What are the major challenges of Public Distribution System (PDS) in India? How can it be made effective and transparent? (UPSC 2022)

PDS is India’s key food-security net, but it faces leakages, exclusion and weak nutritional impact.

Challenges: ghost and duplicate ration cards, inclusion-exclusion errors, biometric failures, poor connectivity in remote areas, diversion during transport and at Fair Price Shops, storage losses, and low dealer margins. It is also cereal-heavy and does not ensure dietary diversity.

Making it effective: improve digitisation through Aadhaar seeding, ePoS, QR/GPS tracking and real-time stock monitoring; strengthen decentralised procurement, storage and dealer commissions; and include millets, pulses and fortified foods.

Transparency: ensure social audits, active grievance redressal, public display of entitlements and stock at FPS, and regular removal of fake beneficiaries.

Technology, local oversight and nutritional diversification can make PDS more efficient, transparent and equitable.