PDS priorities

ONE of the immediate consequences of the withdrawal of the universal public distribution system (PDS) and replacing it with a targeted system was the exclusion of lakhs of food-deprived families from the below poverty line (BPL) category. A large number of poor farming families that were reeling under the impact of drought, escalating debt, and crop losses found that they had no access to cheap rice in the PDS.

In its Common Minimum Programme (CMP), the Janata Dal (S)-Congress government promised rice at Rs.3 a kg for BPL families. This promise was made good in the first budget presented by the present government. Under the scheme announced, BPL families were identified in a door-to-door survey throughout the State. To be eligible for a BPL card the annual income of a family in the rural areas should be below Rs.12,000 and in urban areas it should be below Rs.17,000. The scheme has been extended to non-slum-dwelling families in urban areas as well. Families whose income was found to be above this level were issued Above Poverty Line (APL) cards.

The beneficiaries, to be identified by the gram panchayats, will be given 20 kg of rice and 5 kg of wheat at the subsidised price of Rs.3 a kg. For this scheme, which came into effect in September, 97,802.88 tonnes of rice and 24,450.72 tonnes of wheat will be required. The government will give a subsidy of Rs.589 crores. The Annapoorna Scheme has also been launched, under which destitute persons above the age of 65 who are not getting the benefit of any other pension from the Central or State government, will be given 10 kg of free rice every month. There are 68,040 beneficiaries of this scheme.