Mixed response to court’s intervention

MADURAI, VELLORE: The order passed by the Madras High Court, restraining the State from giving Pongal gift of `1,000 in cash to people who do not belong to the below poverty line category, has evoked mixed reaction from the public.

Within hours, following the order, people rushed to the fair price shops in the city to collect the gift of `1,000, before the implementation of the court order on Thursday.D Jayanthi (46), a homemaker from Goripalayam who owns a white ration card, said it was unfair that a condition was being laid two days after the distribution of the Pongal gifts began.

M Selvarani (55), a resident of Zumbropuram who has a green ration card, welcomed the move. Selvarani’s husband sells food in a pushcart. “The State’s assistance should reach the needy. In the last couple of days, many well-off people who have the luxury of time skipped the queue already and received the cash gifts ahead of their turn,” she complained.

Meanwhile, scores of ration card holders in L Mankuppam, near Ambur in Vellore, resorted to road blockade after finding a ration shop closed. They had lined up before the shop for collecting the State government’s Pongal hampers package that included `1,000, but none of the staff turned up. Irked over this, the agitated card holders blocked traffic on the Ambur- Pernambut highway.