Odisha Extends Distribution Of Additional Rice For 4 More Months

The Odisha government on Saturday extended distribution of rice to the beneficiaries covered under the State Food Security Scheme (SFSS) by four months.

Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik has directed to extend distribution of additional 5 kg of rice per head free of cost to beneficiaries of SFSS for four months, said a statement released by the Chief Minister's Office (CMO). 

As per the directive, each beneficiary of the scheme will get an additional 5 kg of rice from the allotment month of December 2021 to March 2022, in view of the prevailing Covid-19 pandemic situation.

As many as 2,88,528 families comprising 9,15,532 members covered under the State Food Security Scheme, will be benefited, the CMO release read.

 
"For this purpose, 4,578 tonnes of rice will be supplied per month totalling 18,310.640 tonnes of rice from the State pool with an expenditure of Rs 68.13 crore from the State’s own fund," read the release. 

This will facilitate beneficiaries enrolled in the State Food Security Scheme to remain at par with the beneficiaries under National Food Security Act, it added.

Earlier, the Centre had extended its free ration scheme, Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Anna Yojana (PMGKAY), for another four months, until March 2022, after acknowledging that poor families in the country still need food security support amid the current recovering economy.