Union Home Minister and Minister of Cooperation Amit Shah on Sunday launched a Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC)-based Public Distribution System (PDS) in Gandhinagar, Gujarat, describing it as a transformative step towards transparent and technology-driven food distribution. The initiative was unveiled in the presence of Gujarat Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel and Union Minister for Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution Pralhad Joshi.
Addressing the gathering, Shah said the Digital India mission, inspired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, is now extending to the food and supply system. He noted that the Prime Minister has given first priority over the nation’s resources to the poor, Dalits, backward classes and tribal communities. Recalling that nearly 60 crore people earlier did not have bank accounts, Shah said India today accounts for nearly half of the world’s digital transactions, reflecting the scale of digital transformation in the past decade.
The Home Minister said the CBDC-based PDS will eliminate corruption and middlemen in ration distribution and ensure food grains reach beneficiaries through a secure digital mechanism. Drawing parallels with Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT), which curbed leakages in welfare schemes, he said the new system will implement the Prime Minister’s vision of ‘Minimum Government, Maximum Governance’ at the grassroots level in the food distribution sector.
The Home Minister also inaugurated the ‘Annapurna’ machine, which can dispense 25 kg of food grains in 35 seconds, ensuring accurate quantity and improved quality checks. He said the system would be rolled out across the country in the next three to four years, from Kashmir to Kanyakumari and from Dwarka to Kamakhya. Once fully implemented, every eligible beneficiary will seamlessly receive 5 kg of free food grains under the government’s food security programme, he added.
Highlighting welfare initiatives, Shah said 5 kg of free food grains per person per month are being provided to 80 crore people, while over 1.09 crore street vendors have benefited from the PM SVANidhi scheme. He stated that over the past decade, more than 60 crore people have witnessed improvements in living standards and 27 crore people have been lifted above the poverty line.
On agriculture, Shah said the agriculture budget has been increased from Rs 26,000 crore under the previous government to Rs 1.29 lakh crore. He added that farmers are receiving Rs 6,000 annually directly in their bank accounts under the PM-KISAN scheme, creating financial security without the need for repeated loan waivers.
Responding to criticism over Free Trade Agreements (FTAs) with the European Union and the UK, and the trade deal with the United States, he said the agreements safeguard the interests of farmers, fishermen and livestock rearers. Shah stressed that earlier governments made farmers insecure through policies such as the Dunkel Proposal, whereas the present government has protected key sectors, including dairy, while expanding global market access for Indian agricultural products.
The Home Minister asserted that the CBDC-based PDS marks the end of opacity in food distribution and ensures that the right to food for every poor citizen is protected through a secure and transparent system.
