Anna Bhagya Scheme: Karnataka to distribute cash instead of rice from July 10, says CM Siddaramaiah

Bengaluru (Karnataka) [India], July 1 : Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Saturday said that his government will distribute from July 10 onwards, money in place of free rice promised under the Anna Bhagya Scheme to Below Poverty Line (BPL) cardholders.

"We said that we will give money instead of rice in the month of July. But we have not said that the government will pay on July 1. From July 10, the process of giving money instead of rice will start," Siddaramaiah said while talking to reporters here.

Ahead of Assembly polls, the Congress had promised 10 kilograms of rice per person through the Public Distribution System under the Anna Bhagya scheme, in its election manifesto.

As the Karnataka government is facing difficulty in procuring large quantities of rice, it has decided that instead of providing 5 kg additional rice to beneficiaries as promised under the 'Anna Bhagya' scheme, it would give cash at the rate of Rs 34 per kilo.

Earlier this week Siddaramaiah said that an amount of Rs 170 instead of 5 kg of rice (Rs34 per kg) will be credited to the account of the beneficiaries through DBT until the state government is able to procure rice.