In a cabinet decision, the Uttarakhand government today decided to give 10 kg each of wheat and rice per month to above poverty line (APL) families in the state at Rs 4 and Rs 6 per kg, respectively, from next month.
Nearly 1.8 million APL card holders will be benefited by the new decision. For the below poverty line (BPL) families, the government had already announced 34 kg of rice and 34 kg of wheat at Rs 3 and Rs 2 per kg, respectively, early this year.
The decision will put a burden of Rs 252 crore per annum on the state exchequer, Chief Secretary Subhash Kumar said. Till now, APL families were getting 10 kg of wheat and 2 kg of rice per card, Kumar said.
The decision comes at a time when assembly elections are seven months away.
For the implementation of the new decision, Kumar said the government would purchase food grains from the open market as the quota it gets from the Centre is insufficient. The chief secretary said the government would urge the Centre to increase the food grains quota for APL families of the state in future.
Chief Minister Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank had earlier announced the government would provide food grains to APL families also at cheaper rates through ration shops under Atal Khadyan Yojna to provide succour to the people reeling under the rising inflation.
Meanwhile, a Congress leader said the party would come out with a similar plan during election time. “We will beat BJP through far better planning,” he said.