Under the chairmanship of Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi, the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) has approved the continuation of the “Assistance for Ration Transport and Handling, and Automation in Public Distribution” (SARTHEK-PDS) scheme as a comprehensive scheme during the allocation period of the 16th Finance Commission, involving an outlay of ₹25,530 crore from the Central Government.
The CCEA has also decided to revise the norms for Central Assistance to meet the expenditure incurred by States/Union Territories on the inter-state movement and handling of food grains, as well as on the margins of Fair Price Shop (FPS) dealers, and to continue the existing financing pattern for Central Assistance.
This scheme has been envisaged as a comprehensive program that integrates the following existing schemes: (i) “Assistance to State Agencies for Intra-State Movement of Foodgrains and FPS Dealers’ Margins under NFSA” and (ii) “Scheme for Modernization and Reforms through Technology in Public Distribution System (Smart PDS),” intending to comprehensively strengthen the implementation of the National Food Security Act, 2013 (NFSA).
The objectives of the SARTHEK-PDS scheme are to (a) provide assured financial assistance for inter-state movement, handling, and FPS dealers’ margins, and (b) provide an integrated, citizen-centric, intelligent, and interoperable PDS framework that ensures last-mile delivery, minimises leakages, and reinforces the nation’s commitment to food security under the NFSA. This integrated scheme will remain operational until March 31, 2031.
The SARTHEK-PDS scheme aims to modernise, integrate, and intelligently optimise PDS operations through advanced technologies such as Artificial Intelligence (AI), Machine Learning (ML), Natural Language Processing (NLP), and Blockchain. To facilitate this, standardised frameworks for real-time monitoring, integrated databases, an AI-driven grievance redressal and analytics system, State Command and Control Centres for data-driven inspections, and ISO-certified processing structures have been established to ensure transparency, security, and stability in PDS operations.
Providing food and nutritional security to the citizens by making available adequate quantities of quality food grains constitutes a social and legal commitment of the Government of India towards its people, thereby enabling them to lead a life of dignity. This scheme will work towards fulfilling the Government of India’s commitment to the 81.35 crore individuals covered under the National Food Security (NFS) framework. Grounded in a robust statutory and policy framework, the ‘Samarth-PDS’ scheme streamlines the financial assistance component while retaining its core essence, simultaneously integrating it into a modern, technology-driven PDS ecosystem.
Over the past decade, the government has implemented several digitisation initiatives—such as the end-to-end computerisation of TPDS, Integrated Management of PDS (IM-PDS), and Smart PDS—alongside citizen-centric initiatives like ‘Mera Ration’, ‘Ann Mitra’, the ‘Rightful Targeting Dashboard’, and ‘Ann Sahayata’. Since April 1, 2023, the Smart PDS scheme has served as the cornerstone for technology-driven reforms across 36 States and Union Territories, enabling the complete digitisation of ration cards, Aadhaar seeding, Fair Price Shop (FPS) automation via e-POS devices, online allocation, and computerised supply-chain management.
