NEW DELHI: Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Tuesday said the extension of the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Anna Yojana (PMGKAY), a programme to provide free ration for over 80 crore people, shows the sensitivity of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to the millions of poor and their welfare.
Congratulating the prime minister for extending the scheme till November, Shah also thanked farmers and honest taxpayers of the country, saying their hard work and dedication was helping the benefits reach the poor.
"The extension of Garib Kalyan Anna Yojana shows the sensitivity of Shri @NarendraModi ji to the millions of poor and his commitment for their welfare. Nobody slept hungry in a large country like India during the Corona period, thanks to Modiji's foresight and successful implementation of the scheme," he tweeted in Hindi.
The prime minister on Tuesday announced extension of the PMGKAY by five more months till November end.
In a televised address to the nation, the prime minister said over Rs 90,000 crore will be spent on the programme's extension, and if the last three months expenditure on account of the free ration scheme is added then the total budget will be about Rs 1.5 lakh crore.
The scheme was rolled out for three months from April soon after the nationwide lockdown was announced to combat the COVID-19.