85% of Telangana people to get 6kg fine rice each from Ugadi: Uttam

Congress government in Telangana to distribute fine rice to 3.10 crore people through PDS from March 30

Telangana Irrigation and Civil Supplies Minister N. Uttam Kumar Reddy on Friday (March 28, 2025) announced that the Congress government would launch the distribution of fine rice to the poor across the Telangana, starting from Ugadi festival.

Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy would formally launch the scheme at a public meeting in Huzurnagar on March 30. From April 1, free 6 kg of fine rice for all ration card holders would be distributed across the State through the Public Distribution System (PDS), he said at a press conference held in Hyderabad.

Terming it as a historic occasion, the Minister said this was the largest food security initiative in the country’s history, aiming to benefit nearly 3.10 crore people, which was about 85% of Telangana’s population. Each eligible individual would receive 6 kg of fine rice per month. The Minister said no welfare scheme in independent India had ever reached such a large share of the population.

Mr. Uttam explained that the earlier distribution of coarse rice under PDS had failed as most beneficiaries did not consume the rice due to its poor quality. As a result, around 80% to 90% of the rice was diverted and illegally sold, creating a thriving black market racket. Rice worth ₹7,000 crore to ₹8,000 crore was being misused annually, he alleged.

According to official data, Telangana had 89.73 lakh ration cards at the time of its formation. During the 10-year rule of the BRS government, only 49,479 new cards were issued, despite changes in population and eligibility. In contrast, after the Congress government came to power, it not only reopened the process for adding eligible members but also initiated the large-scale issuance of new ration cards to ensure no deserving household is left out, he said.

The Minister revealed that Telangana currently has around 90 lakh ration cards, covering about 2.85 crore people. However, with the verification and approval of pending applications, nearly 30 lakh new ration cards were expected to be issued soon.