The Union Territories(UTs) Ladakh & Lakshadweep have been included in the ‘One Nation-One Ration Card’ scheme on ‘Integrated Management of Public Distribution System’(IM-PDS). After the integration of these two UTs, a total 26 States /UTs Connected with the Scheme and will benefit about 65 crore people.
Key Info
i.Approval– Union Minister of Consumer Affairs, Food & Public Distribution, Ram Vilas Paswan has recently approved the integration of Ladakh and Lakshadweep with the scheme in a review meeting chaired by him.
ii.Necessary Preparatory Activities
The necessary preparatory activities to integrate the new states/UTs with the national cluster includes the following:
Upgrading the electronic point of sale (e-POS) software, integration with central IM-PDS and Annavitran portals, availability of ration cards/beneficiaries data in Central Repository(requisite testing of national portability transactions) will be completed with the support of central National Informatics Centre (NIC) team.
iii.Target– The remaining states will be integrated in the scheme by March 2021.
Note:
Ladakh and Lakshadweep have completed the trial and testing of national portability transactions with other states/UTs in the national cluster.
About One Nation-One Ration Card Scheme
Beneficiaries
Under this scheme, the beneficiaries covered under the National Food Security Act(NFSA), 2013 can avail the food grain from any Fair Price Shop(FPS) or ration shops located across India, irrespective of their physical location anywhere in the country.
The beneficiaries will be identified and verified through biometric/Aadhaar authentication at the FPS on the electronic point of sale (e-POS) devices.
Benefits
The migratory beneficiaries who frequently change their place of dwelling to search for employment, can now lift their entitled quota of foodgrains from any FPS anywhere in the country by using their same/existing ration card.
General Info
Under NFSA, there are over 81 crore ration card holders and each beneficiary is entitled to get 5 kg foodgrains at a subsidised rate of Rs 1-3 per kg a month.
States/UTs included in the scheme
Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman & Diu, Goa, Gujarat, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu & Kashmir, Jharkhand, Karnataka, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Manipur, Mizoram, Nagaland, Odisha, Punjab, Rajasthan, Sikkim, Telangana, Tripura, Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand.
Recent Related News:
i.Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi, during televised address to the nation, has announced the extension of Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Ann Yojana (PMGKAY) from July, 2020 till the end of November 2020, with an outlay of more than Rs 90,000 crore.
ii.Under the ‘Kumhar Sashaktikaran Yojana’ of the Khadi and Village Industries Commission (KVIC) Union Home Minister Amit Shah distributed 100 electric potters wheels to 100 trained artisans of Gujarat in a programme at the Gandhinagar constituency through video conferencing from New Delhi.
About Ladakh
Lieutenant Governor– Radha Krishna Mathur
Capital– Leh, Kargil
About Lakshadweep
Capital– Kavaratti
Administrator– Dineshwar Sharma IPS
