World Food Programme2 Poorvi Marg, Vasant Vihar, New Delhi 110 057 Tel.: +91 11 46554000 Website: www.wfp.org, E-mail: wfp.newdelhi@wfp.org

Voices from the field Now no one else can use my ration cardA beneficiary from Rayagada, who has been using his local Fair Price Shop for ten years, comments on the introduction of the biometrics-based ration card, “The Point of Sale device and the biometric cards were introduced because previously if one of us misplaced our card and someone else found it, the finder could easily use the card and take rations. Many ineligible people had fake cards and some even had multiple cards in the same family and were getting rations they were not entitled to. With the new system only the entitled people get ration cards and only they can use that card. You can take my card but not my fingerprint right! So the misuse of the ration cards by those who are not eligible has definitely stopped now.”

No more fake ration cards According to a beneficiary, “This system ensures that innocent people stop getting duped over their ration cards. With the recent changes, we are seeing that the stealing of ration is decreasing. You cannot copy this card and make a duplicate easily, so that has stopped too. It is a good system and you should roll it out in the whole of Odisha.” Another beneficiary agreed, “This is the best way to reduce mischief. Earlier one person would come with 10-15 cards and take a trolley full of ration. That does not happen anymore”.

It is so easy to useIn Gunupur, Rayagada the local Fair Price Shop is run by Bharatmata Self Help Group, a group of local women. In the last year the operations of their shop have changed drastically with the initiation of the biometric-cards, the Point of Sale device and an electronic weighing machine. Considering most of the women are illiterate, one might have thought that the adoption of this technological solution could have posed a challenge for them. However they sum up their experience a bit differently. “I have now been working with this Self Help Group for 16 years and running the Fair Price Shop for seven years. Initially we were nervous about how would we keep records, as many of us cannot read and write. But then we got some help from another group and some of our younger members who could read and write were designated to keep records. The new reforms in the system have made our work easier. The electronic weighing scales ensure that we don’t have to repeatedly pick up heavy weights and can weigh rations faster. The Point of Sale device authenticates the card holder and ensures that we give ration to the right people. Mortgaging of cards cannot happen anymore as the cardholder has to be biometrically authenticated. We did not know anything about technology earlier. But this has been easy to use and we have got support in learning. Now we can comfortably use this technology. This makes us feel very proud.”

Experiences from RayagadaThe pilot reached out to a population of over a million people being served through nearly 400 Fair Price Shops and provided tremendous learning for an efficient TPDS.

AchievementsRemoval of fake and duplicate cards – Prior to the implementation of the project, the total number of ration cards in circulation in Rayagada were 224,819. After elimination of the ghost and duplicate cards, a list of 191,119 families was finalised by the administration. This reduction could result in savings of about Rs. 9 crores (USD 1.5 million) annually for the government.

Improved tracking systems – Through regularly updated Point of Sale device transactions, it has become easier for the system to be monitored remotely. This is also helping in rationalisation of monthly allocations to each shop as now regular data is available on the monthly allocation and consumption patterns at the Fair Price Shops, paving the way for more efficient implementation.

Beneficiary awareness – At the beginning of the project it was noted that beneficiary awareness levels about their entitlements and the TPDS was very low. Through campaigns organised for the project, awareness on issues including TPDS entitlements has increased manifold among the beneficiaries.

Important lessons learned and the way aheadThrough the Rayagada project, WFP gained valuable experience in implementing TPDS reforms in the field. Furthering the efforts, WFP in consultation with the Government of India undertook an assessment of TPDS reforms in eight States. This was done to develop a Best Practice Model for scale-up of the reforms. WFP’s initiative has already received significant traction. In May, 2013 the Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution, circulated WFP’s Best Practice Model to all States with their endorsement, asking them to consider WFP’s recommendations for implementation in their States.

The Rayagada project provided important lessons to the Government of Odisha; they are now scaling up the WFP Best Practice Model across the State. Some of the initial resistance from the community and the Fair Price Shop owners was overcome through stable systems and increased awareness. The experiences in biometric registration from Rayagada, provided valuable lessons to the Government of India’s Unique Identification Programme. Overall it also provided input for the ongoing TPDS computerisation efforts nationwide by the Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution.

