Gujarat government has launched a separate unique identity (UID) project for every individual residing in the state, finding that the Government of India`s UID project under top I-T honcho Nandan Nilekani is still largely on paper. Under this project, every individual living in Gujarat will have a separate UID number, which will feature several details-whether the person is below poverty line (BPL) or above poverty line (APL), and whether he pays...

The long search for an effective system to target subsidies on food, fertiliser and fuel has finally ended with the Planning Commission accepting the idea of an Aadhaar-based rechargeable smart card. Ideas like direct cash transfers and food stamps have been rejected in favour of the Aadhaar smart card. The new proposal can help target the food subsidy with the tamper-proof biometric cards – Aadhaar unique identity cards – being...

An Empowered Group of Ministers (EGoM) on Food is scheduled to meet on Monday to discuss the proposed National Food Security Bill and take a view on the suggestions made by the Sonia Gandhi-headed National Advisory Council (NAC) and Rangarajan Panel. According to sources, the Food Ministry will place the reports of both the NAC and the Prime Minister’s panel headed by PMEAC chairman C Rangarajan before the EGoM for guidance. The...

An Empowered Group of Ministers (EGoM) on Food is scheduled to meet today to discuss the proposed National Food Security Bill and take a view on the suggestions made by the Sonia Gandhi-headed National Advisory Council (NAC) and Rangarajan Committee. According to sources, the Food Ministry will place the reports of both the NAC and the Prime Minister's panel headed by PMEAC Chairman C Rangarajan before the EGoM for guidance. The Rangarajan...

The Prime Minister-appointed panel on Food and Public Distribution System (F&PDS) headed by Deputy Chairman Planning Commission Montek Singh Ahluwalia has suggested that the current system of distributing PDS foodgrain per household should be replaced with per capita allocation. According to National Sample Survey (NSS) data, lower income households have more members per family than higher income households, the panel has said in its draft report. Justifying its suggestion as a “progressive...