Malda Training Diary - Administrative Training Institute

Page 120 of 120
Circuit House is still being repaired; besides team of MLAs led by Maya Ray arrived to
inspect starvation death reports set afloat by Jainal Abedin.
24 th night dinner invitation by ADM.
27.7.1972
Work done
Enquiry at Boldanga village into petition against bribe asked for by Bhagchas clerk in JLRO
Habibpur office. 100 km, 11.30 a.m.– 6.15 p.m.
Information
I found JLRO never sees the Bhagchash case register. Many peculiar features like pending
cases are not included in pending list, dates on order sheets are all wrong & no dates placed
for 3-4 months! One date of an unsigned order is 25.12.71 ! Unfortunately the poor
petitioners have no witnesses though they speaking truth because they insisted they hadn’t
signed, on the typed petition but on a handwritten one. The touts are also milking them dry,
taking money (Rs.24) for getting copies of judgement in their case tho’ not even a hearing
had been held yet. JLRO admitted to avoiding cases due to great pressure of work. It was
difficult getting understood by & to understand what the 2 Santhals were saying, but I
gathered that the dates set down in the order sheet were all made-up & the actual dates had
not been recorded. On a random check, I found a very large number of cases with orders
similarly unsigned. The JLRO admits to being too soft to control his clerks. Often routine
sending up of cases is not done in time. I told the clerk – Sunil Kr. Basu - & the petitioners to
be present on Saturday 29 th , as also the Muharrir.
In the evening with T.B.Deb called on Raha where animated discussion on mediums and
planchet took place. At night quite a heavy downpour but just for some minutes.
28.7.1972
Work done
Relief work – movement of supplies
Arrangements for visit of CM & other Ministers
Information
I was summoned this morning by DM. Found SDO, ADM, OC (Relief) & FCI DM there. I
was made liaison officer between FCI & Relief to ensure no bottlenecks went unnoticed. FCI
was instructed to let BDOs lift TR quota direct from closest godowns instead of coming to
town. I was also put in charge of vehicles for sending supplies to distressed pockets. Milk
Powder has to reach N.W. blocks but trucks can’t now be ferried. So wired BDOs to send
their jeeps to other side of Madia & we would send the supplies by boat to that side. This is
scheduled for tomorrow at 2 pm.
ADM showed it would be much cheaper to give G.R. to 50% of Malda i.e. 8 lakh people,
comes to 1300 MT per week, costing Rs. 15 lakhs till 15 Aug. while 450 T.R. schemes @ 2–
5 per anchal meant Rs. 22 lakhs @ 50 Qtls per scheme, 2300 gm per head, 31 st July – 6 th
August. Employing 139751 men daily, & 978260 per week. DM told SDO to arrange 2.5%
GR in town before any agitation took place. This could be done from the list made in 1971
floods which contained income slab of each person. I contacted AROs, & told them to
submit this list for fixing a ceiling of income for GR distribution.
Some 517 bags of milk powder have become unfit for consumption because Govt. sat on it &
did not tell us if we could give it under GR in 1971. Such a tragedy! German Baby Food gift
cans have arrived; gruel kitchens will be opened by Marwari Relief Society & Sevaksamaj /
Sevashram.
In the evening DM told me to arrange CH as CM + 3 mins [PWD, Agr, Irrigation, C&SSI]
arrive tomorrow & meet officers to assess the situation. Only 3 rooms are habitable at present
the rest being under repair. Have to run about a lot tomorrow – prepare CH, do enquiry at
Habibpur, supervise sending milk powder to N.W.Blocks. A strenuous day ahead.