Delhi Election 2025: 3 lakh ration card applications await nod; 84,000 issued in last 5 years, shows RTI reply

More than three lakh ration card applications are pending in Delhi as of December 30, 2024, the Delhi government said in its reply to a query raised under the Right to Information (RTI) Act. It also stated that around 84,000 ration card applications were approved in the last five years. "Total no.

of ration card applications pending as of December 30, 2024 is 3,37,444. Total no. of applications approved in the last five years is 84,692," the Information Technology branch of the Delhi government's Department of Food Supplies and Consumer Affairs told Mint in the RTI reply.



The RTI query was filed on December 30 last year. The RTI reply also mentioned category-wise data. It said 73,697 applications under the Antyodaya Anna Yojna (AAY) category were pending, 346 applications under the Priority Category having sugar entitlement (PR-S) and 2,63,401 applications under the Priority (PR) category are pending with the government so far.

A ration card is issued to any Indian citizen who is a permanent resident of Delhi and eligible under the National Food Security Act, 2013, according to a Delhi government document. Oppn attacks AAP over ration cards Ahead of the Delhi Assembly Elections, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and its chief Arvind Kejriwal said it is committed to issuing ration cards to those left out of the system. The Opposition also attacked the AAP government in Delhi over the lagging facility of issuing ration cards in the national capital.

Bharatiya Janata Party leader Manoj Tiwari said in early January, "Arvind Kejriwal should remember that they stopped 'Ayushman Yojana', they stopped the registration of houses for the poor in government- authorised colonies...

they stopped pension, ration card...

" Delhi Congress President and candidate from Badli Assembly constituency, Devendra Yadav, was also quoted by ANI as saying, “Judging by people's mood, Delhi citizens are troubled by the rule of AAP, whether it is the problem of pension of the poor, ration card and dirty water.” Delay in ration card allotment Many in the national capital have complained about the delay in the allotment of ration card. One of the RTIs, dated December 12, 2024, filed with the Department of Food Supplies and Consumer Affairs sought details about an application for AAY ration card.

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it has been more than prescribed 30 Working Days still the application status show it is under Verification, I seek the Reason why the application is being Delayed," the RTI applicant asked. The Delhi department responded, “As per policy laid down by the Delhi government, no ration card is issued under the AAY category at present.” Several such people, many belonging to the poor section of society, complained about not receiving ration cards despite years of delay.

In October last year, Lieutenant Governor VK Saxena had directed the chief secretary to probe the AAP government’s alleged failure to issue ration cards to 90,000 poor people. The AAP government had then termed the allegations “baseless, malicious, concocted and mischievous”..