BHUBANESWAR: The State Government on Tuesday said it will implement the ‘One Nation, One Ration Card’ scheme on a pilot basis in areas under Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation (BMC) from September 1.“We have decided to implement the scheme on a pilot basis in areas under the Corporation and roll out in other places of the State in phases,” Food Supplies and Consumer Welfare Minister Ranendra Pratap Swain told reporters here.
The scheme will ensure inter-state portability of ration cards. The facility is similar to that of ATM cards, wherein beneficiaries will have access to any PDS shop they want, the Minister said.
The Food Supplies and Consumer Welfare department has directed the Khurda district administration to implement the scheme in 127 fair price shops in 67 wards of the BMC from September 1, officials said.
However, beneficiaries under National Food Security Act (NFSA) and State Food Security scheme will have to link their ration cards with Aadhaar numbers to avail the facility.
Meanwhile, the Food Supplies and Consumer Welfare Department has asked Collectors of all districts to ensure that beneficiaries who have not linked their Aadhar with ration cards should immediately do it by August 31. The district authorities have been asked to create awareness at panchayat and block levels.
While around 34.52 lakh ration card holders have not linked their Aadhar numbers with ration cards over one lakh beneficiaries have been identified lifting PDS rice under multiple ration cards and the number could rise even further when Aadhar-ration card linkage of all beneficiaries is completed, the sources said adding, the beneficiaries will have to give their finger prints on a machine to avail rations.
While the State Government had earlier fixed July 31 as the deadline for linking Aadhar number with their ration card, the time limit has been extended till August 31. The Minister said people having Aadhar card will not be deprived of PDS and those who don’t have the card, should apply for the biometric ID.
Around 3.23 crore people of the State are covered under NFSA against 3.26 crore people eligible under the scheme. Citing that many eligible people have been left out of NFSA, the State Government implemented its own food security scheme under which 24.98 lakh people are given subsidised food grains.
At present, the beneficiaries covered under NFSA and State Food Security Scheme get five kg subsidised foodgrains per head every month.
