The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) has approved a major reform to improve the quality of rice distributed under the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Anna Yojana (PMGKAY) and other welfare schemes, benefiting more than 80 crore people across the country.
For the first time in nearly three decades, the government has revised the quality specifications of rice supplied through the Public Distribution System (PDS). Under the new norms, raw rice distributed under PMGKAY will contain a maximum of 10% broken grains, compared with the earlier limit of 25%, while parboiled rice will have a maximum of 5% broken grains, down from 16%.
Procurement of the improved-quality rice will begin immediately and will be rolled out in a phased manner across all procuring states by the Kharif Marketing Season (KMS) 2027–28. Distribution under PMGKAY and other welfare schemes will also be implemented gradually to ensure a smooth transition.
The government said the revised specifications will provide beneficiaries with rice of better grain quality, improved appearance and higher consumer acceptability, without any change in their existing entitlements.
Broken rice separated during the milling process will be utilised for other productive purposes, ensuring that higher-quality edible rice reaches beneficiaries.
The reform is also expected to generate significant fiscal and operational benefits. The government estimates annual cost savings of around Rs 2,161 crore through lower transportation, storage and packaging costs. Additional revenue from the sale of broken rice is also expected to help reduce the food subsidy burden.
The proposal has already been successfully piloted in Haryana, Andhra Pradesh, Punjab, Odisha, Telangana and Chhattisgarh, demonstrating its operational feasibility. The improved-quality rice produced under these pilot projects will also be supplied under PMGKAY and other welfare schemes.
To enhance transparency, the government will introduce QR code tagging of rice bags, enabling end-to-end traceability across the supply chain, strengthening inventory management and reducing the scope for leakages in the Public Distribution System.