Congress plans ration cards for beneficiaries; criteria under review

Hyderabad: Civil Supplies and Irrigation Minister Capt N Uttam Kumar Reddy announced that the Congress government in Telangana would issue new ration cards to all eligible beneficiaries.

He spoke to media persons after a meeting of the Cabinet Sub-Committee on new ration cards at his chambers in Dr BR Ambedkar Telangana Secretariat on Saturday.

The committee, with Uttam Kumar Reddy as the chairman and health minister Damodar Raja Narasimha and revenue minister Ponguleti Srinivas Reddy as members, discussed the modalities of the new ration card issuance process in its first meeting on Saturday.

What are the criteria to obtain ration cards?

Proposed eligibility criteria include an annual income limit of Rs 1.5 lakh, ownership of less than 3.5 acres of dry land or 7.5 acres of wetland in rural areas and an annual income limit of Rs 2 lakhs in urban areas. The focus in urban areas will be on annual income rather than land ownership.

Uttam Kumar Reddy announced that letters would be sent to all Members of Parliament, the Legislative Assembly and the Legislative Council seeking their input on the eligibility criteria. The Civil Supplies Department has been tasked with drafting and sending these letters immediately.

At present, the eligibility criteria for ration/health cards are as follows:

Annual Income ceiling

Rural areas - Rs 1.5 lakhs & below

⁠Urban areas - Rs 2 lakhs & below

⁠Land holdings

⁠Wetland - 3.5 acres & below

⁠Dryland - 7.5 acres & below

Panel to discuss issues of duplication

Furthermore, the sub-committee will consider the recommendations of the Saxena Committee, headed by Dr NC Saxena, which includes Supreme Court special commissioner Harsh Mander as a member.

“The government is committed to providing ration cards to those below the poverty line and is keen to learn from the experiences of other states. A team of officials has already studied the ration card issuance procedures and eligibility criteria followed in other states,” Uttam Kumar Reddy said.

Addressing concerns about potential duplication, the sub-committee discussed allowing those who hold ration cards in other states and have migrated to Telangana to choose between retaining their existing card or obtaining a new one in Telangana.

Telangana has 89.96 lakh ration cards

During the meeting, Uttam Kumar Reddy noted that after Telangana was formed, the existing 91,68,231 ration cards from the Andhra Pradesh era were reduced to 89,21,907 due to cancellations and migration to Andhra Pradesh. From 2016 to 2023, as many as 6,47,479 new ration cards were issued, but 5,98,000 were deleted.

Telangana currently has 89.96 lakh ration cards covering 281.70 lakh units. Of these, 35.51 lakhs are state-issued cards, while the remaining 54.45 lakhs are National Food Security Act (NFSA) cards.

Eligibility for Food Security Cards (FSC) is based on income, land ownership and specific vulnerabilities. For example, rural families with an income of Rs 1.5 lakhs and below are eligible, and there are special provisions for vulnerable groups under schemes like Anthyodaya FSC and Annapurna FSC. The State’s population, projected to be 3.94 crores in 2024, is about 73.63 per cent covered under the existing ration card units.

Telangana received 11.33 lakh applications

The State has received 11.33 lakh applications for adding new members to the existing cards, accounting for 16.36 lakh units.

The estimated expenditure for these additions is Rs 495.12 crores per year. There are 10 lakh applications for new ration cards, estimated to cover 31.60 lakh units at an expenditure of Rs 956.04 crore per year.

“The Telangana government plans to refine the eligibility criteria to ensure that all eligible households are covered under the Food Security schemes,” Uttam Kumar Reddy said.

The above eligibility criteria in other states were discussed. It was decided to take a wider opinion on eligibility criteria. Civil Supplies Commissioner DS Chauhan, health secretary Christina Z Chongthu, and other officials participated in the meeting.