Vijayawada: Financial assistance of Rs 1,000 to white card holders begins

Vijayawada: The State government on Saturday started the distribution of Rs 1,000 corona financial assistance to white ration card holders in the State.

Due to the lockdown being implemented in the State and the country to check the spread of coronavirus, the State government has decided to distribute the ration in advance from March 29 onwards and Rs 1,000 as financial assistance on April 4 to the white ration card holders.

Generally the government starts distribution of ration on the first of every month.

Village and ward volunteers across the State started distribution since early morning on Saturday and handed over the cash to the beneficiaries at their homes.

The State government has sanctioned Rs 1,300 crore for distribution of financial assistance of Rs 1,000 to each family.

It is estimated that 80 per cent of distribution work would be completed on the first day and the remaining will be completed on Sunday.

The government has allotted 50 door numbers to each ward/village volunteer for rendering service to the people.

The volunteers have continued the work from morning to evening. But, due to a technical snag, the volunteers could not complete the work on the first day. The server faced problems as ration distribution was also continuing at the same time.

Financial assistance distribution started in Krishna, Guntur, Nellore, Chittoor, Visakhapatnam, East Godavari, Kadapa, Kurnool and other districts.

Earlier, the District Collectors have supervised the arrangements for the distribution of cash in their respective districts. A total of 1.47 crore white ration cards exist in the State.

But, financial assistance is given to only 1.3 crore. Due to technical reasons, Rs 1,000 is not being distributed to 17 lakh card holders.

Civil Supplies and Consumer Affairs Minister Kodali Venkateswara Rao alias Nani handed over the cash to a white ration card holder in Gudivada on Saturday.

Speaking on the occasion, Nani said Chief Minister Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy took a very important decision to render financial assistance of Rs 1,000 to each white ration card holder in the wake of nation-wide lockdown.