Odisha Govt Soon To Identify 'Fake' Ration Card Holders

Bhubaneswar, June 28: Amid the allegation of the existence of around 50 lakh ghost ration cards in Odisha, the newly elected BJP government will soon start a process to identify the alleged fake ration card holders in the State, officials said on Friday.

Food Supplies & Consumer Welfare Minister, Krushna Chandra Patra has recently said that the State government will soon identify the alleged fake ration card holders and take stringent action against the persons who have been looting the tonnes of free rice and other grains in the name of 'ghost' beneficiaries.

The BJP government will also take necessary steps to reach the remote areas, especially the villages without roads, across the State and distribute the free ration given by the Centre to the real beneficiaries, the Minister said.

All the District Collectors have been instructed in this regard, he added.

Minister Patra also informed that the vacant posts of Food Inspector will also be filled across the State, soon. The food inspection process will be carried out once a month, he added.

Earlier, the Argus News repeatedly aired the news about around 50 lakh fake beneficiaries in the state taking free ration given by the Centre.

It is alleged that most of the fake beneficiaries are people close to the Biju Janata Dal (BJD) led by former CM Naveen Patnaik, who ruled the State for 24 years, from 2000 to 2024.