Telangana government on Saturday issued the Food Security Rules to implement the National Food Security Act -2103. As per the Act eligible families are entitled to get rice at Rs 3 per kg, wheat at Rs 2 , and coarse cereals at Rs 1. All the beneficiaries would be given food security card to get the ration from FP shops. Getting subsidized food is beneficiaries’ right as per the Act. Government will soon identify the beneficiaries from the categories mentioned below:
1. Landless agriculture laborers, marginal farmers, rural artisans/craftsmen such as potters, tanners, weavers, blacksmiths, carpenters, slum dwellers, and persons earning their livelihood on daily basis in the informal sector like porters, coolies, rickshaw pullers, hand cart pullers, fruit and flower sellers, snake charmers, rag pickers, cobblers, destitute and other similar categories in both rural and urban areas.
2. Households headed by widows or terminally ill persons/disabled persons/persons aged 60 years or more with no assured means of subsistence or societal support.
3. Widows or terminally ill persons or disabled persons or persons aged 60 years or more or single women or single men with no family or societal support or assured means of subsistence.
4. All primitive tribal households.
5.Leprosy affected persons, HIV Positive patients / families, families of deceased due to starvation and families threatened by Starvation Deaths, Urban and Rural Homeless people and beggars also in addition to those covered by the AAY eligibility as per the GOI guidelines as stated above.
(b) the priority households: In accordance with guidelines formulated for including ‘Exclusion and Inclusion Criteria’ notified by the state government :
1. The Annual family Income ceiling for issue of Food Security Cards is 1.50 Lakhs and below in Rural Areas and Rs.2.00 lakhs and below in Urban Areas.
2. The land ceiling limit is 3.50 acres and below for wet land and 7.5 acres and below for dry land. The mere possession of land will not alone be the criteria for deciding the eligibility to Food Security Cards. The income on the land prescribed above will also be taken into consideration. If the income from the land is less than the income ceiling prescribed above, the family will be entitled for Food Security Card.
