Things progressing fast, around 2 lakh out of 3.86 lakh ration card holders in Dehradun district, entitled to avail the national food security scheme and the State food security scheme, have so far linked their Aadhaar cards with their ration cards.
District Food and Civil supply officer PS Pangti expressed hope that the department would achieve cent per cent link of the Aadhaar cards with the ration cards by March 31, 2017.
However, the department is yet to receive an instruction from the Centre on the PDS transaction switching over to a cashless one.
“We would work on it once the required instruction is received,” Pangti said.
He said that the PDS shopkeepers have been directed to inform the people to submit their Aadhaar card at district food and civil supply office while they distribute ration cards for the above-mentioned schemes. “They have also been instructed to collect Aadhaar cards of the beneficiaries and submit the same at the office. The officials at the DSO would link the number with the ration cards after verification of the cards,” he said, adding that a total of 3.86 ration cards have been made under National Food Security Scheme (NFSS) and State Food Security Scheme (SFSS) in the district so far.
He said that around 2 lakhs ration cards have been made under national food security scheme in the district. However, no more ration card would be issued under national food security scheme, he affirmed.
This aside, around 1.80 lakh ration cards have been made under state food security scheme and 20, 000 more such cards would be made upon receiving applications from the entitled, he added.
“The people who have not been covered under national food security scheme can procure new ration cards to avail state food security scheme and they will have to submit Aadhaar cards along with the ration cards,” he said.
Notably, the Centre stipulated while launching the national food security scheme that those whose monthly income is less than or equal to 15, 000 would be entitled to avail the scheme. Following the same pattern, the state government launched state food security scheme, announcing that those whose income stands less than or equal to Rs 5 lakh per annum are eligible to collect the new ration cards to avail SFSS.