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Reddy govt revives Rs 2 per kg rice scheme for poor in AP
The Congress government in Andhra Pradesh on Tuesday decided to revive the Rs two per Kg rice scheme for the poor.
The Congress government in Andhra Pradesh on Tuesday decided to revive the Rs two per Kg rice scheme for the poor, a brainchild of the TDP patriarch and former Chief Minister late NT Rama Rao.
The decision to re-introduce the scheme was taken at a cabinet meeting in Hyderabad chaired by Chief Minister YS Rajasekhar Reddy.
The scheme will benefit 1.82 crore poor families having white ration cards, Information Minister A Ramanarayan Reddy told reporters after the meeting.
The modalities of the programme and the launch date would be announced soon, he said.
The Chief Minister directed the officials of civil supplies and finance departments to work out details of the scheme including its financial implications, Reddy said.
The move came in the backdrop of major political parties gearing up for a possible snap polls and doling out a string of promises.
The subsidized rice scheme was closely associated with NTR who stormed to power in 1983 on the crest of a populist wave, ending the Congress monopoly in the state.
The rice scheme, being resurrected after 25 years, is expected to put an additional annual burden of over Rs 1,000 crore on the exchequer, official sources said.
At present, rice is being supplied to Below Poverty Line families at Rs 5.25 per kg through ration shops, at a cost of Rs 900 crore per year.
The government has taken into consideration the opinions expressed by ministers on the need to provide subsidized rice to the poor and decided to introduce the scheme, the Minister said.
