The ration card holders in UP (Uttar Pradesh) are in for some cheer as for the first time, along with wheat & rice; they will receive a litre of refined oil & a kilo each of chana & salt free. The free oil, salt & chana come in a pack with the image of Prime Minister Narendra Modi & Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on it.
About 32 Million Patra Grihasti Card Holders & 4 Million Antyodaya Holder
In the first phase of the ration distribution in December, 79,527 ration shops across the state will receive packs ready to be distributed to nearly 36 million ration cardholders. Of these, about 32 million hold Patra Grihasti cards & about 4 million hold Antyodaya cards.
According to the National Food Security Act 2013, each person on Patra Grihasti Ration Card is entitled to 5 kilos ration, which includes 2 kilos of rice & 3 kilos of wheat at the subsidies rates. This is drawn twice a month. The Antyodaya cardholders are entitled to the same & have an additional 35 kilos of wheat & rice that they can draw once a month on each card.
PMGKAY: 5 Kilos of Free Ration per Person
As per the district supply officer, Kannauj, KK Gupta in addition to the regular ration that Patra Grihasti & Antyodaya cardholders draw on payment, they also draw 5 kilos per person in ration card, absolutely free. This is under the Prime Minister’s Garib Kalyan Anna Yojana scheme, which began in March 2020.
The free scheme has now been extended till March 2022.
In the Kannauj district, as per Gupta, 312,634 ration cardholders will be benefitted from this including 29,012 Antyodaya cardholders.
“It was at the video conference on November 30, between agricultural production commissioner & food commissioner, it was announced that along with rations, each ration card would be entitled to 1 litre of refined oil, a kilo each of chana & salt”, said KK Gupta.
33% of Refined Oil & 16% of Chana Already Received
The new freebies are from the National Agricultural Cooperative Marketing Federation of India. The chana is from Kanpur, while the refined oil has been sourced from Bharatpur in Rajasthan. Gupta said that “33% of the consignment of refined oil & 16% of the chana have already been received in the district”.
The new pre-packaged rations will save the time of the ration shop owner & minimize the chances of adulteration & tampering with weights.
The packages will be distributed around mid-December; the dates are yet to be finalized. The Nodal Officers have been positioned at the ration shops & authorities will be on alert across the blocks, tehsils & district level to ensure smooth distribution. In Kannauj alone there are 585 fair price ration shops in the rural areas & 68 of them are in towns.
