STAFF REPORTER
GUWAHATI: The State Government has raised the annual income limit for ration cards under the National Food Security Act (NFSA), 2013 to Rs 4 lakh from Rs 2.50 lakh.
The Food, Civil Supplies, and Consumer Affairs Department issued the gazette notification to this effect through an amendment of the Assam Food Security Rules. The main objective of this relaxation of the annual income limit for ration cards is to cover more beneficiaries under the NFSA.
According to the NFSA, 85 percent of the rural population and 50 percent of the urban population are eligible to get ration cards. However, the State government has not covered this percentage of the population due to the fixed income limit. The relaxation of the upper annual income limit has paved the way for the inclusion of more people under the NFSA.
To raise the annual income limit for ration cards, the State Government sought suggestions and objections from all stakeholders in June this year. However, the government received no objection or suggestion from any stakeholder. That led the government to examine the matter carefully, bring an amendment to the Assam Food Security Rules, and raise the annual income limit for the would-be beneficiaries.
Initially, the upper income limit for NFSA was Rs 1 lakh, and this is the second such revision during the term of Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma.
This relaxation of the income limit will boost the State Government’s recent decision to include 40 lakh more beneficiaries under the NFSA in the state. The Chief Minister was on record earlier saying that the government would include 40 lakh beneficiaries under the NFSA by October this year.
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