Compensation for priority card holders who were deprived of rations.

The State Food Commission of Kerala has ordered compensation for those holding pink and yellow ration cards who did not receive their ration items in April due to a server breakdown in the EPOS system. According to official data, 2.66 lakh people holding priority cards did not collect their ration items last month. The Commission has ordered that ration card owners who failed to receive their allocation due to the server problem should be paid a food allowance. This allowance is calculated under the National Food Safety Act as equal to 1.25 times the floor price of the ration items that a cardholder is eligible to receive.

 

Kerala has 41.43 lakh priority ration card holders, of whom 35.58 lakh have pink cards and 5.85 lakh have yellow cards. Among them, 38.77 lakh cardholders collected their ration items in April. In addition, one kg sugar could be purchased at Rs 21 and two packets of ‘atta’ may be bought at Rs six per packet.

 

The State Food Commission issued the order to pay food allowance to people who did not receive ration items based on a complaint filed by former legislator Joseph M Puthussery. The Food Safety Act says that District Supply Officers are the nodal officers to identify ration card owners who could not avail their food items.

 

At the same time, cardholders who did not visit ration shops to collect their items will not receive the allowance. Meanwhile, the Minister for Food and Civil Supplies in Kerala G R Anil denied reports that ration card holders were denied items due to failure in the EPOS system. ‘Nobody has lost eligible ration items following technical problems. All ration card owners were given an opportunity to collect their food items. Every month, only 75-80 per cent of the total cardholders reach the shops to receive ration,’ he said.