Leader of the Opposition in the Bihar Legislative Assembly, Tejashwi Yadav, wrote to Chief Minister Samrat Choudhary on September 9, 2026, over the financial and administrative grievances of Public Distribution System (PDS) dealers. The letter, dated September 4, 2026, outlines the dealers' distress due to record inflation, delayed commission payments, and alleged corruption within the Bihar State Food Corporation (BSFC) warehouses.

Yadav emphasized the critical role of PDS dealers in ensuring foodgrain distribution to millions of poor families, despite their long-standing unaddressed grievances. He demanded a fixed monthly honorarium of ₹30,000 for dealers, following Gujarat’s model, and the removal of time limits for compassionate appointments of eligible dependents, similar to Jharkhand’s practice. He also called for immediate clearance of pending commission payments, which have been delayed for up to a year, and urged strict action against corruption and irregularities.

The letter also requested real-time solutions for technical issues such as weighing discrepancies, e-PoS machine failures, and server problems, which have impacted both dealers and beneficiaries. Yadav proposed the establishment of an effective grievance redressal mechanism at the district and block levels to address genuine dealer concerns and curb unnecessary administrative pressure.

Yadav further called for regular tripartite meetings between government officials, departmental authorities, and the Fair Price Dealers Association to find permanent solutions to the PDS system’s challenges. He concluded by urging the government to take prompt, positive, and time-bound decisions on the dealers’ demands, expressing confidence in the Bihar government’s ability to address these issues with sensitivity and seriousness.

The Fair Price Dealers Association responded on social media, thanking Yadav for raising their pending demands and issues on public platforms. The letter also mentions an RJD delegation meeting an Election Commission official to address voter registration issues in the Tirhut Graduate Constituency, but this is unrelated to the PDS system.

Key unknowns include the Bihar government’s stance on the demands, the status of pending commission payments, and the extent of corruption within the BSFC warehouses. The letter does not provide details on whether the ₹47 increase in commission, announced before the Assembly elections, has been implemented or if there are plans to address the alleged corruption and technical glitches in the PDS system.