Context:
Food ministry is working on a pilot to emulate the direct cooking gas subsidy transfer scheme model for public distribution system (PDS) of subsidised food grains.
How will it work?
The beneficiaries will get the subsidy amount in advance in their bank accounts and they will have to buy the food grains from any ration shop, which has got the electronic point of sale (e-PoS) devices.
Advantages
- This initiative will ensure zero leakage of the subsidy and food sas well.
- The beneficiaries’ failure to buy the food grains from the e-PoS enabled ration shop would result in no transfer of the subsidy for the next month. This will also ensure that beneficiaries under National Food Security Act don’t use the subsidy amount for anything else.
Current model in some places:
Union Territories of Chandigarh, Puducherry and Dadra & Nagar Haveli- the entire subsidy amount is transferred to the beneficiaries’ account and they are free to buy the grains from anywhere.