As per the declaration made by Chief Minister Raman Singh, under the Chhattisgarh Food Security Act 2012, free supply of meals would be provided to the children of the age group of six months to six years in about 50,000 Aanganwadi centres of the State according to their age. Moreover, under this Act, a provision has also been made to provide free meals to the school children of the age group of six to 14 years.
In the first Food Security Act of the country, which was passed unanimously during the winter session of the Chhattisgarh Assembly, the State Government has given the guarantee of right for food grains on cheap rate to about 50,000 families out of the total 56,000 families of the State. Moreover, the State Government has added this rule into the Public Services Guarantee Act also, so that the ration card holders may get the services of fair price shops at proper time and action could be taken against those who are not providing services properly under this Act.
The officers of the Food Department said, according to the main provisions of the State Government’s Food Security Act 2012 ration cards would be of three categories, and would be issued to the Antyodara families, Poor families of priority and general families.
The Antyodaya family ration cards would be issued to the beneficiaries of Pahadi Korva, Kamar, Birhor, Abujhmarhia and Baiga, who were notified by the Central Government time to time as Special Backward Tribal Groups. Besides, such families the head of which is widow, or any deserted woman, such families whose head is suffering from some incurable disease, or a handicapped person, all that families whose head is above 60 years of age and who has no regular income for livelihood or do not have any public aid, such families whose head is a released bonded labourer, would also be issued the Antyodaya category ration card.
Other families prescribed by the State Government time to time would also be included in the category.
In the priority group of poor families, landless, farm labourer families, marginal farmer family which holds a maximum of 2.5 acre land, and small farmer families which has up to five acre land would be included. Such families, the head of which is a labourer comes under the Chhattisgarh government’s Unorganised labourers Social Security Act 2008 or registered as construction worker under the House and other Construction Workers Act 1996, were also included in the category.