CSCs become ration dealers earning Rs 50,000 every month, government will make shops modern sales centers
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New Delhi : The Modi government at the Center is considering making more than 5 lakh ration shops operated under the Public Distribution System (PDS) of India into modern sales centres. However, till now around 60,000 dealers in the country have started working as Common Service Center (CSC) and they are earning more than Rs 50,000 per month. The aim of the government is to increase the income of the dealers by making all ration shops modern sales centers.
Workshop held in Delhi
Union Food Secretary Sanjeev Chopra said the government is considering various options to make ration shops vibrant, modern and profitable by enabling them to offer more products and services in addition to Public Distribution System (PDS) operations. The Food Ministry organized a workshop in the national capital on Wednesday to deliberate on initiatives to make ration shops (FPS) more vibrant and economically more profitable organisations.
CSC became 60,000 dealers
The Union Food Secretary stressed that fair price shops should move with the times and become modern retail outlets. He said that the dealers of ration shops can start working as Common Service Center (CSC). Already 60,000 dealers have become CSCs and they can also be banking correspondents. He said the Center has written to states to allow ration shop dealers to stock non-PDS goods like FMCG products and many states have already given permission.
Government taking help of IIT Delhi
Sanjeev Chopra said that in order to reduce transportation cost and save on food subsidy, the government has involved the Indian Institute of Technology-Delhi (IIT Delhi) and the World Food Program to optimize the routes of these fair price shops. The Food Secretary said that there are about 5.3 lakh ration shops in the country, of which about one lakh are run by cooperatives and self-help groups, while about 10,000 ration shops are run by panchayats. Private people are running more than three lakh ration shops.
The government increased the margin of dealers
The secretary said that these ration shop dealers have complained in the past that only distribution of food grains under the National Food Security Act (NFSA) was not really an economically viable proposition for them. He highlighted that the Central Government has already increased the dealers’ margin and encouraged the States and Union Territories to participate in the same on their part.
Tie up with other organizations
He said that what we are trying to do is to ensure that they are able to become multi-service organizations. Therefore, fair price shop dealers need not remain dealers of essential commodities under NFSA, rather they can tie up with other organisations. He said that ration shop dealers can tie up with organizations like CSC.
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