Latest news with #OneNationOneRationCard
Hindustan Times
13-07-2025
- General
- Hindustan Times
Ludhiana: Over 34,000 ‘silent' beneficiaries to be removed from free ration scheme
Around 34,798 silent ration card holders in Ludhiana district are likely to be excluded from accessing subsidised ration for the July to September quarter, if they failed to complete e-KYC verification by the stipulated deadline of July 15, officials familiar with the matter said. The initiative aims to eliminate bogus and ineligible beneficiaries, ensuring transparency in ration distribution. (HT Photo) According to officials, these beneficiaries have not availed their entitled free ration for over a year, putting them at risk of exclusion from the public distribution system under the Centre's 'One Nation One Ration Card' (ONORC) scheme. The initiative aims to eliminate bogus and ineligible beneficiaries, ensuring transparency in ration distribution. According to a notification issued by the Central government on March 17, 2023, all states and Union Territories were directed to launch a 100% e-KYC campaign at fair price shops under the National Food Security Act (NFSA). The move is aimed to create space for the creation of new ration cards after weeding out the bogus one. According to data, there are a total 86,875 beneficiaries in Ludhiana district that fall under the 'silent' category, those who have not availed their ration in recent months. Among them, 34,798 individuals have remained inactive for over a year, while another 52,077 have not claimed their entitlement for a period ranging from six months to a year. With these figures, Ludhiana ranks highest in the state, accounting for a staggering 23% of Punjab's 3.72 lakh silent ration card holders. A senior official from the district food and civil supplies department said that the cases of these inactive card holders have been under scrutiny as part of an ongoing verification drive. 'Many of them are suspected to have obtained ration cards for the sole purpose of availing other welfare benefits such as Ayushman cards, without ever collecting subsidised foodgrains. In some cases, beneficiaries have relocated and no longer reside in the district,' the official added. Meanwhile, to prevent wrongful exclusion, the department has initiated efforts to reach out to such beneficiaries, urging them to complete their e-KYC before July 15. If they fail to do so, then it will result in their ration cards being frozen, and they will be barred from receiving the quarterly wheat allocation which is 15 kg per person, officials said. When contacted, Sartaaj Singh Cheema, district food supplies controller (Ludhiana West), confirmed the development. 'Beneficiaries who have not availed their free ration for more than a year are likely to be excluded from subsidised wheat allocation for the July to September quarter. However, no such action will be taken against those whose inactivity ranges between six months to a year,' he said.
Hindustan Times
12-07-2025
- Hindustan Times
Ludhiana: Ration supply to depot holder halted for ‘fraud'
The district food and civil supplies department has suspended the essential commodity supply to a ration depot holder in Sehjad village in Ludhiana West after he was caught committing 'fraud' in verification of multiple ration card holders using the identity of a single individual, officials said. The malpractice was uncovered during an ongoing eKYC drive aimed at verifying existing beneficiaries under the Centre's 'One Nation One Ration Card' scheme. (HT Photo) According to officials, the malpractice was uncovered during an ongoing eKYC drive aimed at verifying existing beneficiaries under the Centre's 'One Nation One Ration Card' scheme. They further added that the errant depot holder, identified as Teerath Singh, used the Aadhaar details of one person to carry out verification of several ration card holders. The irregularity came to light during a routine inspection after which a notice dated June 27 was issued to him seeking a written explanation. He didn't respond so he was asked again on July 1 to do so, but to no avail, forcing the department to take action, officials said. According to officials, the suspension has been enforced under gross violation of the Punjab Public Distribution System (Licensing/Control) Order, 2016 and its 2023 amendment for concerns over manipulation and misuse of beneficiary data. When contacted, Sartaj Singh Cheema, district controller, food civil supplies and consumer affairs, Ludhiana West, said, 'We have suspended the ration supply to the depot holder after he was found guilty of manipulating beneficiary records. The action was taken in the exercise of powers under the PDS order. The case has also been forwarded to the legal officer for further action.'
Hans India
01-07-2025
- Business
- Hans India
Missed the bus, No worries! Ration card holders can draw ‘Sanna Biyyam' in Sept
Hyderabad: With June 30 being the last day for collecting the 3-months ration, those who failed to receive will be able to get the next entitlements only in September. So far, the Civil Supplies department supplied 5.414 lakh MTs, totalling 94.62 per cent from allocations. According to official sources, the awareness amongst the people and State government's decision to distribute Sanna Biyyam for the first time this time was 94.62 per cent, distributed from the total allocation of 5.722 lakh MTs for the months of June, July and August, topping the distribution in this one and half year (present government). While PDS (Public Distribution System) stood below 90 % before the launch of Sanna Biyyam scheme, after its launch (in April) it was recorded 91.96 % in April and 91.45 % in May. While the entire year of 2024 witnessed 89 % with a total distribution of 19 lakh MTs from allocations of 21 lakh MTs. 'Before Sannabiyyam, the average rice distribution was 88% due to low acceptance of coarse rice among the beneficiaries. After Sanna Biyyam (April onwards), the distribution improved to an average of 91.96% with the introduction of fine rice. In June, a 3-month ration was provided in advance and close to 95 % of the total rice has been distributed. The consistent rise in distribution, even during a high-load, 3-month advance cycle, proves that Sanna Biyyam is not only better accepted but also strengthening the efficiency of the PDS system in Telangana,' officials told The Hans India. By the end of June, the districts of Hyderabad (104%), Medchal (116%) and Ranga Reddy (111%) had crossed the distribution of over 100 %. This overwhelming response is attributed to collection by residents who are native to other States. The 'One Nation One Ration Card' (ONORC) scheme was launched in 2019 with inter-state portability. This was initially introduced in four states and extended to other states as well. The scheme aims to ensure food security for all, including migrant workers, by allowing them to access PDS benefits from any fair price shop across the country. The distribution continued throughout the month from June 1. It peaked between June 3 and June 14. During the last days of the month only few remaining collected the rice, as the distribution mechanism was declared closed till September.