WFP recommends the savings generated from the reformed TPDS should be invested into enhancing the nutritional value of the food basket. Improved efficiency of the system allows the right beneficiaries to be reached with the right kind of food.

Rayagada’s Journey in Food Distribution Reform

Feedback from other stakeholdersMr. Madhu Sudan Padhi, Secretary Food and Civil Supplies, Government of Odisha shared that the Rayagada project benefitted from WFP inputs such as the digitisation of beneficiary database, biometric registration of all citizens in a project initiated prior to the launch of the Unique Identification Programme, de-duplication (bio-metric identifiers enabled removal of duplicate and fraudulent cards) and cleaning of beneficiary database from bogus, ghost and duplicate cards. “At least we now know whoever should be getting [food] is getting it. Without technology, how do we really keep track?”

Kenro Oshidari, Regional Director of WFP Asia highlights that WFP has worked with governments to implement innovative models for food security not just in India but globally as well. “I believe that WFP can assist the Government of India in making substantial savings, especially within the TPDS. If such savings could be invested rationally for enhancing the nutritional contents of the food basket in the TPDS, it will go a long way in reducing the levels of malnutrition in the country.”

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TPDS has colossal potential albeit it is not without its flawsIn 2005, the Planning Commission stated in its performance evaluation of the TPDS that nearly 50 percent of the subsidised food grains issued from the central pool did not reach the intended beneficiaries due to identification errors, non-transparent operations and unethical practices in implementation. WFP’s food security analysis for rural and urban India, further highlighted food insecurity issues pertaining to the effectiveness of the TPDS. Considering the target beneficiary group for the TPDS – the poor and the vulnerable sections of society – and its scale of outreach, WFP believes the TPDS is an essential tool to address food and nutritional security in India. The core premise of the TPDS is that deserving beneficiaries get rations according to their due entitlement.

In 2007, WFP undertook a study of the TPDS as part of the technical assistance provided to the Government of India. This was aimed at understanding the mechanism through which leakages occur and comprehend the underlying structural, social and economic factors that contributed to the loss of food grain. The study confirmed that the physical leakage of food grains is rampant across the entire supply chain. Specific gaps included disparity in ration card issuance, reliance on human monitoring and lack of transparency and concurrent monitoring. Error in identification of eligible beneficiaries is also a significant problem. These findings formed the basis of the conception and design of the Rayagada pilot project.

India produces more than 250 million tonnes of food grains annually, that is enough to feed its population. The country has further experienced significant economic growth in recent years. In the past decade alone, per capita income has more than tripled and India’s economy is now the third largest in the world. However even today, one in every three malnourished children in the world lives in India and one third of all adult women in India are underweight.

Targeted Public Distribution SystemThe Government of India has been using the Targeted Public Distribution System (TPDS) to deliver subsidised food grains to the most vulnerable people. With the new National Food Security Act (NFSA), the TPDS will grow in scope and financial

implication. Under NFSA, the coverage of the TPDS is 813 million people with a projected budget of about Rs. 130,000 crores (USD 21 billion) – it is undoubtedly one of the largest safety net programmes in the world.

An initiative at this scale is likely to encounter variations in performance and effectiveness across regions. The implementation of the TPDS is rife with problems including errors in identifying beneficiaries, diversion of food commodities, leakage of subsidies, lack of monitoring and accountability as well as unviable and therefore poorly functioning Fair Price Shops. These issues severely limit its effectiveness. The Central and State governments are aware of the system’s shortcomings and several reform pilot projects to make the TPDS more effective have been carried out in different parts of the country.

TPDS is operated under the joint responsibility of the Central and the State Governments. The Central Government, through Food Corporation of India, has the responsibility for procurement of grains from farmers at the minimum support price, storage, transportation and bulk allocation of grains to the State Governments. The operational responsibility including allocation within States, identification of eligible families, issuance of ration cards and monthly distribution of food grains to beneficiaries rests with the State Governments.

