Consider income declaration for new ration cards in Telangana: Civil Society to CM Revanth Reddy

Hyderabad: Various democratic and civil society organizations engaged in social security for the marginalized communities have requested the Telangana chief minister and the minister for civil supplies to consider income declaration for issuing new ration cards.

They have also urged the government for the exemption of income certificates.

With the state government planning to accept applications for new ration cards in the state from the month-end, the members of the civil society organizations have come forward with certain suggestions.

'Obtaining an income certificate is a challenge'

"Earlier, when the Government of Telangana called for applications for new ration cards, many applicants faced challenges in obtaining income certificates. They spent considerable time and money, falling victim to exploitation by middlemen and brokers,” they wrote.

“Thousands of applications, despite the submission of income certificates, were rejected using the ‘360-degree software,’ without conducting a field-level inquiry and no clear written reasons were provided for rejection of applications.”

They said many eligible ration cards were canceled based on the ownership of four-wheeler vehicles, leading to the exclusion of people who possessed cars either through government assistance in livelihood support programs or through private or bank financing.

“As a result, those who availed such support or purchased vehicles through financial means found themselves deprived of access to ration cards. Due to the prolonged consideration of applications, many eligible applicants were denied their basic right to food under the National Food Security Act (NFSA), a statutory right," they said.

'Simplify the application process'

The members requested the government to simplify the application process to protect applicants from exploitation and harassment, They called for removing the mandatory requirement for an 'Income Certificate' at the time of submission.

Local officers can assess eligibility based on guidelines through field-level inquiries.

They also requested for establishment of clear guidelines and timelines for the application review process, taking into account the frequent changes in contact numbers and addresses of the economically poor applicants.

"Instruct officials to provide detailed reasons for application rejections, which should be communicated to the applicants through official proceedings, SMS, an online portal, or other means, which can be used to file an appeal by the applicants,” they said.

The members said there should be a provision for filing appeals in cases of wrongful rejection of applications. “Publicize all official communications, orders, and guidelines and make it accessible to the public through an online portal with English, Telugu, and Urdu as languages of communication,” they said.

They asked for the formation of district and state-level monitoring committees comprising the District Collector, local MLAs, representatives from Gram Panchayats,

“Municipality, and members of civil society / NGOs for effective follow-up and to provide an opportunity for the addition of family members who are not registered in the card. Ration cards should be given to all those who are eligible across the state, within three months. The card must be approved within 15 days of application," they said

Members of the civil society organizations included SQ Masood, Secretary of the Association for Socio-Economic Empowerment of the Marginalised, and Meera Sangamitra, National Alliance of People’s Movement among other NGOs and social activists.