A file photo of police deployed at a protest near YIMS on Yadgir-Kalaburagi Main Road (NH-150).
| Photo Credit: SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT

In order to ensure quality food to the police personnel on special duty, Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah announced that the food allowance provided to police officers and personnel on bandobast duty will be increased to ₹300 from ₹200.

In an effort to provide quality food to police personnel deployed on special duties, the State Home Department had moved a proposal to hike food allowance from ₹200 to ₹300.

This, according to officials, would not only help solve the issue of quality food, but mitigate the price rise of food items, which had a cascading effect on the beneficiaries.

“We had submitted the proposal in January this year,” a senior official told The Hindu.

It has been a challenge for the unit head to provide food for police personnel deployed on special duty, including festive seasons, elections and special events.

On February 10 during Aero India show this year Yelahanka police had registered a First Information Report (FIR) against a private caterer for supplying sub-standard food to police personnel who were deployed for the event.

Police personnel, who were supplied food packets, complained of finding insects in the food, and stopped eating the food.

On two earlier occasions, police personnel had complained that a cockroach and other insects were found in food packets. They alleged that the caterer did not follow cleanliness and used sub-standard material to prepare the food.

Senior police officials visited the Aero India show and had breakfast with security personnel to check the quality. Later, they arranged food from a hotel and had the food with the police personnel to ensure quality check and also boost the morale of the personnel .

More than supplying food, it’s always a problem to apply for reimbursement of food bills, another officer rued.

The department, as per the rules, require GST bills with TIN numbers, which is difficult to get, and they have to be submitted to the Khajane portal. Payment of bills either gets delayed or are rejected citing technical grounds.

In many cases, especially in remote areas, food is sourced from external vendors, with payments made directly to them. Officials, who have contacts with hotels and local caterers, get the food. Vendors often provide food on credit, as bill payments from the department takes months together.

In majority of the cases, officials pay the money from their pockets to suppliers, and do not claim reimbursement. This is leading to another level of corruption as the officials given the task of supplying food need to arrange the money somehow, sources said.