HYDERABAD: Deceased persons continued to avail benefits under the subsidised rice scheme in the state, the CAG has found. It noted that in 230 cases in 2020–21 and 100 cases in 2021–22, involving a total of 309 deceased persons who were the sole members on ration cards, rice continued to be drawn in their names even after their deaths.
The audit could not ascertain how the rice was lifted at Point of Sale (POS) outlets, as transactions are permitted only after biometric authentication by the beneficiary.
The CAG said failure to update ration cards and lack of checks at POS outlets led to suspected fraudulent lifting, causing a loss of Rs 6.31 lakh to the exchequer. When flagged in December 2022, officials said beneficiaries were deleted except 125 unmatched cases. However, absence of a proper mechanism led to irregular expenditure of Rs 10.78 crore.
Overall, lack of periodic validation resulted in irregular expenditure of Rs 135.16 crore, including Rs 6.31 lakh linked to 309 deceased persons.
The audit flagged 83,545 ineligible or deceased beneficiaries due to poor data checks and urged the state government to probe such cases.