Bengaluru, 11 Sept

Department of Food, Civil Supplies and Consumer Affairs will cancel more than 20 lakh Antyodaya Anna Yojana and BPL (Below Poverty Line) cards in Karnataka after a private company identifies ineligible beneficiaries.

There were allegations that illegible beneficiaries outnumber genuine ones in receiving benefits under Anna Bhagya scheme using Antyodaya Anna Yojana and BPL cards. Food Minister KH Muniyappa directed the department to remove the ineligible beneficiaries by the end of October.

Prior to State's Direct Benefit Transfer system replacing the distribution of an additional 5kg of rice, many families were not receiving their monthly rice quota from fair-price shops. Following a government warning that BPL cards would be cancelled for families who had not collected rice for three consecutive months, there was a noticeable surge in cardholders collecting rice, indicating that ineligible people benefited from the scheme.

Currently, there are 14 lakh excess cards in the State, exceeding National Food Security Act (NFSA) norms. Under NFSA, the State must issue 1.03 crore BPL cards, benefiting 76.04 per cent of the rural population and 49.36 per cent of the urban population, totalling 3.58 crore beneficiaries. However, the State has issued more than 1.16 crore BPL cards, covering 3.93 crore beneficiaries. —Salar News