BPL families left high & dry after rejection of ration card applications
Even after complaining to the Chief Rationing Officer seeking re-verification of application, there has been no response
Hyderabad: :Citizens continue to face inconvenience as their Food Security Cards (FSC) were pending or rejected by authorities after submitting their applications. They blame officials’ negligence and no field-level inspection by the authorities concerned before rejection. Over 54,000 FSCs were pending in Hyderabad.
The Food Security Card or Food Security Ration Card is a legal document that entitles the cardholders to obtain the commodities at very subsidized costs. However, the families who have applied for the ration card continue to face the benefits of the card. They have been facing severe hardships after their plea for ration cards got rejected with unknown reasons and are pending with the officials.
According to Shaik Arfath Begum, whose application for ration card got rejected, said, “I am a widow and had applied for the FSC. For unknown reasons, my ration card application was rejected.” She said “My application no – FSC022503436315 was unfairly rejected by the authorities. Also, there was no verification or enquiry of the application before the rejection.”
Another applicant, Anita Neelam also faced similar rejection. “My application was rejected without providing any information and reason. My family is very much eligible for a ration card, but the officials did not consider my request. Also, I have complained to the Chief Rationing Officer seeking re-verification of the application and I am waiting for their response.”
Similarly, hundreds of such applications were pending and many were rejected without any notice. Citizens blamed that without any field verification, the applications were rejected. A few beneficiaries alleged that the Civil Supplies department without conducting proper checks has denied cards to many who are further deprived of other welfare schemes that are based on ration cards.
Mohammed Ahmed, vice-president of TDP Minority Cell said several representations were given to the Civil Supplies department for the issues related to ration cards. Many families have been facing severe hardships after their plea for ration cards pending with officers or got rejected. “At DCS office, officers are not present, and are not attending to the applicants, which is causing severe hardships. Negligence of duty cannot be ignored, as daily several citizens are visiting the office.” The TDP leader urged the Civil Supplies department to verify and approve pending applicants.
Recently, to review the long-pending applications of ration cards, Yakutpura MLA Jaffar Hussain Meraj also visited the DSO office. The MLA raised the issue that over 6,500 applications are pending in Yakutpura Constituency at the DSO level, despite ASO-level enquiries being completed.
Jaffar Hussain urged the DSO to accelerate the clearance process and ensure timely action by deploying additional operators. He emphasized that Ration Cards are not just for ration distribution but are vital for BPL families to access key welfare schemes like Aarogyasri, housing, and more.
The officials said the delay is mainly due to insufficient manpower and backlog at the DSO level, halting further processing by the ASO team.
