FCS&CA asks officers to ensure mass publicity on ground
Irfan Tramboo
SRINAGAR, Oct 29: The Government has noted that the Fair Price Shop (FPS) dealers were not encouraging transactions under One Nation, One Ration Card (ONORC) in J&K while directing the concerned department to take steps to ensure mass publicity of the same across the Union Territory.
In this regard, it has been learned that the Government has underlined that the FPS dealers are not encouraging such transactions with the right focus to let the beneficiaries avail more benefits out of the scheme.
After the observations, the FCS&CA has asked the Government to allow the advance lifting of the food grains so that they could promote the ONORC transactions across J&K. Following that, the authorities have sanctioned the advance lifting for which the necessary directions have been issued to both the directorates to ensure the distribution of the same across J&K through PoS.
In this regard, the Government has directed both the directorates to ensure mass publicity at the grass root level to promote ONORC across J&K for maximum transactions apart from the directions of lifting the allocation of food grains immediately.
The Government has also directed for an overseeing and monitoring committee comprising various officials to ensure that reconciliations are made at all levels across J&K smoothly in respect of advance lifting and with FCI and GoI under the scheme.
The higher-ups have noted that for ONORC under the NFSA scheme, the Department has to be facilitated so that the desired beneficiaries get benefits under the flagship program and the program is encouraged in J&K.
Meanwhile, the FCS&CA Kashmir division has directed the Assistant Directors in the Kashmir division to ensure the lifting/ dispatch of the entire released quantity for distribution in October 2022 amongst the deserving beneficiaries through PoS devices only under Interstate/ National Portability ONORC (NFSA).
They have also been directed to strictly ensure the same as per the Administrative Department’s directions, specifically in the distribution ratios i.e. 70.99: 29.01 for Rice and Wheat respectively duly conveyed.
The Assistant Directors have also been directed to ensure mass publicity at the grass root level to promote the portability for maximizing transactions through the concerned field officers/ officials and other functionaries.
The concerned officials in the districts have been directed to ensure proper recording of receipts and distribution alongside necessary reconciliation at all levels every month (transaction-wise) so that monthly reports are submitted as and when sought by the Administrative Department. The Department has noted that the allocation made is subject to the fulfillment of other terms and conditions conveyed from time to time.
It is to be noted here that One Nation One Ration Card (ONORC) is a scheme aimed at nationalizing a beneficiary’s ration card by a process called Aadhaar Seeding which ensures that the beneficiary can pick up her or his entitled foodgrain from any fair price shop in the country.
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