatening” the officials.In the memorandum, Bora alleged that the people who are involved in the unorganised sector like domestic workers, barbers, masons, daily wage-earners, labourers, helpers in hotels, cab drivers, barbers, tailors, fishmonger and others who are dependent on daily wages are not being included in government schemes, and are the most affected in the present phase of the nationwide lockdown.“But there are no schemes to help out these people. We have demanded that they should be provided with essential supplies in the same manner as tea garden labourers are being provided with wages and rations during the lockdown. The small tea-growers and rubber growers should also be provided with compensation. The government should also purchase vegetables from farmers at a fair price and provide farmers with diesel free of cost or at a subsidised rate.”Accusing the state government of not allowing the Congress workers to help out the needy, he said, “To serve humanity is the right of all and not just of the BJP. It is also seen that some Congress workers want to come forward to help the most affected people, but they are not being given permission and on the other hand, administrations have allowed BJP people to do it by breaking the social distancing norms.”