PDS has enough stock, says Minister

Officials were also told to initiate action to move stocks of raw rice, wheat, sugar palm oil and dhal to all fair price shops to ensure that there was no short supply to consumers during Deepavali and the ensuing north east monsoon. The Minister added that a total of 912 persons were arrested for   smuggling essential commodities. TNCSC MD Dr K Gopal, civil supplies CID director Dr K Radhakrishnan, civil supplies commissioner S Madhumathi and cooperative registrar A Gnansekaran participated in the review meeting of the department. 

Commercial tax collections till September end in 2016-17 fiscal at Rs. 31,367.18 crores were higher by 7.52 % than the corresponding period last year, Commercial Taxes Minister KC Veeramani told in a 

review meeting of the department on Thursday. Commercial tax collection this year was Rs 2,194.23 crore higher than last year’s collection of Rs 29,172.95 crore he added. Calling on officials to clear pending tax amounts and ensure increased commercial tax collection, he said that 76 per cent wholesalers filed their documents online while e-payments accounted for 95 per cent of the tax revenue collected so far. Officials were exhorted to ensure higher collection through locating loop holes and closing them while ensuring that fraudulent tax returns were checked and acted upon immediately. Commercial taxes commissioner Dr S Chandramouli was present. 

In a review meeting of the Housing and Urban Development Department, under the chairmanship of Housing Minister Udumalai K. Radhakrishnan, the norms to choose beneficiaries for Slum Clearance Board tenements were discussed. Speaking at the meeting he said that of the 44,185 tenements sanctioned, work was underway in 18,390 houses while 825 houses had been completed. It was also planned to construct new houses in the Lloyds – 1 area after demolishing the existing houses. The meeting also discussed plans for a satellite bus terminus for southbound buses as land had been handed over to the CMDA. Similarly, land acquisition issues for a proposed heavy vehicle parking terminal at Sathangaadu was reviewed. It was decided to streamline the flower and fruit shops in the Koyambedu market complex. It was also decided to finalise the beneficiaries list for 4,500 houses for weaker sections in the Thoppur-Uchapatti satellite township in Madurai district. Housing secretary Dharmendra Pratap Yadav, Housing Board MD Shambu Kalolikar and CMDA member secretary Vijayaraj Kumar participated in the review meeting.