Raipur, December 30, 2025/ Currently, 82.18 lakh ration cards are operational under the Public Distribution System (PDS) in Chhattisgarh. These ration cards cover 2.73 crore registered members. Following the instructions of the Central Government, the state government is continuously carrying out the e-KYC process to ensure that the benefits of the scheme reach the genuine beneficiaries in the state. So far, e-KYC has been completed for 2.3 crore members, which is 85 percent of the total registered members. E-KYC is still pending for approximately 30.32 lakh members.
Food department officials stated today that the e-KYC facility is available on the e-POS machines operating at all government fair price shops in the state. In addition, e-KYC can also be done through the “Mera E-KYC” app issued by the Government of India. To perform e-KYC through the app, beneficiaries can download the app from the Google Play Store on their Android mobile phones, enter their Aadhaar number, and complete face e-KYC through Aadhaar OTP verification.
Officials further stated that currently, 14,040 government fair price shops are operational, and registered ration cardholders are receiving rations from their preferred fair price shops. Based on the estimated population of 2025, 89 percent of the population is covered under the scheme. Aadhaar seeding is also being done to make ration distribution transparent. Under this initiative, Aadhaar seeding has been completed for 99.7 percent of the members, and 85 percent of e-KYC has also been completed. Officials stated that approximately 27.3 million people have been brought under the food security net, and food grains are being regularly distributed to them through fair price shops. More than 7.3 million priority families are receiving rice free of charge, while 850,000 families living above the poverty line are receiving it at subsidized rates. Priority families are also being provided with fortified rice containing iron, folic acid, and vitamin B12.
Under the state government’s ambitious Niyad Nellanaar scheme, food grains, chickpeas, sugar, salt, and jaggery are being distributed free of charge to a total of 42,220 ration cardholders in 402 selected remote villages across five districts of the Bastar division: Bijapur, Sukma, Dantewada, Narayanpur, and Kanker.