Biometric Authentication and Iris Scanning Remain Primary Methods

Lucknow, October 9: The Uttar Pradesh Food and Civil Supplies Department refuted claims on social media that beneficiaries must purchase a new mobile phone and undergo OTP verification to receive free ration.

A clarification was given by Additional Commissioner Satyadev, who stated that the department does not require any beneficiaries to purchase a new mobile phone in order to receive the free ration. The public has been cautioned against accepting or taking action regarding such misleading statements.

Electronic Point of Sale (e-PoS) machines with electronic weighing scales are still being used to distribute ration transparently in fair price shops across the state, as stated by the Food and Civil Supplies Department.

A second attempt can be made on the same day if there is a matching fingerprint for one beneficiary. In case of a broken biometric sensor, iris scanning is an alternative. Also, other family members with the same ration card name may complete verification and collect food grains.

Department clarified that OTP-based ration distribution is not a new arrangement. It has been in operation continuously since 2017, following the implementation of the National Food Security Act.

This facility is an alternative available only to extremely elderly persons, persons with disabilities and those suffering from serious illnesses who are unable to complete biometric or iris authentication by any means.

According to the department's data, out of more than 3.41 crore ration cards in the state, OTP-based distribution has been used for only 83,093 cards, accounting for a negligible share of the total transactions.

Therefore, the claim that beneficiaries must purchase a new mobile phone to receive free ration is entirely baseless and misleading.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Karun Sharma

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