Meri Rasoi Yojana: Markfed to procure, food dept to distribute ration kits from mid-May

The Punjab State Cooperative Supply and Marketing Federation Ltd (Markfed) will procure and the state food and civil supplies department will distribute quarterly food kits for 40 lakh families across Punjab under the state government’s ‘Meri Rasoi Yojana’, with distribution set to begin from mid-May

Chandigarh: The Punjab State Cooperative Supply and Marketing Federation Ltd (Markfed) will procure and the state food and civil supplies department will distribute quarterly food kits for 40 lakh families across Punjab under the state government’s ‘Meri Rasoi Yojana’, with distribution set to begin from mid-May.

(The Punjab State Cooperative Supply and Marketing Federation Ltd (Markfed) will procure and the state food and civil supplies department will distribute quarterly food kits for 40 lakh families across Punjab under the state government’s ‘Meri Rasoi Yojana’, with distribution set to begin from mid-May)

The scheme was announced by chief minister Bhagwant Mann on Monday as a major welfare initiative aimed at covering around 1.52 crore beneficiaries, which accounts for over half of the state’s estimated three crore population.

Under the scheme, blue card holders with an annual income of up to ₹60,000 will receive a quarterly dry ration kit free of cost. Each kit will contain two kilograms of channa dal and sugar, one kilogram each of salt and mustard oil, and 200 grams of turmeric. The state government has earmarked a budget outlay of ₹950 crore for the implementation of the scheme, with funds to be routed through the food and civil supplies department to Markfed for procurement.

Markfed has floated tenders for procurement kits through a single vendor or a group of vendors, as the government has decided against procuring grocery items separately, said a Markfed official, adding that this approach is expected to streamline procurement and ensure uniformity in supply. For the rollout, the agency will procure approximately 8,000 tonnes each of sugar and chana dal, 4,000 tonnes each of mustard oil and salt, and 800 tonnes of turmeric, the official added.

After procurement, the kits will be stored in 118 godowns across the state before being distributed through the food and civil supplies department’s network of 12,500 ration depots, said a food department official. The kits will be supplied alongside wheat distributed under the National Food Security Act, utilising the existing distribution and transportation mechanism, the official added.

Currently, beneficiaries receive five kilograms of wheat per person per month free of cost under the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Anna Yojana. In addition, around one lakh of the poorest families are provided 35 kilograms of wheat per family under the Antyodaya Anna Yojana. Officials said wheat is not distributed in April due to ongoing grain procurement operations to prevent diversion of stocks to mandis for resale.

The ‘Meri Rasoi Yojana’ has been rolled out after the withdrawal of the government’s earlier doorstep wheat flour distribution initiative, which was implemented between January and June 2024 but did not receive a favourable response from beneficiaries.