THE PDS STORES OF KASHMIR

                                          

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KYA SA GAATAS MA TROVUKH TOMUL ? 

I grew up seeing   Kashmiris asking eachother :

" Kya sa ghaatas trovakha tomul"  or " Have the rice supplies arrived  at the PDS store ? "

" Dapaan khand din allava ? "  or " It is said that some additional sugar is being given this month through PDS "

"Kya sa Hatab ma aayi? Veer kar iyeei? Or " Has the Hatab timber arrived ? When are we going to get willow timber ?" 

Men, women ,young boys and elders from  families  would visit the local depots of food grains and timber to seek replies to these troubling questions .If the State was ruled by Sheikh Mohammad Abdullah or  Bakshi Ghulam Mohammad or G M Sadiq or Syed Mir Qasim, poverty ruled most of the  households in the city like a  dictator. A few could afford to buy rice obtained  from the local paddy crop  known as  Koshur Tomul.The common man bought and stored Koshur Tomul for marriage feasts only.  People who needed Koshur Tomul , bought it from foodgrain dealers known as Galdhaars. Koshur Tomul  would also be brought to city by small traders on horses .

Immediately  after the first world war started , food prices skyrocketed in Kashmir. Under instructions from Maharaja Partap Singh , Revenue Minister Raja Narinder Nath Kaul entrusted Tehsildar Salam Shah the job of bringing down prices by any means .   And Salaam Shah Naqashbandhi  opened Shaali Stores to introduce Public Distribution System  in the Kashmir Valley for controlling  food and timber prices.  People became familiar with new words like Chendi, Piece, Hamaal, Kanda Kuli, Head Hamaal, Ghaat Munshi, Haanz, Shaali store, Khataavun ,  Inspector,  Kayur ( Kail ),  Veer (Willow ), Conifer, Hatab ( False Witch Hazel tree) , Zangul, Dodur, etc. 

Later , we saw cheap vegetable oil ( rapeseed oil),  cement , Kangri charcoal and kerosene also rationed through long queues. The rapeseed oil removed the aroma of mustard oil from a poorman's kitchen. 

( Avtar Mota )

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