Government Re-verifies PMGKAY Beneficiary List to Combat Leakages

The Government of India has increased measures to reverify and refresh the beneficiary list under the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Anna Yojana (PMGKAY) with a goal to make sure that free foodgrain benefit is provided to the most deserving and needy segments of society.

This scheme is an important move towards rationalization of the increasing subsidy burden while safeguarding the nutrition protection of vulnerable groups under the National Food Security Act (NFSA), 2013.

The Importance of PMGKAY

PMGKAY is a priority food security program launched during the COVID-19 pandemic to offer free foodgrains to nearly 800 million beneficiaries across the nation. It covers two main beneficiary groups:

• Priority households, who are eligible to receive 5 kg of rice or wheat per individual every month.

• Antyodaya Anna Yojana (AAY) families, who get 35 kg per household every month.

• The programme was renewed in 2023 for five more years, demonstrating the government's interest in providing food security to millions. Nevertheless, the lists of beneficiaries were first drawn up a decade or so ago, and since that time, demographic changes, income levels, and other variables have created an imperative for overall update and revalidation.

Need for Reverification and Data Convergence

The primary challenge is the out-of-date and sometimes incorrect beneficiary registers. Incidences of deaths, socio-economic changes, repeated names, and refusal by some beneficiaries to raise their ration have led to high leakages and wastage of funds.

To counter this, the Food and Public Distribution Ministry instructed all states to conduct a thorough reverification exercises. A bulk data matching exercise was conducted, merging ration card information with several databases including:

• Central Board of Direct Taxes (Income Tax records)

• Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs

• Ministry of Corporate Affairs

• Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (to verify vehicle ownership)

• PM Kisan Samman Nidhi database

These attempts uncovered that nearly 10% of the listed beneficiaries may be ineligible. They are taxpayers, vehicle owners, company directors, or those who have not picked up their ration supplies for long.

State-Level Success in De-Listing Ineligible Beneficiaries

Rajasthan and Odisha states have exhibited significant progress in purifying their beneficiary lists:

• Rajasthan de-listed around 28 lakh names through voluntary surrender drives.

• Odisha eliminated an estimated 7 lakh names on account of deaths or movement into higher income groups.

• Madhya Pradesh and some other states have also initiated similar reverification and authentication exercises. 

The process of verification entails field visits and compulsory e-KYC through Aadhaar, wherein nearly 83% of beneficiaries were already verified through this channel, increasing transparency and minimizing fraud.

In the future, the government plans to sustain the scheme's coverage and enhance fairness and transparency. There are plans to bring farmer collectives and marginalised groups more inclusively under the scheme.