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Comes after PM Modi announced he was extending the scheme
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New Delhi(Agencies): The
Cabinet on Wednesday approved a proposal to extend distribution of free
foodgrains and pulses under the Pradhan Mantri Garib Anna Yojana (PMGKAY) to 81
crore PDS beneficiaries for five months till November.
The scheme was initially
rolled out for three months till June to ensure no poor goes hungry during the
COVID-19 crisis. Under the scheme, five kg of wheat or rice and one kg of
pulses per month are being provided free of cost.
“The Prime Minister had announced that this
scheme will be extended and the same has been approved by the Cabinet today,”
Information and Broadcasting Minister Prakash Javadekar said in a media
briefing.
The PMGKAY has been extended
for another five months till November. About 203 lakh tonnes of foodgrains and
9.70 lakh tonne of chana will be given for free in the next five months, he
said.
The distribution of free
ration under the PMGKAY would cost Rs 1.49 lakh crore to the exchequer, he
added. The estimated cost is for providing eight months of ration under the
scheme.
Stating that this is the most
popular scheme, the minister said, “For the first time since (India’s)
independence, free foodgrains are being distributed for eight months. No
country has such a big scheme.” In a
televised address to the nation on June 30, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had
announced extension of the free ration scheme PMGKAY till the end of November
2020 to ameliorate the hardship faced by the underprivileged or poor on account
of economic disruption caused by the lockdown due to COVID-19.
In a statement, the government
said the extension of PMGKAY is in line with the commitments of the government
not to allow anybody, especially any poor family, to suffer on account of non-availability
of food grains due to disruption during the next five months.
Free distribution of chana
will also ensure adequate availability of protein to all the above-mentioned
individuals during these five months, it said.
All expenses on the extended
PMGKAY will be borne by the central government, it added.
Free ration provided under the
PMGKAY is in addition to the subsidised grains given through Public
Distribution System (PDS) under the National Food Security Act.
With regard to distribution of
free ration to 8 crore migrant labourers, Javadekar said about 8 lakh tonne of
foodgrains has been allocated for this purpose and migrants can avail their
quota till August.
About 5 kg foodgrains per
beneficiary and 1 kg pulses per family is being distributed at free of cost to
migrants who neither have centre or state ration cards under the Aatmanirbhar
Bharat scheme. PTI
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