Thiruvananthapuram, Keralam Food and Civil Supplies Minister Anoop Jacob has urged the Centre to extend the three-month deadline for activating ration cards through e-KYC and defer the implementation of new provisions for temporarily cancelling cards unused for six consecutive months.
In a letter to his counterpart at the Centre Pralhad Joshi, Jacob sought flexibility in implementing the 2025 amendment order to the Targeted Public Distribution System Order, which provides for temporary cancellation and subsequent verification of ration cards that have not been used for six months. The minister said the first phase will affect 44,279 priority ration cardholders in Keralam, including 5,370 yellow-card and 38,909 pink-card holders, who had not purchased ration supplies for more than six months. Because a ration card has remained unused for a period, Jacob said, the entitlement to foodgrains under the National Food Security Act should not be withdrawn merely.
He said foodgrains can be provided under the state category whenever required, subject to Aadhaar-based biometric authentication. Such a system will help remove ineligible families while preventing genuine beneficiaries from being inadvertently excluded and ensuring that NFSA entitlements are availed of only by eligible people, he said. Retaining the cards will also help families during emergencies such as epidemics and natural disasters, when the absence of ration cards can cause hardship, the minister said.
The minister also sought permission for the state to maintain a waiting list of eligible families in the order of first-in, first-out to fill vacancies arising from the cancellation of cards, according to a statement issued by his office on Friday.
