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Free ration scheme helping poor, earlier govts paid lip service: Modi
The PMGKAY was a ₹1.70 Lakh Crore package first announced in March 2020 meant to provide food and money to meet essential needs of the poorest of the poor in the country.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday claimed that the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Anna Yojana (PMGKAY) had helped millions of poor people hit by Covid-19 pandemic across the country when a plethora of cheap ration schemes by earlier governments since Independence had proven ineffective.
Modi was addressing the scheme’s beneficiaries in Gujarat through video conferencing as part of the celebrations to mark five years of chief minister Vijay Rupani in office.
The PMGKAY was a ₹1.70 Lakh Crore package first announced in March 2020 meant to provide food and money to meet essential needs of the poorest of the poor in the country. It targeted nearly 800 million people with provision for 5 kg wheat or rice and 1 kg of preferred pulses for free for 11 months in total during the two waves of the pandemic. It also offered monetary assistance to Jan Dhan accounts holding women, poor senior citizens, widows and disabled and increased MNREGA wages to labourers. The government had previously claimed that it was highly successful, however, one study suggested the scheme may not have delivered the full quantum of benefits to a large section of the targeted people.
On Tuesday, the Prime Minister said a continuous increase in the budget and spread of cheap food grains schemes for 70 years have had a limited impact because of “selfish elements and ineffective delivery systems.”
Modi said this was the reason for increase in starvation and malnutrition despite a huge expansion in food storages.
As against this, the PMGKAY helped millions of poor people through free distribution of free rations during the pandemic with the use of new technology to make the delivery more effective, Modi said.
“Since Independence, almost every government has talked about providing cheap food to the poor. The scope and budget of cheap ration schemes increased year after year, but the effect it should have had remained limited. The country’s food reserves increased, but hunger and malnutrition did not decrease in that proportion,” he said.
He said because earlier governments remained ineffective, “Some sickness crept into the system and selfish elements ruled the roost.”
Modi claimed that after he took over in 2014, crores of fake beneficiaries were removed using new approach and new technology, and ration cards were linked with Aadhar cards along with adoption of digital technology in government fair price shops.
