HYDERABAD: AS part of the execution of the ‘One Nation, One Card’ scheme on pilot mode in Telangana and Andhra Pradesh — in addition to Gujarat and Maharashtra — from August 1, the Telangana Civil Supplies Department conducted a trial run on Friday, during which, two beneficiaries under the Andhra Pradesh Civil Supplies Department bought commodities from fair price shops in Punjagutta on Friday.
In a first, Eswara Rao of Rajamundry and Appa Rao of Yelamanchali in Visakhapatnam availed their PDS benefits outside their home state.
The department, in a press release, said that ‘portability’ was a huge success in Telangana and that the Central government has now decided to implement the scheme nationwide. The Centre is planning to implement National Portability throughout the country by June next year.
A State Apex Committee, under the chairmanship of the chief secretary to the government, and a State Project e-Mission Team (SPeMT) under the commissioner of Civil Supplies Department, have been constituted for monitoring the implementation of the scheme.
Ration from anywhere
In Telangana, as many as 2.82 crore people benefit from Ration from Anywhere (Portability) scheme, that was introduced by the Civil Supplies Department on April 1, 2018. According to the release, the number of beneficiaries using this facility has been growing consistently. As of now, about 2.07 crores portability transactions have been recorded.
Hyderabad, in particular, recorded the highest number of transactions at 42 lakhs. For implementing ‘One Nation, One Card’, the State Civil Supplies Department has made necessary changes to the system. Accordingly, the Centre has communicated the eligibility criteria for beneficiaries.