Puducherry: Puducherry Lt Governor Kiran Bedi granted approval on Wednesday to the proposal to distribute grocery items to all card holders in Puducherry, Karaikal and Yanam regions to celebrate Pongal festival, considering it as a special case. She also approved the distribution of free rice at the rate of 20 kg for BPL and Antyodaya card holders, and at the rate of 10 kg for APL card holders for July 2017 in response to a proposal submitted by the civil supplies department on January 8, 2018.

The Lt Governor also directed the department to take fresh approval of the competent authority if the scheme is to be continued, subject to the availability of funds and asked the department to follow the codal procedure while procuring rice from the market.





The process to eliminate ineligible beneficiaries from BPL and Antyodaya categories, as well as to include eligible families from the APL list should be completed on or before 31st March, 2018, following a transparent mechanism.

The Lt Governor also warned that no diversion of funds to the scheme within the department as well as from outside the department is permitted.