Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level : One Nation One Ration Card Scheme
Mains level : Read the attached story
One Nation One Ration Card” scheme
- The union govt. is working on a plan to launch a “One Nation One Ration Card” scheme for beneficiaries to access to any PDS shop across the country.
- The scheme is aimed at providing freedom to beneficiaries, as they will not be tied to one PDS shop.
- It aims to reduce their dependence on shop owners and curtail corruption.
- The biggest beneficiaries will be migrant workers who move to other states to seek better job opportunities.
Plan of action
- PoS machines are available at all PDS shops in various states, like Andhra Pradesh, Haryana and a few other others, but 100 per cent availability is required to provide the benefit across the country.
- The availability of PoS (Point of Sale) machines needs to be ensured at all PDS shops to implement the scheme.
Implementation
- The Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution will implement the scheme.
- It will be subsumed under the Integrated Management of PDS (IMPDS), under which beneficiaries can avail their share of food grain from any district.
- Such a scheme is operational in Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat, Haryana, Jharkhand, Karnataka, Kerala, Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Telangana and Tripura.
Importance of the scheme
- The work done by the PDS fair price shops is a lifeline for 81 crore beneficiaries across the country.
- There is 612 lakh tonnes of food grains stored in warehouses of FCI, CWC, SWCs and private godowns for distribution annually.
- Around 78 per cent of Fair Price Shops in India have so far been automated by installing electronic PoS devices.