Davanagere: The food and civil supplies department in Davanagere district has disqualified 7,546 Below Poverty Line (BPL) and Antyodaya Anna Yojana cardholders after finding them ineligible under the prescribed criteria. Their cards have now been converted to Above Poverty Line (APL) status.The move follows complaints that several ineligible families were availing govt benefits such as subsidised rice. Verification of records revealed that some cardholders exceeded the eligibility parameters. The disqualification process was carried out in accordance with state and central govt guidelines.According to sources, Davanagere district had a total of 3.7 lakh families with BPL and Antyodaya cards, of which 7,546 were found to be ineligible. In a related development, food, civil supplies and consumer affairs minister KH Muniyappa, speaking in Shivamogga, said around 15% of BPL cards had been cancelled statewide, assuring that genuinely eligible families need not worry.KP Madhusudan, joint director of the department, clarified that there is scope for re-evaluation. “If eligible beneficiaries have been mistakenly converted to APL due to oversight or data errors, they can appeal for re-inclusion,” he said. Beneficiaries can check their card status at fair price shops and approach the nearest food inspector if discrepancies are found. “If the complaint is verified, their BPL or Antyodaya status will be restored,” he added.Officials stated that the main reasons for card cancellation included non-utilisation of rations for over 12 months, payment of GST or income tax, ownership of more than 7.5 acres of land, possession of ration cards in two locations, and ownership of a personal vehicle, among others.Avaragere Chandru, CPI district secretary, welcomed the move to weed out ineligible beneficiaries but warned against penalising deserving families. “The subsidised rice under these schemes is a lifeline for poor and daily wage workers. While identifying ineligible families is necessary, no injustice should be done to those genuinely in need. If deserving families are wrongly excluded, we will launch a protest,” he cautioned.
