Ration fraud in Ranchi, 6556 families with income more than six lakhs kept taking government grains
Ranchi. A major fraud has come to light in Ranchi, the capital of Jharkhand, in availing the benefits of the government ration scheme. The investigation has identified 6556 families whose annual income is more than Rs 6 lakh, yet they continued to avail the benefits of government ration provided under the Public Distribution System. This matter has come to light after verification of income related data. Now the District Supply Department has started action against such ration card holders and preparations are being made to recover the amount of assistance given on government food grains received so far.
According to the information, the annual income of the members of these families has been found to be more than the prescribed eligibility limit. According to the rules, families with annual income of more than Rs 6 lakh are not considered eligible for this category of ration benefits. Despite this, the names of these families remained linked to the ration cards and they continued to avail the benefits of government food grains schemes.
The most serious thing is that many of these families continued to avail the benefits of ration provided under the National Food Security Act since 2015. Later, they also continued to get the benefit of free food grains provided under the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Anna Yojana. Due to lack of eligibility check for a long time, this matter could not be detected.
Now the District Supply Department has prepared the list of such ration card holders after matching the income data. The department is identifying the concerned families and checking the status of their ration cards. It is also being ascertained for how long he took government ration and how much assistance was given by the government during this period.
The process of recovering the amount of government assistance received on ration from 6556 families identified in the investigation has been started. The department will now assess how much food grains were taken by the concerned cardholders despite not being eligible and what is the total amount of their subsidy. On this basis the recovery action will be taken forward.
The objective of the government ration system is to provide food grains at subsidized or free rates to economically weak and needy families. Rice, wheat and other food grains are provided to eligible families under the National Food Security Act. Under the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Anna Yojana, free food grains are being given to the eligible beneficiaries.
In such a situation, taking advantage of this scheme by economically capable families actually affects the rights of the needy families. This is why now emphasis is being laid on checking the eligibility of ration cards and verification of income related records.
The income related data was matched in the investigation of Ranchi District Supply Department. During this period, many such families came to light whose members’ income is more than Rs 6 lakh annually. Despite this, their ration cards were active and they continued to receive food grains.
After investigation, the department has decided to take action against such cardholders. Along with withdrawing the amount of government assistance from the concerned families, their ration card eligibility is also being re-checked. If they are not found eligible on the prescribed standards then their ration cards may be canceled or they may be excluded from the concerned scheme.
This case also highlights the need for periodic verification in the ration card system. Many times old ration cards remain active even after the financial condition of the family changes. In such cases, the cardholder continues to receive government food grains despite exceeding the eligibility limit.
For this reason, the department is now identifying ineligible beneficiaries by matching income, family financial condition and other government records. Through this, efforts are being made to make the ration system more transparent and to extend benefits to the genuinely needy families.
After this case that came to light in Ranchi, vigilance regarding checking the eligibility of ration card may increase in other areas also. If the income related data is verified on a large scale in this manner, then more ineligible ration card holders may come to the fore.
Eligibility conditions are fixed to avail the benefits of government schemes. If families who do not fulfill these conditions avail the benefits wrongly, then other action including recovery of amount can be taken against them. The District Supply Department in Ranchi has taken steps in this direction.
Now the department is examining the records of all those 6556 families whose income has been found to be more than the prescribed limit. Accounts of ration and government subsidy taken by them will be prepared. After this, the process of recovery of the amount from the concerned families will be completed.
This entire matter has raised questions on the system of verification of beneficiaries in the public distribution system. If ineligible families continue to avail the benefits of the scheme since 2015, it points to a major deficiency in the monitoring system.
At present the District Supply Department has started action. In the coming days, it will become clear how much amount is recovered from these 6556 families and how many ration cards are cancelled. The administration now aims to ensure that the benefits of government ration reach only those families who are genuinely eligible.