Favouritism in FARD Dept raises eyebrows

Apparently a wrong decision and a faulty tender process of the State Fisheries and Animal Resources Development (FARD) Department are going to cause serious drain to the State exchequer. Worst still, the decision also threatens to defeat the State Government’s the ambitious ‘Make in Odisha’ mission.

The State Government on November 17, 2017 floated tender inviting to procure hatching eggs from breeders and traders to supply eggs to 60 Government hatcheries in the State.

The tender process was itself faulty as it had included the word “traders” along with “breeders.” The breeders breed eggs confirming all prescribed and statutory norms under direct supervision of the Government agencies. On the other hand, the traders only deal in sell of consumable eggs, not breeding eggs, hatched artificially to produce poultry birds for meat purposes.

As many as four firms, including two traders, participated in the bidding process. A Bhubaneswar based firm which quoted Rs 15.80 per egg was awarded the egg supply and rearing order to the tune of Rs 12crore. While Rs 5 crore was awarded for hatching eggs, the remaining Rs 7 crore was given as charges for rearing hatchlings.

Prior to the tender process, Dimond Agrovet, Jaleswar, the largest breeding firm in eastern India, which was established by a physically handicapped woman Tapatirani Pradhan, under Backyard Poultry scheme of the Union Government, was encouraged by the State Government to set up a breeding unit.

Dimond Agrovet, with a breeding capacity 60,000 parent stock (mother birds) and per day hatching capacity of 40,000 eggs, was supplying eggs to the Government hatcheries at Rs 16 per egg.

Sources in the Government said while the hatching capacity of Dimond Agrovet is more than 90 per cent, the new supplier ’s hatching capacity is only 14 per cent.

It implies while every 100 eggs procured by the Government from the new supplier to supply to its own hatcheries produce only 14 hatchlings, while 84 eggs worth Rs 1,327 prove unproductive.

On the other hand, the hatchability of Dimond Agrovet is 90 per cent.

It means that every 100 eggs supplied by the firm only 10 eggs worth Rs 160 prove unproductive. What is surprising is the new supplier had committed 80 per cent hatchability.

A rough calculation points that in order save Rs 20 on 100 eggs, the Government is losing Rs 1,327.

Experts with knowledge of hatchery industry find the wisdom of the FARD Department absurd and a calculative attempt of favoritism.

While the Dimond Agrovet’s eggs are produced in a complete prescribed biosphere with an employee comprising local tribals, the new supplier procures eggs from outside. It implies that the State also loses a lot on the front of employment generation.