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Context:

• The Union Cabinet has approved the extension for the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Anna Yojana (PMGKAY-Phase VII) for a further period of 3 months.

Details:

About:

• Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Anna Yojana(PMGKAY) is a food security welfare scheme announced in 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic in India.

Operation and Nodal Ministry:

• The program is operated by the Department of Food and Public Distribution under the Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution. But the nodal ministry is the Ministry of Finance.

Aim:

• The scheme aims to feed the poorest citizens of India by providing grain through the Public Distribution System, to all the priority households (ration card holders and those identified by the Antyodaya Anna Yojana scheme). 

Mandate:

• PMGKAY provides 5 kg of rice or wheat (according to regional dietary preferences) per person and 1 kg of dalto each family holding a ration card. The scale of this welfare scheme makes it the largest food security program in the world.

Evaluation:

• As per a study conducted by International Monetary Fund, extreme poverty (less than PPP USD 1.9 per person per day) in India is less than 1 percent in 2019 and it remained at that level even during the COVID-19 pandemic year 2020.
• Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Anna Yojana has been critical in preventing any increase in extreme poverty levels in India during the COVID-19 pandemic.

https://pib.gov.in/PressReleasePage.aspx?PRID=1862944