To fulfill its commitment to provide 30 kg of rice to BPL card holders at Re one per month, it's now certain that the new Congress Government in Karnataka would be forced to buy significant part of the additional quantity from open market at up to 30 times the offer price.
After failing to implement the scheme from June 1 as the Centre indicated that it can't fully meet the additional requirement, a meeting of the State Cabinet, chaired by Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, today decided to purchase the commodity from open market in states such as Odisha and Chhattisgarh.
Additional requirement was estimated at more than 1.4 lakh tonnes per month.
"There would be some difficulty. After getting maximum quantity from the Centre, we will buy from open market in states like Odisha and Chhattisgarh", Law Minister T B Jayachandra said in a media briefing after the meeting.
He estimated that the Government may have to pay Rs 28-30 per kg for open market rice. "Somehow, we have to fulfill our promise".
The scheme, which would cost the state exchequer an annual outgo of around Rs 4,300 crore, would be implemented by July 10, the Minister said.
From its earlier announcement of providing 30 kg to all BPL holders, the Cabinet today decided that a single-member family would get only 10 kg, while the two-member ones would get 20 kg and three and more 30 kg.
The Minister also pointed out that in some parts, people mostly consume jowar or ragi, and there the government plans to provide them in future (in place of rice).
The opposition BJP has accused the government of taking a hasty decision on the scheme, without doing its home work, and there were indications from the ruling side, particularly Siddaramaiah, the government has taken it as a prestige issue as to somehow implement the measure.
