4 Lakh Taxpayers Got Ration Cards During BJD Regime In Odisha: Minister

Bhubaneswar: People who pay income tax were issued ration cards during the previous BJD government in Odisha, Food Supplies and Consumer Welfare Minister Krushna Chandra Patra claimed on Saturday.

The Minister further claimed that around four lakh income taxpayers had availed the ration cards meant for poor beneficiaries during the previous regime.

After the matter came to light, the government initiated the process to exclude these ineligible beneficiaries from the food security scheme, he said. Instruction has been issued to the officers to thoroughly check this during field verification

Verification process is underway to shortlist the taxpayers, who were issued the ration cards, Patra said, adding that the cards will be cancelled after getting complete information about them.

The Minster said that more than 4.1 million applicants are in the process of completing their electronic Know Your Customer (e-KYC) updates as part of a ration card verification drive.

The government will be able to identify the ‘ghost’ ration cardholders when the e-KYC process is complete, he said.