Centre may allocate extra 5 MT grains for BPL families on Thursday

New Delhi: The CCEA is likely to consider on Thursday a proposal to allocate an additional 5 million tonnes of foodgrains to families below the poverty line (BPL), entailing a subsidy of about Rs 9,470 crore.

“The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs meeting is scheduled for tomorrow. The Food Ministry’s proposal on allocation of an additional 5 million tonnes of foodgrains to BPL category for the 2013-14 fiscal is on the agenda,” highly placed sources said.

As per the cabinet note, the additional foodgrains would be supplied at BPL rates and would cost the government about Rs 9,470 crore, they said.

The ministry said in the note that the extra foodgrain allocation would be adjusted in states where the new Food Security programme will be implemented, they added.

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The Delhi government has started the groundwork for implementing the new programme from next month.

The ministry proposed the extra allocation for 6.52 crore BPL families because the government has excess stocks of foodgrains.

As of 1 July, foodgrain stocks in government godowns more than doubled to 73.9 million tonnes, compared with a requirement of 31.9 million tonnes.

For APL families, the government had in May allocated 6 million tonnes of extra foodgrains for this fiscal. Last month, it had approved the sale of 10.5 million tonnes of foodgrains in the open market to check rising prices.

The government supplies rice and wheat at subsidised rates of Rs 5.65 per kg and Rs 4.15 per kg, respectively, to BPL families.

PTI