Hyderabad: The Centre has selected 15 Fair Price Shops (FPS) in Hyderabad to be part of a pilot project in Telangana aimed at increasing the income of dealers. Named Jan Poshan Kendras they will sell items to meet the nutritional requirements of people apart from the rice, wheat and sugar.
As part of the project shops will be opened in Jaipur, Ghaziabad and Ahmedabad. The shops will be allowed to sell 3,500 items like pulses, edible oils among others.
Explaining the thought behind the programme, G. Phaneendra Reddy, IAS, chief rationing officer for Hyderabad said, “The centre is trying to beef up the income of the dealers by adding new income to them. If found viable it could be expanded to other PDS shops in the future. Dealers can earn additional margin by purchasing directly from businesses through the UDAAN and Jumbotail apps by avoiding middle men though they can buy from outside sellers also. They can thus supplement their income. Those who don’t have ration cards can also purchase from these shops.”
It may be noted that the fair price shops on average are open for 15 days in a month but have to foot the rent and other expenses for the entire month. “The centre will give a grant of Rs 50,000 from Sidbi (Small Industries Development Bank of India) to make arrangements for the new stocks to dealers. With a clientele of around 800 customers on average these shops can sell to them apart from others and increase their income,” he said.
