The Tamil Nadu government has launched a subsidised rice programme in Chennai, offering fine-quality rice at Rs 30 per kg through 30 state-run outlets as households face higher market prices. The initiative, launched by Minister for Food and Civil Supplies P Venkataramanan and Minister for Co-operation V Gandhiraj, currently allows each consumer or family member to purchase up to five kg.
The rice is being sold through 11 Amutham stores and 19 cooperative stores across Chennai. According to the ministers, the programme will be extended to the rest of Tamil Nadu from Sunday, taking the subsidised distribution beyond the capital and into the state’s wider cooperative retail network.
The government has procured 25,000 metric tonnes of rice for the initiative. This stock will be distributed through 250 cooperative stores across the state, according to the report. The procurement and outlet-based distribution model is intended to provide an affordable alternative to consumers buying fine-quality rice in the open market.
The programme comes as the price of fine rice has risen, adding pressure to food budgets in urban households. The government has positioned the Rs 30 per kg rate as a measure to ease the hardship associated with the increase. The five-kg purchase limit indicates that the programme is designed as a controlled retail intervention rather than an unrestricted supply channel.
The Chennai rollout also places state-run retail outlets at the centre of the government’s response to food-price pressures. Amutham stores and cooperative stores are being used as the delivery points, allowing the administration to distribute the procured stock through an existing network rather than create a separate retail system. The report does not specify how long the programme will continue or whether the quantity available at each outlet will be replenished based on demand.
Toor dal is another item facing significant price pressure. It is currently being sold in the open market at Rs 170 to Rs 190 per kg, according to the report. The state government is considering selling toor dal at Rs 130 per kg through cooperative stores, with the proposed scheme expected to be launched in a day or two.
The proposed dal intervention has not yet been launched, and details such as the quantity limit, procurement volume and participating outlets have not been announced. For the rice programme, the next operational milestone is the planned extension to the rest of Tamil Nadu from Sunday, when the 250 cooperative stores are expected to begin distributing the procured stock.
