Karnataka govt starts cash disbursal in lieu of 5 kg rice under 'Anna Bhagya' scheme
Bengaluru, Jul 10: Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Monday launched payment of cash in lieu of the additional 5 kilograms of rice to beneficiaries under the government's 'Anna Bhagya' scheme.
With the launch of the Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) programme, the Congress government in the state is fulfilling one more of its five poll 'guarantees' (promises) announced in the run-up to the elections held in May.
Facing difficulty in procuring large quantities of rice required to implement the poll guarantee, the state government decided to pay cash to beneficiaries at the rate of Rs 34 per kg, for the additional 5 kg of rice under the free rice scheme, which is applicable to every member of a BPL household and 'Antyodaya' households.
According to the state government, Karnataka has 1.28 crore ration cards of 'Antyodaya Anna Yojana and Priority Households'.
As much as 99 per cent of these cards are seeded with an Aadhaar number, it said, adding that 82 per cent (1.06 crore) of these cards are linked with active bank accounts, and the cash transfer will start for these beneficiaries.
The remaining ration card holders will be intimated to open new accounts, it added.
As many as 1.27 crore ration cards have one member designated as head of households (HoH). Cash will be transferred to the bank accounts of these HoHs. It said 94 per cent of HoH are women and 5 per cent are men.
The government has already implemented the first poll guarantee, 'Shakti' by providing free services for women in public transport buses last month. While the 'Gruha Jyothi' scheme to provide 200 units of free electricity to households has already come into effect from the beginning of this month, the electricity bill for the same for power consumption this month will come in the beginning of August.
The remaining two guarantees that the government is taking steps to implement soon are -- Rs 2,000 monthly assistance to the woman head of every family (Gruha Lakshmi); and Rs 3,000 every month for unemployed graduate youth and Rs 1,500 for unemployed diploma holders (Yuva Nidhi).
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Women''s Bill: Stalin says proposal amid polls raises suspicion; backs 33 per cent reservation
Chennai (PTI): Chief Minister M K Stalin on Thursday alleged that the proposed amendment to ensure 33 per cent reservation for women in the midst of polls in states including Tamil Nadu appeared to be yet another political manoeuvre aimed at shaping electoral narratives.
Stalin alleged the timing for the proposed amendment led to serious suspicion.
"Why push such a far-reaching decision in the middle of state elections. This appears to be yet another political manoeuvre aimed at shaping electoral narratives, much like earlier attempts to influence women voters ahead of the 2024 Parliament elections," he alleged in a statement titled "This is not reform, this is reengineering power."
Further, he said: "Let me be unequivocal: we strongly support 33 per cent reservation for women. Our support is absolute. But it must be implemented without increasing seats and without punishing states that acted responsibly. If the intent is genuine, nothing prevents immediate implementation within the existing framework."
Demanding fair delimitation, he alleged there was complete opacity on the basis for delimitation and asked would the exercise rely on 1971 figures from a pre–population control era or the 2021 Census. "Conflicting signals and vague assurances only deepen suspicion." This move would also impose a massive financial burden on states, forcing them to expand or rebuild Legislative Assemblies, all without proper consultation.
"This is a direct assault on cooperative federalism. This is not reform, it is a unilateral, politically driven exercise designed to concentrate power, weaken Parliament, marginalise the South, and undermine social justice," he alleged. "The nation deserves answers: why this undue haste, why shift the goalposts, and who truly stands to benefit."
The NDA government under Prime Minister Narendra Modi is systematically eroding the very foundations of Parliament, he alleged.
The Dravidian party chief claimed: "What should be a vibrant forum for debate and accountability is being reduced to a hollow ritual, a stage where members may not even get fair time to speak or represent their people. This proposal to increase seats is a direct contradiction of their own slogan of minimum government, maximum governance. It will only inflate expenditure, burden taxpayers, and dilute the quality of parliamentary functioning."
This also went against the spirit of Article 1 of the Constitution, which defines India as a Union of States. Ignoring the voices of states and bypassing meaningful consultation is not democratic - it is unitary overreach that undermines the country's federal and plural character.
More alarmingly, this exercise will blatantly skew representation and tilt the balance of power in favour of northern states dominated by the Bharatiya Janata Party, while silencing the voice of south India, he claimed.
"As forcefully pointed out by veteran leader Siddaramaiah (Karnataka CM), this is not a neutral exercise; it is a calculated political restructuring. Northern states stand to gain nearly double the (Parliamentary) seats, while the South’s share stagnates at around 24 per cent. This is nothing short of penalising states like Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Keralam and Telangana for their success in population control."
Chief Ministers across the South, including Siddaramaiah, Pinarayi Vijayan and A Revanth Reddy have rightly warned that this move will distort federalism and concentrate power in a few regions, the DMK president alleged.
PM Modi said on Thursday that the proposed amendments to the Women Reservation Act are not just a legislative exercise but a reflection of the aspirations of crores of women across India and urged all MPs to come together to support this significant move.
He had last week announced an extension of the Budget session of Parliament by three days, from April 16 to 18, so that the Women's Reservation Act can be amended for its implementation from 2029.
