Lok Sabha Question No. 1395 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2017-07-25
Subject: Items Supplied through PDS
Ministry: CONSUMER AFFAIRS, FOOD AND PUBLIC DISTRIBUTION
Asked by: ALOK SANJAR, JAYADEV GALLA

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA

## MINISTRY OF CONSUMER AFFAIRS, FOOD & PUBLIC DISTRIBUTION

## DEPARTMENT OF FOOD AND PUBLIC DISTRIBUTION

## LOK SABHA

## UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 1395 TO BE ANSWERED ON 25 th  JULY, 2017

## ITEMS SUPPLIED THROUGH PDS

1395. SHRI ALOK SANJAR: SHRI JAYADEV GALLA:

Will the Minister of CONSUMER AFFAIRS, FOOD AND PUBLIC

DISTRIBUTION miHkksDrk ekeys] [kk| vkSj lkoZtfud forj.k ea=h be pleased to state:

- (a) the details of the commodities being supplied through Public Distribution System in the country, State-wise;
- (b) whether the Government proposes to prepare a new list of beneficiaries  living below the poverty line and if so, the details thereof;
- whether the Government proposes to computerize Public Distribution
- (c) System and if so, the details thereof;
- (d) whether the Government has constituted any monitoring committee or  concrete  mechanism  to  ensure  that  foodgrains  under  PDS  should  reach actual  beneficiaries  living  below  the  poverty  line,  if  so,  the  details  thereof and if not, the reasons therefor;
- (e) whether  it  has  come  to  the  notice  of  the  Government  that  some States  are  removing  one  item  after  another  from  the  PDS  basket  thereby impacting BPL families; and
- (f) the manner in which the Government will convince the States to add more and more items to PDS basket rather than removing items from it?

## A N S W E R

MINISTER OF STATE FOR  CONSUMER AFFAIRS, FOOD & PUBLIC DISTRIBUTION (SHRI C. R. CHAUDHARY)

(a)&(b):  Under the provisions of  National Food Security Act, 2013 (NFSA), foodgrains are allocated to beneficiaries under Antyodaya Anna Yojana (AAY category)  @  35  kg  per  family  per  month  and  Priority  Households  (PHH Category) @ 5kg per person per month, at the rate of Rs.3/2/1 per kg for rice, wheat and coarse grains respectively. Further, one kg of sugar per month is issued to AAY families for which subsidy is Rs.18.50 per kg. BPL category has been delinked under the provisions of NFSA.

(c)to(f): Government is implementing a scheme on 'End-to-end Computerization of TPDS Operations' with the aim to improve the efficiency of the current public distribution system and to address various challenges such as leakages and diversion of foodgrains, elimination of fake and bogus ration cards etc. The scheme comprises digitization of ration cards/beneficiary and other databases, online allocation, computerization of supply-chain management, setting up of transparency portal and grievance redressal mechanism. Under the scheme, ration cards/beneficiaries database have  been  digitized in all States/UTs, transparency  portal and  online grievance  redressal  facility/Toll-free  number  have  been  implemented  in  all States/UTs,  online  allocation  has  been  implemented  in  30  States/UTs  and supply  chain  has  been  computerized  in  20  States/UTs.  So  far,  more  than 2,45,706 FPSs are automated across the country.

As per the provisions of NFSA, the State Governments are required to set up  Vigilance  Committee  at  State,  District,  Block  and  FPS  levels  for  the monitoring of the functioning of PDS.

In addition to the items mentioned above, States can provide other items at their own cost..

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