HYDERABAD: With the deadline for clearing pending ration cards applications drawing near, officials claim that applicants are leaving them with little option but to reject their applications as many of them have moved away from the addresses they had indicated in their applications.
Of the 1.30 lakh applications the Civil Supplies department received in Hyderabad district, it has a backlog of 43,253 applications, which are giving officials a headache.
A majority of these applicants have either moved to a different locality or have gone to their native places for summer vacation. According to official sources, so far, 75,580 applications for ration cards had been approved while the remaining 16,456 applications are ready for approval. Meanwhile, the civil supplies authorities conducted a high-level meeting with officials and decided that the process of approving new applications should be completed by July 1.
The Food Security Card (FSC) is meant for below poverty line (BPL) families, which helps them procure 6 kg rice per person at the rate of Rs 1 per kg. Currently, in Hyderabad district, 5.85 lakh beneficiaries are drawing their monthly commodities from 520 fair price shops (FPS).
Speaking to Express, a civil supplies department official said, “To clear the pending applications, we have been making rounds to the addresses given in the application forms. But most people either no longer are living at the mentioned address or are out of the city probably on vacation. We have reached out to all through phones,” he said.