Lok Sabha Question No. 6184 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2026-04-01
Subject: NFSA 2013
Ministry: CONSUMER AFFAIRS, FOOD AND PUBLIC DISTRIBUTION
Asked by: Prof. Varsha Eknath Gaikwad, Shri Bhaskar Murlidhar Bhagare, Shri Mohite Patil Dhairyasheel Rajsinh, Dr. Amol Ramsing Kolhe, Smt. Supriya Sule, Shri Sanjay Dina Patil

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF CONSUMER AFFAIRS, FOOD & PUBLIC DISTRIBUTION

## DEPARTMENT OF FOOD AND PUBLIC DISTRIBUTION

## LOK SABHA

UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 6184

## TO BE ANSWERED ON IsT APRIL, 2026

## NFSA 2013

6184.

DR. AMOL  FLAMSING KOLHE: SHRI BHASKAR MURLIDHAR  BHAGARE: PROF. VARSHA EKNATH GAIKWAD: SMT. SUPRIYA SULE: SHRI SANJAY DINA PATIL: SHRI MOHITE  PATIL  DHAIRYASHEEL RAJSINH:

Will the Minister of CONSUMER AFFAIRS, FOOD AND PUBLIC DISTRIBUTION be pleased to state:

- (a): whether  the Government  has assessed the status of Aadhaar seeding of ration cards under the National  Food Security Act,  2013 in Maharashtra and the percentage of  ration cards in the State that  have been successfully  linked with  Aadhaar as of January 2026;
- (b): whether the Government  is aware of any cases where genuine beneficiaries  in Maharashtra particularly  in tribal  and backward districts  such as Gadchiroli,  Nandurbar and Palghar have faced denial  or delay in  receiving foodgrains  due to Aadhaar authentication  failures, network issues or technical errors;
- (c): if  so, the steps taken by the Government  to ensure de-duplication of ration cards without affecting genuine beneficiaries in the said State;
- (d): the details of the measures being adopted by the Union Government  to issue new ration cards to eligible households and maintain  accurate beneficiary lists; and
- (e): whether monitoring  and grievance redressal mechanisms have been strengthened in Maharashtra to prevent exclusion  or denial offoodgrain entitlements under NFSA  and PMGKAY; and

- (f): if so, the details thereon

## ANSWER

MINISTER  OF STATE FOR MINISTRY  OF CONSUMER AFFAIRS, FOOD & PUBLIC DISTRIBUTION

(SHRIM ATI NIMUBEN JAYANTIBHAI BAMBHANIYA)

- (a) : Yes, the Government continuously  reviews the status ofAadhaar  Seeding of  Ration Cards. As on date, 99.99% of Ration Cards have been Aadhaar Seeded in the State of Maharashtra.
- (b): State Government  of  Maharashtra  have reported that no such case has been identified  in Gadchiroli, Nandurbar and Palghar districts. Further, the Government has already advised all States/UTs vide letter dated 24/10/2017 that no genuine beneficiary/ household shall be denied

from  receiving entitled quota of  subsidized foodgrains due to  failure of  biometric/ Aadhaar authentication due to network/  connectivity/  linking  related issues, other technical  reasons or poor biometrics of the beneficiary.

(c) to (d):  Vide Targeted Public Distribution  System (Control) Order, 2015, all States/ UTs have been mandated to regularly review the list of beneficiaries by removing ineligible people, adding eligible  ones and doing e-KYC every 5 years; temporarily disable Ration Cards of inactive/ duplicate beneficiaries.

(e) to (f): The Government has undertaken several measures to strengthen digital monitoring and grievance redressal mechanisms under  the Public  Distribution System (PDS).  Firstly,  grievance redressal systems have been strengthened through the universal  availability  of  toll-free helplines (1967/1800 series) across all  States/UTs (including  Maharashtra). In addition,  Anna  Sahayata (ASHA) has been introduced as an AI-enabled grievance redressal platform leveraging WhatsApp and IVRS  channels, enabling beneficiaries to  lodge complaints and provide  feedback in  their preferred regional  languages. The  IVlera Ration Mobile  App  also provides an integrated interface for beneficiaries to access their entitlement  details, view transaction history, locate nearby FPSs, and register grievances directly.

Beneficiaries can flag their grievances online on the State portal (http://rcms.mahafood.gov.in). Further, monitoring has also been strengthened through integration with  the CPGRAMS  platform,  wherein  States/UTs have been advised to adhere to the prescribed timeline  of  21 days for  grievance disposal. Grievance pendency is regularly  monitored through dashboards, and periodic advisories are issued to ensure timely  resolution. States/UTs with  high pendency are specifically  flagged for  corrective  action.

These initiatives  collectively have strengthened grievance redressal mechanisms in country (including  Maharashtra).

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