Court notice to government on food security act

The Delhi High Court Wednesday issued notice to the central government on a plea seeking to modification in the rules in the National Food Security Act that requires an applicant to furnish Aadhaar card or enrolment ID for issue of card for the scheme.

A division bench of Chief Justice G. Rohini and Justice Rajiv Sahai Endlaw sought the central government's response by Aug 27.

The PIL, filed by advocate Yogesh Kumar, claimed that a large number of poor population in the city was left out the food security scheme because they don't possess an Aadhaar card or have not registered themselves in the National Population Register (NPR).

The food security card under the act is issued in the name of the senior-most member of the family having annual income of less than Rs.1 lakh and provides subsidized foodgrains to them.

After the National Food Safety Act was implemented in 2013, the Delhi government commenced the process of issuing the national food security card to residents here, said the plea.

Authorities has issued a circular of making it mandatory for applicants to compulsorily add details of the Aadhaar card or enrolment ID for accepting the application form, it further claimed.

It also said that in the absence of the same, the food and supplies department was not accepting such an application form, despite of the fact that the Supreme Court had held that no person should suffer for not having the Aadhaar card.