Jalpaiguri, Aug. 9: After Darjeeling Mail, it is now the turn of Food Corporation of India (FCI) to sever ties with the tea town.

The FCI decision to shift its office to Siliguri has triggered protest among members of Jalpaiguri District Truck Owners’ Association.

According to sources, the FCI office in Alipurduar subdivision has already merged with its Cooch Behar branch while Jalpaiguri will soon join Siliguri. FCI employees posted here informed that the changes are a part of an “economic exercise and reorganisation policy”.

They added that the merger with the Siliguri office would help to curtail costs.

“In the last financial year, the total requirement of the district under different schemes was about 1,77,734 metric tonnes of foodgrain. The cost of shifting goods from godowns of New Jalpaiguri to Jalpaiguri, Alipurduar, Dhupguri and Mainaguri had resulted in huge losses with local truck owners and labourers being deprived of their share of profits,” a departmental source said.

Truck owners said they would suffer a loss of around Rs 1.43 crore annually if the FCI shifted its office. Many labourers would lose their means of livelihood too. “Besides, expenses will increase if garden ration is collected from New Jalpaiguri station instead of Jalpaiguri as most tea estates are located in the district,” a member of the truck association said.

The district manager of FCI was unavailable for comments.

A. Subbiah, the district magistrate of Jalpaiguri, said: “Though I have not been informed about the FCI decision, we had a meeting in this regard today. We will send recommendations to the FCI authorities to ensure that the food grain for gardens are distributed from Jalpaiguri.”

Banamali Roy, the sabhadhipati of Jalpaiguri zilla parishad, said: “The truckers had been here with some definite demands. We will talk to the authorities concerned soon.”