86,000 priority ration card holders to be removed in Kerala; penalties to follow

Kochi: Around 86,000 priority ration card holders in Kerala are set to be removed from the beneficiary list after an AI-based verification found that they or their family members had filed income tax returns, making them ineligible for subsidised food grains.

The Centre shared the data with the Kerala government after analysing this year's income tax returns. According to the findings, the beneficiaries have an annual income exceeding ₹3 lakh, disqualifying them from the priority ration category. Under existing rules, families in which any member pays income tax are not eligible for priority ration cards.

The list of ineligible beneficiaries has been forwarded to Taluk Supply Offices for further action. The authorities have also compiled details of priority ration card holders who own more than one acre of land and receive benefits under the PM-Kisan scheme. These beneficiaries are also likely to face removal from the priority list.

The government has further directed officials to identify priority ration card holders who have applied for GST registration or incorporated companies, as such individuals may also be ineligible for subsidised food grains.

Those found ineligible will be required to repay the market value of the food grains they received free of cost. The recovery will be calculated at ₹40 per kg for rice and ₹29 per kg for wheat.

AI-powered verification

The Centre identified the ineligible beneficiaries using an AI-powered system that matched Aadhaar numbers linked to ration cards and PAN cards. As income tax return data is processed, details of suspected ineligible beneficiaries are shared with states in real time through the Smart Public Distribution System (Smart PDS).

Officials said more names could be added to the list as the verification process continues.