JOIN USMinister of State for Food and Civil Supplies Dinesh Gundu Rao on Monday said the norms for inclusion under the below poverty line (BPL) category have been relaxed.
Accordingly, those who own a RCC house or a two- wheeler or a television set can now apply for the BPL status. The government has issued a direction to officials in this regard.
Speaking to mediapersons on the sidelines of a blood donation camp organised by the Rahul Gandhi Yuvashakti Association, Rao said the status of APL will now apply to those who are government employees, tax- payers and car owners also.
He said the government had taken the decision to ensure that no person in the State ‘starves’ because of his APL or BPL status. The government will henceforth not insist on income certificate from people seeking BPL category.
“The income certificates do not make any sense when the government itself pays Rs 17,500 for 100 days of work. The present income ceiling is Rs 11,000 or
Rs 12,000 per annum. Even a construction labourer these days earns more than that,” the minister said.
Presently, 1.5 crore people are under the BPL coverage, the benefits are now being extended to 3.5 crore people.
“We do not mind if the coverage increases under the BPL category. Now, there is an opportunity for people to apply for conversion from APL to BPL status.
We have already outsourced the work of converting cards from APL to BPL,” he added.