One nation, one ration card reaches Tamil Nadu: buy your grain at any fair-price shop from October 1
From 1 October, Tamil Nadu's 2.09 crore ration cardholders can collect their subsidised foodgrain quota at any fair-price shop in the State, not just the shop their card is tied to. Biometric authentication is now mandatory at every shop, and POS devices will track each withdrawal.
Chennai: Tamil Nadu has rolled out the 'One Nation, One Ration Card' scheme from Thursday, 1 October, allowing ration cardholders to draw their monthly quota of subsidised foodgrains from any fair-price shop in the State, regardless of where their card is registered.
The State government said the move will free beneficiaries — especially migrant workers and families who move between districts — from being locked to a single shop. All shops in the network will carry out biometric authentication of cardholders before dispensing the monthly entitlement, and Point of Sale (POS) devices will record each withdrawal so that the quota cannot be drawn twice.
The intra-State portability was first tested through a pilot in Thoothukkudi and Tirunelveli districts earlier this year, officials said, and is now being extended statewide.
Tamil Nadu has about 2.09 crore ration cardholders. The State has allocated Rs 6,500 crore towards food subsidy and Rs 400 crore towards cooperatives for implementing the public distribution system in the current fiscal year.