Department of Food, PDS and Consumer Affairs has said that beneficiaries of Nagri block of Ranchi—the block that played a pilot for rolling out direct benefit transfer scheme in the State—are under hardship as far as their entitlements are concerned.
Secretary of the Department Amitabh Kaushal admitting to the situation said that certain steps were being charted out to deal with the glitches. “Yes it is true that beneficiaries of Nagri are in inconvenience and problems are there in the system. There are issues about no SMS alert going to their mobile about DBT transfer, benefits getting credited to which bank account of a family member and so on. We are looking into the issue,” said the Secretary stressing that the ration cardholders are getting reimbursements which it is a matter of verification.
The scheme since it was launched in Nagri in October last year is under fire from the civil society. Right to Food Campaign activists have objected to the DBT model citing a survey. It found reportedly that 97 per cent of the sample households had opposed the DBT pilot.
“In January 2018, about 25 per cent of cardholders did not receive the cash. Even those who get money face many hurdles. Many households do not know which of their bank accounts is being credited with DBT money. They are often constrained to make multiple trips to the bank to find out if the money has come, as most of them do not receive SMS alerts. Some banks even disallow cardholders from withdrawing money, claiming that the amounts are too small,” says the fact finding report. It went on terming the entire process as huge waste of time and money and especially cumbersome for elderly and disabled.
At the same time the official said that the Department was looking to other ways which can be employed to ease the system. “We are monitoring the pilot closely. Besides ensuring that even a proper SMS alert is sent we would have to see whether this would solve their problemIJ There are some alternatives before us to lessen their woes which I cannot reveal right now,” said Kaushal. Most importantly, the officials responded that at the moment no proposal was under consideration before the Government to replicate the Nagri model to any other block of the State.
The campaign working under the guidance of economist Jean Dreze and many others, also claimed that while these pilots allowed cardholders to buy food items from the market, in Nagri people are restricted to purchase grain from the PDS shop.
“We have come across such facts during our study. It is alarming considering the State amongst those highest levels of hunger and under nourished in the country,” said Ankita Agarwal of RTF Campaign.
It would also hold a padyatra from Nagri to Ranchi on February 26 demanding discontinuation of the DBT pilot which would also be supported by the left parties, Congress, JMM, JVM and several civil rights organisations.