The State Cabinet here on Tuesday finalised Madhya Pradesh Public Distribution System (Control) Order-2014 to streamline the PDS.
According to the new arrangements, ration cards will be provided physically or electronically in prescribed format to eligible families. Ration cards will be issued in the name of head of the family. Senior woman in every family not below 18 years of age will be considered as head and issued ration card. If a family does not have any woman of 18 years or above then ration card will be issued in the name of the most senior male member. When a woman member of the family attains the age of 18 years, the ration card will be transferred in her name as the head of the family. Time-limit of 15 days has been prescribed for issuance and renewal of ration cards in three working days for issuance of duplicate ration card.
Under the new arrangements, provision of bio-metric distribution system has been provided in Burhanpur, Hoshangabad, Harda and Khandwa where it has been connected with Aadhar. Norms pertaining to number and places of fair price shops have also been amended. For determining maximum fair price shops in an urban area, total number of families will be divided by 800. Every Gram Panchayat will have a fair price shop.
As far as possible, one-third of fair price shops in every rural and urban area will be allotted to institutions of women. They will be run by saleswomen. Those institutions will be regarded as women's institutions where all members and office-bearers are women. Under the new arrangements, provision of 2 categories - Antyodaya Anna Yojana and priority families - has been made. Provision has also been made to allot fair price shops to women's self-help groups in urban and rural areas apart from already enlisted cooperative societies and forest management committees. The task of transporting material to fair price shops will now be done by Madhya Pradesh State Civil Supplies Corporation.