2022 · GS Paper 3 · Q3 · 10 marks
What are the major challenges of Public Distribution System (PDS) in India ? How can it be made effective and transparent ?
In short
The PDS still suffers exclusion errors, leakage, poor storage, weak accountability and a cereal-only basket, and it can be made effective and transparent through end-to-end digitisation with fallbacks, grain tracking, ration portability and social audits. The Shanta Kumar Committee (2015) estimated PDS leakage at 46%.
Model answer
Ghissu Editorial · Verified 4 Oct 2026 · 269 words
Exclusion errors
Quotas still rest on Census 2011, and biometric failures deny rations, as Santoshi Kumari's death in Jharkhand (2017) after her card was cancelled showed.
Leakage and diversion
The Shanta Kumar Committee (2015) estimated 46% leakage through transport pilferage and dealer diversion.
Quality and nutrition
Open storage damages grain, and a cereal-only basket does little for the 35.5% of stunted under-fives (NFHS-5, 2019-21).
Weak accountability
NFSA vigilance committees and grievance officers are largely inactive.
End-to-end digitisation
Extend e-PoS, already in over 5.50 lakh fair price shops, with iris or face authentication and an offline mode as fallbacks so no eligible person is turned away.
Track the grain
Use GPS-tracked trucks and SMS dispatch alerts, as in Chhattisgarh, and the Anna Chakra route optimiser (2024).
Portability and inclusion
One Nation One Ration Card and registration of e-Shram migrants, as the Supreme Court has directed.
Community oversight
SHG-run shops, NFSA Section 28 social audits, and pulses, millets and fortified rice in the basket.
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Question from the official UPSC Civil Services (Main) Examination 2022 paper. Answer written by Ghissu's engine and checked against our editorial standards. Found an error? Tell us and we correct it within 48 hours.