8% grain stock unused after linking ration card with Aadhaar in Maharashtra

The government has managed to weed out repeated, ineligible beneficiaries from the public distribution system (PDS) by making it mandatory to link one’s Aadhaar number with the ration card.

Release of food grains after verification through e-point of selling machines (e-POS) has also helped prevent wrongful sales. This has resulted in Maharashtra using only 92% of the food grain stock released by the Centre. The Central government released 3.83 metric tonnes of rice and wheat to be distributed to 7 lakh people in Maharashtra per month under the National Food Security scheme. The state has about 6.5 lakh beneficiaries from poor families registered through 1.48 crore ration cards.