The Supreme Court asked West Bengal and all other state governments to immediately implement the ‘one nation one ration card’ scheme amid the Covid-19 pandemic to support the migrant workers.
Context
The Supreme Court asked West Bengal and all other state governments to immediately implement the ‘one nation one ration card’ scheme amid the Covid-19 pandemic to support the migrant workers.
About One Nation One Ration Card Scheme
- It is an important citizen-centric reform.
- Objective: Its implementation ensures the availability of ration to beneficiaries under the National Food Security Act (NFSA) and other welfare schemes, especially the migrant workers and their families, at any Fair Price Shop (FPS) across the country.
- This technology-driven reform enables the migrant beneficiaries to get their entitled quota of food grains from any electronic point of sale (e-PoS) enabled fair Price Shops of their choice anywhere in the country.
- Implementation: The implementation of the One Nation One Ration Card (ONORC) plan comes under the Department of Food & Public Distribution, Ministry of Consumer Affairs.
- Significance: It enables the States to better targeting beneficiaries, eliminate bogus/ duplicate/ineligible cardholders resulting in enhanced welfare and reduced leakage.
- Government efforts: For this theinstallation of electronic point of sale (e-PoS) devices are essential. Therefore, an additional borrowing limit of 0.25 percent of the Gross State Domestic Product (GSDP) is allowed to the States only on completion of both of the following actions:
- Aadhar Seeding of all the ration cards and beneficiaries in the State
- Automation of all the FPSs in the State.
- Recently the free foodgrains will be given to the needy under ‘Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Anna Yojana (PMGKAY), but it would cause problemsfor those who do not have ration cards.
Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Anna Yojana (PM-GKAY)
- It is a scheme as part of Atmanirbhar Bharat to supply free food grains to migrants and the poor.
- Benefits: During the period May - November 2021, more than 80 crore people will be provided 5 kg free wheat/rice per person/month along with 1 kg free whole chana to each family per month. This is over and above the regular monthly entitlements under National Food Security Act, 2013 (NFSA).
- Eligibility
- Families belonging to the Below Poverty Line - Antyodaya Anna Yojana (AAY) and Priority Households (PHH) categories will be eligible for the scheme.
- Households headed by widows or terminally ill persons or disabled persons or persons aged 60 years or more with no assured means of subsistence or societal support.
- All primitive tribal households.
- Landless agriculture labourers,
- All eligible Below Poverty Line families of HIV positive persons.
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