Act with alacrity against fake ration cardholders

This picture has been used for representational purpose

With COVID-19 and unimaginable financial hardship, one would have thought that the public would make the best use of the government's Public Distribution Scheme. Officials though have found that 7.9 lakh ration cardholders have not collected food grains from State-authorised shops across Maharashtra in the past five months, a front-page report stated in this paper.

This anomaly has prompted those in charge to determine that cardholders are either bogus or ineligible as the system has been linked with Aadhar. Now, the government has asked district officials to scrutinise suspect cases and cancel ration cards in case of violations.

Here, we also see that digitisation has made the procurement of ration cards by ineligible people doubly difficult, which is a good thing. The linking to Aadhar card also puts in place another layer to ensure fairness and credibility.

With the suspicion of fraud, officials must move quickly and in a systematic manner to weed out any bogus cardholders. If in the event of the investigation and enquiry, one finds that the fake ration cards are widespread, then it is time to get to the bottom of what could be a very big racket. It is vital to zero in on the modus operandi of getting these cards. Finally, those in charge of unearthing this must see to it that the miscreants lead them to the kingpins or the genesis of what could be a significant scam.

Foodgrains from state ration shops are one aspect, but bogus or ineligible ration cardholders may use the document for other benefits or as identity proof as it may not be linked to Aadhar in every case.

The pandemic meant tough times for all, so alarm bells will naturally ring if this food grain scheme has not had takers. Now that the red flags are up, act with alacrity.