The monthly ration system under the Antyodaya Anna Yojana could undergo a major change. The 35 kg ration provided each month could now be reduced.

New Delhi. The scheme that provides free rations to millions of citizens in the country could face a major change. The central government is preparing to amend the National Food Security Act 2013 under the Antyodaya Anna Yojana. This change could alter the monthly 35 kg ration provided to poor families. The central government has released a draft regarding this proposed change. If this change is implemented, poor families will no longer receive 35 kg of ration through ration cards , but will instead receive rations based on the amount per family member. According to this draft, each family member will receive only 7 kg of ration per month. This means that if there are four members in a family, they will receive only 28 kg of rations instead of 35 kg. However, it is not certain that if there are six members in a family, they will receive more than 35 kg of rations. The government will not provide more than 35 kg of rations to a single family.

Many inequalities based on family

The Department of Food and Public Distribution, while releasing the draft of the National Food Security Amendment Bill 2026, said that currently under the Antyodaya Anna Yojana, there is a provision of providing 35 kg ration every month considering the family as a unit . According to the proposed change, it has been said to provide 7 kg ration per person. However, the limit of 35 kg per month per family will be maintained.

The draft states that there is a lot of inequalities in the Antyodaya Anna Yojana based on the size of the family. Small families get more grains per person, whereas big families get less allocation per person. Comments have been invited about the draft bill till July 13.

PC: NBT