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GOVERNMENT OF INDIA
MINISTRY OF CONSUMER AFFAIRS, FOOD & PUBLIC DISTRIBUTION
DEPARTMENT OF FOOD AND PUBLIC DISTRIBUTION
LOK SABHA
UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 1779
TO BE ANSWERED ON 10TH DECEMBER, 2025
BENEFICIARIES OF PMGKAY
1779. SHRI SUDAMA PRASAD:
Will the Minister of CONSUMER AFFAIRS. FOOD AND PUBLIC
DISTRIBUTION be pleased to state:
(a) the details of the criteria being used to determine ineligibility of beneficiaries under
the PMGKAY as per the data shared by the Income Tax Department;
(b) the details of beneficiaries of the scheme and the details of the estimated number of
beneficiaries likely to be removed from the scheme, State/district-wise;
(c) the details of the measures taken by the Government to prevent wrongful exclusion
of eligible beneficiaries
;
(d) whether any grievance redressal mechanism has been made available for those
wrongly classified as ineligible under the income verification and also the alternative
measures which are put in place to address the same;
(e) if so, the details thereof and if not, the reasons therefor; and
(f) whether the Government has constituted any committee to assess the impact on
vulnerable households under the stated exclusion process and if so, the details thereon
ANSWER
MINISTER OF STATE FOR MINISTRY OF CONSUMER AFFAIRS,
FOOD & PUBLIC DISTRIBUTION
(SHRIMATI NIMUBEN JAYANTIBHAI BAMBHANIYA)
(a) to (c): Under Section 10 of the National Food Security Act (NFS A), 2013, the
responsibility for identifying eligible and ineligible households rests entirely with the
State/UT Governments. As per Section 10(1), each State/UT is required to frame its own
inclusion and exclusion guidelines and identify Antyodaya Anna Yojana (AAY) and
Priority Households (PHH) within the coverage limits determined under the Act. Further,Section 10(2) mandates that States/UTs must periodically review and update their
beneficiary lists in accordance with these guidelines. Accordingly, the statutory authority
for identification, validation, and updation of NFS A beneficiaries lies exclusively with the
respective State/UT Governments. In order to support States/UTs in improving the accuracy
of beneficiary databases, the Department undertook an analytical exercise wherein
PMGKA Y beneficiary data was cross-matched with datasets of other
Ministries/Departments such as CBDT, CBIC, MCA, UIDAI (Aadhaar), and MoRTH
(Vahan), in addition to internal parameters such as silent cards, duplicate cards,
beneficiaries aged above 100 years, single-member AAY households, etc. Based on this
multi-layered analysis, 8.51 crore beneficiaries were flagged for field-level verification.
States/UTs have been advised to carry out re-verification of these flagged cases
strictly in accordance with their notified inclusion/exclusion criteria. Any decision
regarding retention, deletion, or correction of beneficiary records is taken only after such
verification by the respective State/UT Governments. No beneficiary is removed
automatically or without due process. As reported by the States/UTs, 2.12 crore of the
flagged beneficiaries have been deleted after verification, thereby enabling the inclusion of
genuinely eligible households.
State-wise details of flagged and deleted beneficiaries after verification (as on
30. 1 1.2025) at Annexure.
(d) to (f): The Department has taken several steps to strengthen grievance redressal in the
Public Distribution System. Major initiatives include:
1. Strengthened Grievance Redressal Systems
0 Universal availability of 1 967/1800-series toll-free helplines across all States/UTs.
0 Introduction of Anna Sahayata, an advanced Al-enabled WhatsApp and IVRS-based
grievance redressal system, allowing beneficiaries to lodge complaints in their own
language
0 Mera Ration Mobile App, which enables beneficiaries to check their entitlements,
member and demographic details, last month’s distribution status, nearby FPS
location, and to lodge grievances directly through the app.
2. Enhanced Monitoring through CPGRAMS
0 States/UTs and all concerned organisations have been sensitised to strictly adhere to
the 21-day timeline for grievance disposal prescribed under CPGRAMS.
0 Pendency of grievances is monitored regularly through CPGRAMS dashboards.
0 Monthly advisories are issued to States to promote uniform and timely grievance
resolution
0 States/UTs with high pendency levels are specifically flagged for corrective action.3. Capacity Building & Oversight
, Regular trainings, workshops, and video conferences are conducted with States/UTs to
improve the efficiency of grievance handling systems.
o The Department ensures strict implementation of the Standard Operating Procedure
(SOP) for grievance redressal, ensuring accountability and timely resolution.
Further, to prevent wrongful exclusion of eligible beneficiaries, the Department has
advised all States/UTs to conduct physical and individual-level verification of each flagged
case before taking any action. This process ensures that eligibility is determined strictly in
accordance with State/UT-specific criteria framed under Section 10 of NFS A.
The Department has not constituted any such committee to assess the impact on
vulnerable households under .the stated exclusion process.
SeSeSc SeRgeAnnexure
State-wise details of flagged and deleted beneficiaries after verification (as on 30.11.2025)
Sr No. State Name Flal led Cases Deleted Cases
1 ANDAMAN AND NECOBAR ISLANDS 971 135
2 ANDHRA PRADESH 37,90,418 2,76,035
3 ARUNACHAL PRADESH 1 ,67,926 1
4 ASSAM 35,95,862 12,93,470
5 BIHAR 54,20,773 12,68,435
6 CHANDIGARH 61 ,481E 2,345
7 CHHATTISGARH 33,36,534 1 ,54,320
8 Dadar & Naqar Haveli & Daman & Diu 52,265 8,431
9 DELHI 8,14,258 23,600
10 GOA 49,279 3,299
11 GUJARAT 55,09,230 14,06,257
12 HARYANA 31 ,64,507 19,47,958
13 HIMACHAL PRADESH 5,32,435 21 ,819
14 JAMMU AND KASHMIR 10,67,961 26,484
15 JHARKHAN D 40,69,980 6,46,786
16 KARNATAKA 7,61 ,689 49,773
17 KERALA 19,21 ,831 74,442
18 LADAKH 19,229 602
19 LAKSHADWEEP 6,084 50
20 MADHYA PRADESH 8,03,617
21 MAHARASHTRA 1 ,78,44,571 72,73,133
22 MANIPUR 5,66,437 15,023
23 MEGHALAYA 49,455 47
24 MIZORAM 1 ,72,241 3,768
25 NAGALAN D 3,08,904 18,425
26 ODISHA 49,27,086 18,83,084
27 PUDUCHERRY 31 ,002 1,183
28 PUNJAB 22,11 ,899 2,57,493
29 RAJASTHAN 75,68,053 14,69,874
30 SIKKIM 38, 134 3,590
31 TAMIL NADU 10,46,675 84,416
32 TELANGANA 4,95,795 1 ,17,796
33 TRIPU RA 1 ,05,000 46,705
34 UTTAR PRADESH 54,80,518 17,38,231
35 UTTARAKHAN D 8,53,703 17,762
36 WEST BENGAL 17,29,802 3,51 ,997
Grand Total 8,51 ,57,422 2,12,90,386