Hindustan Times
30-06-2025
- Hindustan Times
Most unverified PDS beneficiaries from Punjab in Ludhiana, Centre reveals
Ludhiana district has reported the highest number of unverified Public Distribution System (PDS) beneficiaries in Punjab following the conclusion of the Centre's e-KYC drive under the flagship 'One Nation One Ration Card' (ONORC) scheme on June 30, officials familiar with the matter said. Most unverified PDS beneficiaries from Punjab in Ludhiana, Centre reveals According to official data, nearly 3.6 lakh beneficiaries in Ludhiana have failed to complete their biometric authentication, amounting to around 10% of such cases across Punjab. These individuals are now likely to be weeded out from the PDS system, which provides free wheat to eligible ration card holders, officials said. Notably, Punjab has a total of 33,48,204 ration card beneficiaries where Ludhiana alone accounted for over 18.1 lakh of them during the time of the drive. Of these, around 46,439 individuals, including deceased and migrant beneficiaries have already been removed from the system. A senior official from the food and supplies department asserted that Ludhiana's high number of unverified beneficiaries is largely due to its large migrant population. Many of these individuals frequently move in and out of the district in search of work, making it difficult for officials to reach them and complete biometric verification during the e-KYC drive. Officials further explained that under the PDS, each beneficiary in Punjab is entitled to receive 15kg of free wheat every quarter. However, as per fresh instructions from the Centre and the state food and supplies department, free wheat for the July–September quarter will only be given to families whose heads have completed the verification. Drive aimed at transparency The e-KYC drive is part of the Centre's larger push for transparency and accountability in foodgrain distribution under the National Food Security Act (NFSA), through the ONORC scheme. The initiative aimed at plugging loopholes in the system through digital drive, where each beneficiary was mandated to verify their eligibility through biometric authentication. In a March 17, 2023 notification, the central government had directed all states and UTs to ensure 100% e-KYC coverage at fair price shops (ration depots) to prevent misuse of subsidies, and outdated records from the system. The aim of this drive was not just to remove bogus entries but also to create space for new, deserving beneficiaries to be brought into the fold, officials stated. When contacted, district food supplies controller (Ludhiana West), Sartaaj Singh Cheema, said, 'Around 80% of beneficiaries in Ludhiana district have completed their e-KYC. As of now we have not received any official instructions regarding the distribution of free wheat to these excluded beneficiaries in the next quarter.'
Economic Times
18-06-2025
- Business
- Economic Times
Labour force survey may include migration trends
New Delhi: The statistics ministry is considering the inclusion of migration data in the Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS) 2026, a government official told ET."Discussions are underway to include this data point in the survey," the official migration data is expected to help identify regions with high labour demand and better inform employment and welfare strategies of government policies. Additionally, information on migrants is crucial for designing and delivering welfare schemes like the 'One Nation One Ration Card'. The initiative is part of the broader effort by the ministry of statistics and programme implementation (MoSPI) to make employment data more robust and accurate. Questions such as whether an individual moved from their previous usual place of residence and why they shifted cities or states may become part of the 2026 survey design. The data will be collected across states and is expected to be released in present, the PLFS covers indicators such as unemployment rate, labour force participation rate (LFPR), and worker population ratio across rural and urban areas. While the current design does not focus on capturing information on migration, such data was collected once during the 2020-21 say this will offer deeper insights from business as well as policy making perspective. "This will enrich the tracking of economic activity and employment trends, given the diversity of India's labour market across regions," said Sakshi Gupta, principal economist at HDFC Bank. A person is classified as a migrant if their current residence differs from their last usual place of residence."For many social welfare schemes, information on migration makes your targeting more efficient," said Gupta. Currently, the e-shram portal launched by the ministry of labour and employment tracks unorganised sector workers including migrants. A 2024 report by the Prime Minister's Economic Advisory Council stated that the number of domestic migrants declined by 11.8% to 40.2 crore between 2011 and 2023. "This was on account of improved conditions and opportunities at the places of origin," it 2020-21, the overall migration rate was 28.9%, significantly higher among women at 47.9% compared to 10.7% for men, according to the PLFS data. For women, marriage was the key reason for migration, while for men it was employment. Across regions, urban areas recorded a higher migration rate of 34.9% than rural areas at 26.5%.The ministry also aims to include age-disaggregated data on individuals not in employment, education or training (NEET) in the PLFS schedule from July, ET reported earlier.
