Over 1 Lakh Ghost Ration Card Holders Detected During E-KYC Verification: Odisha Minister

Bhubaneswar: Over 1 lakh ghost ration card holders have been identified and removed from the Public Distribution System (PDS) database, Food Supplies and Consumer Welfare Minister Krushna Chandra Patra told the Odisha Assembly on Wednesday.

“To bring transparency to the ration card database under the food security scheme, the government conducted Aadhaar-based e-KYC updation for 2024-25 to check original beneficiaries. Of 3,36,35,918 PDS beneficiaries in the state, the e-KYC verification process has been completed for 2,69,23,830. Names of beneficiaries, who have died, are being removed from the database. New and eligible beneficiaries will be added and subsequently new ration cards will be issued to them to ensure food security for all deserving families,” the minister said while replying to a question by MLA Manas Kumar Dutta.

He added that it is going to be a continuous process.

The state has so far received 6,19,836 new applications for ration cards, which are being processed to include qualified applicants in the system, he added.

The Odisha government has reportedly fixed 10 parameters for enrolment and issuing new ration cards.