With a presence in over 80 countries, United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) is the world’s largest humanitarian agency fighting hunger. In India, WFP has been working in close collaboration with the Government of India to support various food-based schemes since 1963. Since India is now producing enough food for its domestic requirements, WFP has realigned its focus from being a food aid provider to a catalytic partner to the Government of India, working to strengthen the food-based safety net programmes by providing technical assistance and capacity development. With the large number of malnourished people residing in India, the actualisation of WFP’s vision of ending hunger worldwide is unfeasible without substantial progress here.

Genesis of the Rayagada pilot The Rayagada project was formulated in discussion with the Department of Food and Civil Supplies, the Government of Odisha, with the objective of improving targeting and reducing the leakages through the use of Information and Communication Technology, especially the use of biometrics. The TPDS in Rayagada had several problems which included cards in circulation in the name of non-existent people, more than one card in the name of a person/family and genuine cards in the hands of ineligible people. WFP and the Government of Odisha signed an agreement in October 2007 to initiate the Rayagada pilot.

Rayagada

Rayagada is a remote district of Odisha with about 60% tribal population and having low literacy rates. About 73% of resident families live below the poverty line. Household food security is a major concern for the local administration not just for the households below the poverty line as even households above the poverty line are vulnerable to food insecurity due to socio-economic and climatic conditions coupled with poor institutional framework.

This region posed several challenges to successful implementation of the pilot including limited network coverage and connectivity issues such as inaccessible roads. While it was perceived to be a very challenging district to test a technological intervention, the rationale remained that if it worked there, it would be easily scalable. Further the objective of the pilot was also to determine which technologies worked best in a difficult environment.

Key features of the Rayagada pilotThe Rayagada pilot with the distinct objective of improving targeting and reducing leakages involved a few steps -

1. Beneficiary list digitisation: Beneficiary lists, provided by the Government of Odisha based on the 2002 Below Poverty Line census, were digitised. This formed the basis for biometric enrolment.

2. Biometric enrolment and de-duplication:Awareness campaigns were undertaken to highlight the importance of enrolment, inviting each individual of the family to register biometrically. Camps were organised for biometric enrolment. The registration included documenting 10 finger prints and photographs of all beneficiaries. In three blocks iris of both eyes were also captured. Rayagada has been the first such project to use multi-modal biometric registration at this scale. After the biometric registration, a de-duplication process, based on the inherent uniqueness of biometrics, was used to identify and remove the duplicates. This was followed by physical verification by the Government of the duplicates before cancelling those cards.

3. Creation of unique beneficiary database and issuing ration cards:The unique database formed after removing all fake and duplicate cards was used to issue fresh ration cards in three forms, namely biometric smart cards or laminated barcoded paper cards or barcoded coupons to the beneficiaries. The distribution was against biometric verification and hence it could be ensured that only valid, physically existing individuals get the cards/coupons. Village level distribution camps and awareness campaigns were organised for transparency.

4. Development of solution and implementation:A Point of Sale device-based solution was developed for the urban Fair Price Shops and a coupon-based solution was developed for the rural areas. Three categories piloted for implementation are as follows:A. Smart Card solution with a chip containing biometrics which can be read through the

Point of Sale deviceB. Laminated barcoded paper cards that can be read through a barcode scanner, linked to

the Point of Sale device, which holds the beneficiary biometrics. C. Barcoded coupons that are collected and scanned to upload transactions on the

management information system. No Point of Sale device is needed for this solution. The coupons were printed in a secure press and had a variety of embedded security features, to prevent use of photocopies.

A management information system was developed to track and monitor transactions and consumption patterns of commodities.

5. Capacity building of Fair Price Shop owners and Government field staff:The success of the reforms relied on ensuring that the relevant stakeholders could navigate the innovations with ease and had access to the necessary support for troubleshooting. Hence, training was conducted for Fair Price Shop owners and the Government field staff. Regular visits to Fair Price Shops were organised for the technological vendor for troubleshooting problems.

The actual ration distribution through the reformed system started in August 2010, launched by the Honourable Chief Minister, Mr. Naveen Patnaik. Reflecting on the success of the project and its larger potential, he announced the intent of state-wide scale-up of the reforms. Having worked closely with the Government of Odisha, WFP is in the process of handing over the Rayagada project to them by the end of 2013. WFP will continue to provide guidance and support to ensure smooth transition and sustainability of the project, while assisting the larger state-wide scale-up in Odisha.

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