Odisha’s first ‘Rice ATM’ (automated teller machine) has been opened in Bhubaneswar for the ration card beneficiaries, Krushna Chandra Patra, minister of Food Supplies and Consumer Welfare, informed on Thursday.
The machine was opened at Mancheswar area of the capital city.
Patra had on June 20 said that the ‘Rice ATM’ would be opened in Bbubaneswar and a card would be provided to each ration card beneficiary to get rice. Gradually such ATMs will be opened at all the district headquarters so that the beneficiaries can collect rice from anywhere in the state, said the minister.
The newly introduced facility has the capacity to carry 25 kg of rice. “Beneficiaries from every district and state will be able to get rice from the ‘Rice ATM’, said Patra. It will reduce the swindling of rice in the state, he said, adding that consumers will not have to heavily depend upon dealers.
Patra had said last month that around 50 lakh ghost ration cards were in circulation in the state and strict action would be taken against officials and PDS dealers responsible for this. He had said around 25 lakh such cards had been detected and the exercise was on to detect the rest.
“After elimination of the false ration cards, measures will be taken to extend the food security benefit to eligible persons who have been deprived of the scheme due to political considerations of previous BJD government”.
The minister had further said that the process to distribute ration cards to the left out eligible families has begun and it will be completed in next two months. Claiming that at least 100 to 200 ghost ration cards are with each PDS dealer, the minister said, “this has been going on for the last 24 years as all PDS dealers had been appointed by the previous government”.
The Odisha PDS Dealers Association, however, had refuted the minister’s claims and stated, “We do not belong to any political party. Appointment of PDS dealers was made in most transparent manner and as per rules of the government. The minister is unnecessarily blaming us when the distribution of ration is done through the use of biometric and iris scanning.”
Former minister and main opposition party BJD’s senior leader in assembly Pratap Deb said during the previous government, ration cards had been linked with Aadhar card. “Then how could there be ghost ration card holders?,” he asked. The card holders have identity and they can not be ghost, he further said.
Minister Patra said through EKY system, ration cards are being checked and it is presumed there will be 25 lakh ghost card holders. All the card holders who are ineligible—because some are government employees, some are paying income tax, some have died—will be deleted, he said.
The minister further informed that more than six lakh new applicants are waiting to get ration cards. After the ghost cards are deleted, new applicants will get cards, he said.
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