Hyderabad: The Telangana food security network had expanded to cover about 3.42 crore people through 1.06 crore ration cards, Civil Supplies Minister N. Uttam Kumar Reddy said on Thursday.
The beneficiaries accounted for nearly 85 per cent of Telangana’s population, he said. The government had widened the Public Distribution System by including lakhs of eligible families previously outside the food-security network.
Uttam said about 16.5 lakh new ration cards had been added. As a result, the government extended coverage to nearly 62 lakh additional beneficiaries. The Minister disclosed the figures after launching the distribution of smart ration cards at a public meeting in Suryapet.
Telangana food security coverage to remain open
Uttam said ration-card issuance would continue rather than end with the present distribution exercise. Eligible families who had not received cards could still submit applications, he said. Officials would verify their eligibility before issuing ration cards.
“If any eligible family has been left out, they can apply. Every deserving family will be brought under the food-security system,” Uttam said. The Minister said the expanded Telangana food security system aimed to ensure that eligible households did not remain outside the PDS.
He maintained that the government had significantly broadened the ration-card network by adding families that had remained excluded for years. Along with expanding beneficiary coverage, the government had also changed the quality of rice distributed through the PDS.
Telangana food security linked to free fine rice
Uttam said the government had introduced free fine rice for ration-card beneficiaries. Each beneficiary received six kg of fine rice every month. The government replaced coarse rice with fine rice because many beneficiaries were reluctant to consume the earlier variety, he said.
According to Uttam, the change had improved the quality of food supplied through the public distribution network. The programme also directly benefited farmers growing fine varieties of paddy, he said.
The government encouraged cultivation of fine paddy by providing farmers a bonus of Rs 500 per quintal. It then procured the produce for the food distribution programme.
After procurement, the government supplied the resulting fine rice to ration-card beneficiaries through the PDS. Therefore, Uttam said the initiative connected farmer support with the state’s expanded food-security programme.
The Telangana food security network combined wider ration-card coverage with free fine rice distribution. At the same time, the government supported farmers through the bonus and procurement mechanism.
Uttam assured that eligible families who remained outside the present ration-card coverage would have another opportunity to apply after verification.