Food bill norms may force changes in ration cards

Preference given to women over 18 years in households

The National Food Security Bill has made it mandatory that subsided foodgrain will be given to ration cards issued in the name of the women head of the beneficiary family.

 Hence, all state governments now have to start the exercise of re-issuing ration cards in the name of women members of the household.

The food bill, passed by the Lok Sabha on Monday, says: “The eldest woman who is not less than 18 years of age in every eligible household shall be the head of the household for the purpose of the issue of ration cards. If any household does not have women or a woman of 18 years of age or above, but a female member below 18, the ration card can be issued in the name of the eldest male member of the family till the female member attains the age of 18 years.”

This move is aimed at women's empowerment, said Union Minister for Food and Consumer Affairs K V Thomas. All the states have to issue ration cards in the name of women heads of the families.

The states have ample time to issue ration cards in the name of women members of the beneficiary families, as they have one year time to implement the scheme, he told Deccan Herald. 

The states have started modernisation of the Targeted Public Distribution System (TPDS), reissuing ration cards to the women heads would not be a big problem.

However, if any family does not come under the ambit of the food bill, it need not bother getting ration cards in the name of women members (for example, ration cards issued to family of above the poverty line).

As the subsided foodgrain will be given through the existing TPDS, the Ministry of Food and Consumer Affairs is already funding states to modernise the system, including issuing of ration cards.

To modernise the TPDS, in the 12th Five-Year Plan (2012-17) a total of Rs 884.07 crore will be spend, out of which the Centre’s share is Rs 489.37 crore.  Stakes of states and Union territories will be Rs 394.70 crore. 

Under the scheme, proposals for financial assistance have been received from 28 states and seven union territories, and a total of Rs 132.32 crore has been released to 13 states, said the official from the ministry.

Currently, in the country only less than 25 per cent of the ration cards, particularly for those below the poverty line (BPL) and under the Anna Antyodaya Yojana (AAY), are issued in the name of the women heads of families.

However, issuing ration cards by naming the women head instead of the male head of the family would be a big problem in states where there is no digitalisation of the ration-card database. 

Despite the Centre pushing the states to computerise TPDS by eliminating bogus rations cards, many states are lagging in this regard.