Following denial of foodgrains disbursed through the public distribution system to 100 residents of Chowdadenahalli Dalit Colony in Chintamani taluk of Chickballapur district, the Food and Civil Supplies Department has ordered an inquiry into the matter.
The residents on Tuesday received 126 kg of rice each that was pending to be disbursed for the last one-and-a-half years, following a protest. The local fair-price shop had not disbursed rice citing non-linking of Aadhaar with BPL cards. The Hindu had reported this on Thursday. “We have ordered an inquiry into the incident and are expecting the report to be submitted in the next two to three days,” Food and Civil Supplies Department Secretary Pankaj Kumar Pandey said on Thursday, and added that the inquiry would reveal the reasons why the families had been denied ration for so long. Asked if the department had come across similar situation in other parts of the State, he said none had come to its notice.
Acknowledging that there were problems with connectivity and biometric authentication at the shop level, Mr. Pandey said the department had set up a helpline to assist those facing the glitch. “Aadhaar is not necessary to get foodgrains. Allotment of foodgrains is based on the live ration card database. Right to food is not linked to Aadhaar and hence Aadhaar is not necessary,” he added.
Incidentally, a notification from the Union Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution had — in October 2017 — asked the State government not to deny foodgrains or delete names of family from ration card database on the basis of non-possession of Aadhaar
Mr. Pandey said the department continues to provide foodgrains to nearly 10,000 families across the State that do not have Aadhaar.
Get coupon code through helpline
Those who are unable to authenticate their biometrics at fair-price shops or face connectivity issue can get their coupon codes by contacting the helpline 1967. Complaints of denial of foodgrains can also be lodged through the helpline.
“Nearly 30% of the foodgrain offtake from fair-price shops happen by people getting coupon codes.” Currently, of the 20,321 shops, point-of-sale machines have been installed in 17,724 shops, Food and Civil Supplies Department Secretary Pankaj Kumar Pandey said.
However, M. Malarvizhi, a member of the Right to Food Campaign, said most people who have been denied foodgrains are not aware of the number. “Why are these numbers not displayed in all shops and what prevents the department from creating awareness about the helpline. The department is bringing in systems that act as obstacles,” she added.
Affidavits, petitions being filed in apex court
As many as 300 affidavits and about a thousand petitions against making Aadhaar mandatory for welfare schemes are being filed by the Right to Food Campaign – Karnataka before the Supreme Court that will hear Aadhaar-related petitions next week. According to the campaign member M. Malarvizhi, “These affidavits are being filed by individuals from Bengaluru, Ajjampura (Chikkamagaluru district), Kollegal (Chamarajanagar district), Chintamani, and Chikkaballapur.”
The affidavits will speak of problems that families are facing in getting foodgrains under the PDS or pension and some of children being denied education because of not having Aadhaar or persons unable to authenticate their biometrics. “There are cases where some persons in a family have been left out and thus denied ration. In many cases, biometric authentication has failed,” she said.
