Ranchi, Dec. 2: Even as BJP advertisers are out to make the chief minister?s face familiar by splashing it on match-stick boxes and ration cards, it won?t do much good if Munda?s schemes are stalled.

Chief minister Arjun Munda?s scheme to provide salt for 25 paise a kg to 24 lakh odd BPL families for six months, is yet to materialise.

The Rs 14-crore scheme has hit a roadblock as the tender for salt failed to find any takers.

Sources said, the manufacturers are keen to export salt to China and Korea for Rs 7 to 8 a kg, which is more lucrative.

?Besides, the tender conditions were also tough for local suppliers to qualify,? sources said.

?The conditions included 2 per cent earnest money while applying and another 3 per cent at the time of agreement. A minimum of Rs 10 crore annual turnover was necessary for supplying the vacuum evaporated, free-flowing iodised salt.

?Besides, only manufacturers and authorised wholesalers were allowed to apply. This was done to keep brokers at bay, but none of the wholesalers in the state has a turnover of Rs 10 crore as most of them procure stock only for two months,? sources said.

The ambitious scheme envisaged supply of 2 kg salt to each of the 23,94,000 BPL families for six months from October 2004 to March 2005. An amount of Rs 14 crore were earmarked to highly subsidise salt to be purchased for Rs 5 a kg. Two months have already passed without the beneficiaries getting their quota of salt.

Munda?s other schemes to provide cooking gas cylinder and oven to 1 lakh BPL families also did not take off as tenders floated for supply of both the items have crash-landed.

Sources in the government said while no one bid for the tender to provide 28,728 tonnes of salt, the tender for providing cooking gas ovens was grounded as only one bidder qualified, but the quoted rate of Rs 456 was ?too high.?

The department of food and civil supplies had requested Munda to float fresh tenders for both, sources in the chief minister secretariat said.

?While another tender had become necessary to find suppliers for salt, the fresh tender was necessary for supply of ovens as a single qualifier cannot be awarded the contract,? a senior official said.

The chief minister, who cannot offend the large chunk of potential vote bank, has given his go-ahead for fresh tenders and is scheduled to hold a special Cabinet meeting on Saturday to evolve ways to kick-start the schemes, specially with Assembly election knocking the door, sources said.