Bhubaneswar, March 16: Criminal proceedings have not yet been initiated against collectors of five districts from where vigilance officers seized spurious pulses supplied under the mid-day meal (MDM) and supplementary nutrition programme (SNP).

This was revealed from the statement made by women and child development minister Prafulla Samal in the Assembly today in response to the queries made earlier by Opposition Congress members through special motions.

The Speaker had directed the government to submit an Action Taken Report on special motions moved by the Opposition members within 48 hours. However, not satisfied with information shared by the government, Opposition members continued their protest in the Well. “The Opposition members had sought details on the criminal actions and findings of the vigilance probe. But the government has avoided all these details to shield the guilty and corrupt officials,” said leader of Opposition Bhupinder Singh.

Later, the Congress members, who had staged a walk out, called on governor M.C. Bhandare and submitted a memorandum. The BJP members were absent in the House in the afternoon session.

Budget of the revenue and disaster management department was passed amidst Opposition boycott. The Opposition has been stalling the Assembly proceedings since February 14, demanding action against the IAS officers and ministers apart from the chief minister’s resignation. The then women and child development minister, Pramila Mallick, resigned on the eve of the budget session.

While Deogarh and Mayurbhanj collectors were suspended, their Balasore counterpart was shifted from the district. However, not satisfied with these “cosmetic” actions, the Opposition has been demanding criminal actions against the erring collectors and higher-ups.

Samal today informed the House that legal actions had been taken in Deogarh, Jajpur, Balasore, Mayurbhanj and Ganjam districts.

The list revealed that criminal cases had been registered against the district social welfare officers and lower-level officials of the five districts and the private firms and cooperatives, which had supplied the substandard pulses under the MDM and the SNP. However, the name of any district collector did not figure in the list, though the district chiefs had been empowered to finalise the tenders and monitor quality of the pulses delivered by the suppliers.

The minister also parried query of the Congress member Anup Sai as to whether the vigilance wing of the state police had sought the government’s sanction to prosecute the district collectors concerned. Five state-owned cooperative organisations had supplied pulses under the MDM, the supplementary nutrition and emergency feeding programmes, as per government’s own admissions.

These organisations were Orissa Consumer Cooperative Federation, Balasore Wholesale Cooperative Consumer Store, Jharsuguda Wholesale Cooperative Consumer Store, Betnati Regiona Marketing Cooperative Society and Government Employees Consumer Cooperative Store. Vigilance cases have been registered against officials of these cooperatives.