Chief Minister Raman Singh on Tuesday appealed to the corporators, panchs and sarpanchs of villages to offer their active co-operation in the task of preparing new ration cards in the camps to be held from April 10 to 30.
The CM stated that the prime objective of the Public Distribution System (PDS) is to facilitate provision of cheap foodgrains to the poor and the needy families through the fair price shops.
‘It is a certainity that you are playing a significant role for the proper management of the fair price shops. It is through your co-operation that PDS system in Chhattisgarh had gained a national identity and prestige,’ Singh said.
Currently, around 36 lakh families under the category of ‘Antodaya’ and ‘Priority’ had been receiving foodgrains at the rate of Rs1 and 2 per kg totalling 35 kgs in a month, he said.
With the launch of Chhattisgarh Food Security law 2012, around six lakh new families are expected to get linked to the scheme, the Chief Minister said.Around eight lakh new families from the general category would also benefit from the scheme.
The State Government has decided to launch a drive for the preparing around 50 lakh new ration cards in the State. The issuance of new ration cards under the Chhattisgarh Food Security law 2012 had been made into a ‘time bound’ programme, he said. Special camps would be conducted for new ration cards in all 27 districts from April 10 to April 30, 2013. They will be held in the Gram Panchayat headquarters of various villages and at the Ward level in the urban areas, the Chief Minister said.
After the scrutiny of the applications, the ration cards would be distributed between May 1 to 31 through holding of camps in the State, he said.
The new ration cards would be issued in the name of the female head of the house and if there are no female members in the family above 18 years, it would be issued in the name of a male member in the family in three categories of applicants as per their eligibility under the Chhattisgarh Food Security law 2012, Singh said.