Question : Aadhaar Linkage to PDS

(a) whether it is a fact that many people in the States of Bihar and UP do not have their Aadhaar cards linked to the PDS Scheme;

(b) the details of the proportion of persons who have had their Aadhaar cards linked to the PDS scheme, State-wise;

(c) whether there is any major causes responsible for non-linkage of Aadhaar cards with PDS system for persons without the said linkage so far;

(d) the details of the steps being taken by the Government to ensure that benefits of PDS reach every eligible citizen including those not having Aadhaar card or those who are unable to have their Aadhaar cards linked to the PDS scheme;

(e) whether the Government is planning to include more items in the list of subsidized food like Millets specially for tribals and if so, the details thereof; and

(f) whether the Government plans to implement "One Nation One Ration Card" in the country and if so, the details thereof along with its proposed timeline?

A N S W E R
MINISTER OF STATE FOR MINISTRY OF CONSUMER AFFAIRS, FOOD & PUBLIC DISTRIBUTION
(SHRI DANVE RAOSAHEB DADARAO)

(a) to (e): Under Public Distribution System (PDS) reforms, digitization of ration cards/beneficiaries and distribution of highly subsidised foodgrains, namely- Rice, Wheat and Coarse-grains, to targeted beneficiaries under NFSA through electronic Point of Sale (ePoS) devices, after biometric/Aadhaar authentication of beneficiaries are key objectives to improve the efficiency and transparency in the distribution process.
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At present, nearly 90% of total 23.4 Crore ration cards under NFSA across the country have been seeded with Aadhaar number of at least one member of the household. Linking of Aadhaar with ration cards is also dependent on enrolment/generation and delivery of Aadhaar card to beneficiaries. A statement showing State/UT-wise progress of Aadhaar seeding including Bihar and Uttar Pradesh is Annexed. In this connection, as per the notification of this Department dated 08/02/2017 (as amended from time to time) the timeline given to States/UTs for linking of Aadhaar with all ration cards has been extended up to 31/03/2020.
Further, this Department vide letters dated 24/10/2017 and 08/11/2018 has advised all States/UTs that genuine beneficiaries/households shall not be denied from their entitled foodgrains under NFSA only on the ground of not possessing an Aadhaar number, or due to any technical failure of ePoS device including failure of biometric/Aadhaar authentication of beneficiary owing to network/connectivity/linking issues.
The Act provides for distribution of Coarse-grains including millets for distribution to beneficiaries through PDS, however, distribution of coarse-grains to their beneficiaries depends on the willingness of respective State/UT.
(f): To sustain the reforms brought in by the scheme on ‘End-to-End Computerization of TPDS Operations’ and to introduce new reforms, the Department in association with States/UTs is implementing another scheme namely “Integrated Management of Public Distribution System (IM-PDS)” w.e.f. April 2018 with a total outlay of Rs. 127 Crore. The main objective of the scheme is to introduce nation-wide portability of ration card holders under National Food Security Act, 2013 (NFSA), through ''One Nation One Ration Card'' system. This system enables the migratory ration card holders/beneficiaries to lift their entitled foodgrains from any Fair Price Shop (FPS) of their choice in the country by using their existing/same ration card issued in their home State/UT after biometric/Aadhaar authentication on electronic Point of Sale (ePoS) devices installed at the FPSs. So far this facility is available in 12 States. Further, integration of remaining States/UTs depends on the readiness of States/UTs to implement the same.
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Annexure
ANNEXURE REFERRED TO IN REPLY TO PARTS (a) TO (e) OF THE UNSTARRED QUESTION NO.357 DUE FOR ANSWER ON 04.02.2020 IN THE LOK SABHA.
Status of End-to-End Computerization of PDS Operations Scheme as on 14.01.2020
Sl. States/UTs Ration Card Digitization Aadhaar Seeding with Ration Cards
Total Ration Cards under NFSA Digitization
(%)
1 Andaman & Nicobar 16,342 100% 98%
2 Andhra Pradesh 90,27,634 100% 100%
3 Arunachal Pradesh 1,77,607 100% 57%
4 Assam 57,87,006 100% 0%
5 Bihar 1,67,23,631 100% 76%
6 Chandigarh (DBT) 67,527 100% 99%
7 Chhattisgarh 52,82,969 100% 98%
8 Dadra & Nagar Haveli 45,736 100% 100%
9 Daman & Diu 19,993 100% 100%
10 Delhi 17,48,526 100% 100%
11 Goa 1,42,147 100% 98%
12 Gujarat 65,81,540 100% 100%
13 Haryana 26,97,110 100% 100%
14 Himachal Pradesh 6,78,675 100% 100%
15 Jammu & Kashmir
(incl. Ladakh) 16,75,443 100% 84%
16 Jharkhand 57,19,194 100% 95%
17 Karnataka 1,26,78,228 100% 100%
18 Kerala 37,29,759 100% 100%
19 Lakshadweep 5,153 100% 100%
20 Madhya Pradesh 1,17,47,674 100% 90%
21 Maharashtra 1,50,67,403 100% 99%
22 Manipur 5,88,837 100% 82%
23 Meghalaya 4,21,502 100% 0%
24 Mizoram 1,55,643 100% 93%
25 Nagaland 2,82,209 100% 70%
26 Odisha 93,20,884 100% 99%
27 Puducherry (DBT) 1,77,977 100% 100%
28 Punjab 35,18,327 100% 100%
29 Rajasthan 1,11,06,203 100% 97%
30 Sikkim 94,704 100% 91%
31 Tamil Nadu 1,01,41,800 100% 100%
32 Telangana 53,24,508 100% 99%
33 Tripura 5,78,828 100% 100%
34 Uttar Pradesh 3,53,22,427 100% 100%
35 Uttarakhand 13,36,938 100% 94%
36 West Bengal 5,63,49,434 100% 80%
Summary 23,43,39,518 100% 90%
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