Saroor
Jammu, Dec 18: Taking notice of the order passed by the Supreme Court to provide ration cards to migrant and unorganised workers registered under the e-Shram portal, Jammu and Kashmir administration has nodded issuance of new ration cards to the eligible registrants in Jammu and Kashmir.
Official sources said that all J&K registrants to be identified on e-Shram Portal by the Labour and Employment Department, by the Jammu and Kashmir Food Civil Supplies and Consumer Affairs Department shall be issued new ration cards as directed by the Supreme Court order of April 20, 2023.
Presently, 28.60 crore migrants and unorganised workers are registered on the eShram portal, of which 20.63 crore are registered on ration card data.
“However, due to the absence of ration cards, many migrant and unorganised labourers and their families have been deprived of subsidised food grains and other schemes under the National Food Security Act,” said an official.
He said that to address the issue, the Supreme Court has directed the governments of all States and Union Territories (UT) to issue ration cards under the National Food Security Act to the eight crore people registered on the eShram portal but does not possess ration cards.
He said that the Jammu and Kashmir General Administration Department has also issued an order regarding providing of Ration Cards to e-shram registrants under its order number 1624-JK(GAD) of 2023 Dated: 18.12.2023.
The government in compliance of orders of the Supreme Court of India dated 20.04.2023, passed in SMW(C) No. 06 of 2020, in case titled “Re-Problems and Miseries of Migrant Labourers” has accorded sanction to issuance of new ration cards to eligible J&K registrants to be identified on e-Shram Portal by the Labour and Employment Department, by the Food Civil Supplies and Consumer Affairs Department.
Moreover, the designating Labour and Employment Department as the Nodal Department for providing necessary details, including Aadhaar numbers of such registrants, to the concerned Assistant Directors of FCS&CA of the districts for issuance of Ration Cards, besides ensuring wide publicity of the facility.
Sanction has also been accorded to the constitution of a team of officers for monitoring the entire process, so as to comply with the directions/orders of the Supreme Court, expeditiously.
“In case targets capped for a district assigned by the Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution, Government of India are exceeded, the matter shall immediately be reported to the FCS and CA Department, so that the same is flagged with the concerned Ministry for seeking revision of capping, if required,” he said.
Meanwhile the team of officers shall be headed by the Labour Commissioner as its Chairman, Director, Food, Civil Supplies & Consumer Affairs, Department, Jammu/Kashmir, Representative of Deputy Commissioner of concerned district, Representative of State Informatics Officer, NIC (looking after PDS in J&K), Assistant Labour Commissioner of concerned district and Assistant Director, Food, Civil Supplies and Consumer Affairs of concerned district as its members.
Notably, the Right to Food Campaign has demanded that all states and union territories immediately undertake the exercise to issue ration cards to eight crore migrant and unorganised sector workers registered on e-shram but do not possess a ration card.
The Campaign has also emphasised that these persons are among the most economically vulnerable sections of society and must be included under the ambit of the National Food Security Act.
