E-Paper
State mulls more ‘GrainATMs’ after WFP project wins prestigious award
The award is a shot in the arm to the state’s plans to set up more ‘GrainATM’ or Annapurti machines in the near future.
‘Annapurti’, an automated multi-commodity grain dispensing solution functioning only in Uttar Pradesh and a couple of other states, has received the prestigious Silver Anthem Award, a United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) official has said. The award is a shot in the arm to the state’s plans to set up more ‘GrainATM’ machines in the near future.
Representative and country director of WFP India, which is partnering with the state government for the project, Elisabeth Faure conveyed the information to food and civil supplies principal secretary Veena Kumari Meena in a letter last week.
Established by The Webby Awards in 2021, the award recognises and amplifies purpose and mission-driven work by people, companies, and organisations worldwide.
To ensure efficient and effective distribution of food grains at the last mile, WFP India has developed ‘GrainATM,’ also known as ‘Annapurti’.
This automated multi-commodity dispensing machine provides people with consistent access to their ration with speed and accuracy, once biometric authentication has taken place.
“One such GrainATM has been successfully functioning in Varanasi for the last two months. Another was installed in Gorakhpur earlier this week and another one will be set up in Lucknow very shortly,” Beena Kumari Meena said.
The government, according to her, has planned to replace 5 per cent of ration shops with GrainATMs in the next one year.
Lucknow district supply officer Sunil Singh said the GrainATM in the city was being installed at a PDS shop in Hasanganj area. “Its testing has been completed and will be inaugurated in a day or two,” he said.
Meena clarified that the installation of foodgrain ATMs did not affect the interests of rations dealers who would continue to get their fixed commission.
Annapurti, which dispenses the type and quantity of the selected grain (wheat, rice or millet) commodity to each beneficiary after biometric authentication, does away with the possibility of spillage, waste and short-weighing, she added.
“Presently, however, we are providing only rice through GrainATMs and people can source the same up to 9 in the night at their convenience without any manual interference by the ration dealer under the pilot project,” she added.
The project, she pointed out, has had no financial burden on the government exchequer with the WFP bearing the installation and operating cost for now.
