‘Public can draw essential commodities at fair price shops by providing family card number, biometrics’
The Tamil Nadu government announced that citizens can now access essential commodities at fair price shops using digital copies of smart cards or biometric data. Additionally, the state plans to construct 15 new godowns to improve food grain storage capacity.
Why it matters
Digitizing public distribution systems improves accessibility for citizens while infrastructure investments ensure food security.
Minister for Food and Civil Supplies P. Venkataramanan on Thursday said that the original smart cards need not be produced to draw essential commodities at fair price shops in the State. It would be enough if a digital copy is shown or number is given along with the biometric data by the card holder.
Speaking on the demands for the Food department in the State Assembly, he said that card holders can draw commodities at any shop of their choice. "Suppose someone is travelling, they can draw their essential goods from a shop in the vicinity," he explained.
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