Around 50,000 priority ration cards in Kerala could face freezing by the Centre unless cardholders resume collecting supplies or complete e-KYC, state food and civil supplies minister Anoop Jacob said. The state government, however, said it had not received any formal communication from the Centre and would act to protect all ration cards if such a move begins.
Jacob said the state was collecting details of people who had not purchased ration supplies during the past six months. A campaign through ration shops has encouraged some of these cardholders to return, with people beginning to resume collection over the past two or three days, he said.
“If Centre officially begins such a move, the state will respond accordingly. At present, the issue affects around 50,000 priority cards,” Jacob said, according to the report. He added that cardholders could avoid the risk of freezing by resuming ration collection or submitting an e-KYC form to reactivate their cards.
The minister said the wider issue involved around five lakh blue and white ration cards. Foodgrains for these cards are issued by the state government through tide-over allocation, and these cards may therefore not be frozen, he said. The immediate concern, according to Jacob, relates to priority cards that have remained unused.
The state government’s position is that ration cards are fundamental documents and should not be denied solely because they have not been used for a period of time. “No one should lose their ration card. Every family is entitled to one,” Jacob said. He also said the state wanted to protect the right to include eligible families in the priority category.
Some cardholders may stop drawing ration because they have migrated abroad, a family member has died or household income has increased, Jacob said. The state hopes that priority cards becoming vacant for these reasons can be reassigned to eligible non-priority families. This, he said, would help maintain the existing number of priority cards.
The issue is also linked to the Centre’s Smart PDS scheme, which Kerala has agreed to implement through its 2024 state plan. Jacob said the state did not oppose the scheme and could not withdraw from the signed plan. However, during a recent video conference with Union food ministry officials, Kerala conveyed its demand to retain the authority to shift ration cards into the priority category.
The minister said cardholders identified as not purchasing supplies would be informed about the Centre’s proposed action. He maintained that if they resumed collecting ration or completed e-KYC, there would be no need to freeze their cards. The state is awaiting formal communication from the Centre before taking further steps.