• SC tells States and Union Territories to give ration cards to nearly 80 crore migrant workers

    National
    SC tells States and Union Territories to give ration cards to nearly 80 crore migrant workers
    The court expressed concerns on Tuesday regarding needless delays, such as the need to update eKYC before following the court's requirements for all 800 crore ration cardholders......


    Digital desk: The Supreme Court on Tuesday, gave States and Union Territories (UTs) two months to provide ration cards to over 80 crore migrant workers who are enrolled on the eShram portal but are not covered by the National Food Security Act (NFSA). 

    In this regard, compliance affidavits must be filed by states and UTs. In two months, the case will be heard once more. 

    The April 20, 2023, directive from the bench of Justices Hima Kohli and Ahsanuddin Amanullah was not followed by the States or UTs, and the bench noted this.

    The eShram portal has 286 crore registrants, and 206.3 crore are linked to ration card information. This implies that the remaining registrants on the eShram portal are still in need of ration cards. A migrant or unorganized laborer and his family members may not be able to access programs or even benefits under the National Food Security Act if they do not have a ration card, the court had stated in April of last year.

    The court expressed concerns on Tuesday regarding needless delays, such as the need to update eKYC before following the court's requirements for all 800 crore ration cardholders. 
    According to the court, eShram registrants and NFSA beneficiaries had already been matched, and it was discovered that 8 crore persons lacked ration cards and were therefore not eligible to receive food grains under the NFSA.

    The Section discusses the qualifying household's right to receive food grains at reduced costs under the Targeted Public Distribution System. 

    The petitioners in the case contended that the Food Safety Act might exclude nearly 100 crore workers, citing out-of-date data from the 2011 census that does not take population growth into account.