The Cabinet sub-committee to finalise the new public distribution policy of the Telangana Government deferred its much awaited decision for another week or so.
After a four-hour meeting of the seven-member panel at the Secretariat on Tuesday, its convenor and Finance Minister Eatala Rajender told media persons that it was decided to hold one more sitting after the festival and submit its report to Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao who would take the final decision.
The meeting discussed various aspects of subsidised rice, including the fixation of rate and quantum of monthly supply per head and household.
Surprisingly, Mr. Rajender said the committee discussed whether to hike the rate of rice from the present Rs one to three per kg or more. A few days back, he said free supply of rice as against Rs one a kg was on the cards of the committee.
Reminded about free supply, Mr. Rajender said the committee was looking at all angles.
He also said the present ceiling of four kg of rice per head and 20 kg per household every month also came up for consideration. To what extent, the quantity could be hiked was being discussed.
The Minister said that new white ration cards would be issued to eligible poor people next month. The committee was seized of how to weed out white cards in the hands of people who secured them not for rice but for the purpose of getting government benefits.
