Implement one nation, one ration card by July 31: Supreme Court

New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Tuesday directed states and union territories to implement the 'one nation, one ration card scheme' till July 31, while asking the Centre to provide dry ration for free distribution among migrant workers till the COVID-19 situation continues.

A bench of justices Ashok Bhushan and M R Shah issued a slew of directions on a plea of three activists seeking directions to the Centre and states to ensure food security, cash transfers and other welfare measures for migrant workers who faced distress again due to curfews and lockdowns in various parts of country during the second wave of COVID-19.

The bench directed the Centre to develop a portal with the help of the National Informatics Centre (NIC) for registration of unorganised sector workers for granting them the benefits of welfare schemes by July 31. It also directed the states, UTs to run community kitchens for migrant workers till the pandemic situation continues in respective states.

It asked the Centre to keep allocating food grains to the states, UTs for distribution among migrant workers for free till the pandemic situation exists. Activists Anjali Bharadwaj, Harsh Mander and Jagdeep Chhokar had filed a plea seeking implementation of welfare measures for migrant workers.

Meanwhile, The Centre and the Delhi government sparred in the Supreme Court over "One Nation One Ration Card" plan with the former accusing the latter of not implementing the scheme which provides for countrywide portability of the card of poor migrant workers and their families.

While the Delhi government submitted that it has implemented the ONORC scheme, Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, representing the Centre, said the national capital administration has not implemented it fully. The Centre said the Delhi government has implemented the scheme in "one circle, that is, Circle No.63, Seemapuri, only a handful of transactions with 42 e-POS machines have been done".

A bench of justices Ashok Bhushan and M R Shah, in its 80-page judgement, took note of the submission of the Centre that Chhattisgarh, West Bengal, Assam and Delhi have not implemented the ONORC scheme.