Baffled over the number of people enrolled under the National Food Security Act (NFSA) in Nuapada and Kendrapada exceeding their population as per the 2011 census, the State Government has asked Collectors of these two districts to begin an exercise to weed out bogus applicants.
About 107 per cent of the populations of Nuapada and 105 per cent of the population of Kendrapada have submitted applications to be registered under the Act. The Food Supplies and Consumer Welfare Department was forced to ask district authorities to rectify the numbers soon, said an official
Besides these two districts, the number of prospective beneficiaries under the NFSA has gone beyond the recorded population in 76 blocks and two municipal areas.
“The prescribed exclusion criteria leave no room for any ambiguity about who can be included and who cannot. The Government has issued directives to the district Collectors to ensure strict adherence to the guidelines,” said Sanjay Das Burma, Minister Food Supplies and Consumer Welfare.
Notably, the Central Government’s guidelines direct State Governments to register a maximum of 82 per cent of populations as beneficiaries in rural areas and 56 per cent of population as beneficiaries in urban areas on the basis of the 2011 Census under the NFSA.
In order to make aware people about the eligibility criteria under the NFSA, district Collectors have been directed to put up wall painting in villages by June 20. Ineligible families have been asked to withdraw their applications by June 30.
Since several Government employees have registered themselves under the NFSA, the department has asked them to furnish affidavits that they come under the eligible family criteria. The department has warned of criminal proceedings against ineligible applicants if they fail to withdraw their applications before the last date for withdrawal, June 30. As per guidelines laid down by the Centre, 3.26 crore out of the total population of 4.19 crore in Odisha are eligible to be covered under the NFSA. But if departmental sources are to be believed, 3.92 crore people have already registered themselves under the NFSA. The figures make it obvious that lakhs of ineligible people have made an attempt to sneak into the scheme to avail the benefits of subsidised food grains.