Food and Civil Supplies Minister KH Muniyappa said a survey found that 90 percent of beneficiaries preferred dal, sugar, cooking oil and salt over the additional rice and felt that it would add to nutrition.
Published Oct 12, 2025 | 7:54 PM ⚊ Updated Oct 12, 2025 | 7:54 PM
Representative image (AI generated)
Synopsis: The Karnataka government has decided to replace the additional five kilograms of rice under the Anna Bhagya scheme with the Indira nutritional kit, providing pulses, sugar, salt and cooking oil to 1.26 crore households, aiming to improve protein and fat intake. Experts and doctors have welcomed the move, noting that it will help reduce reliance on carbohydrate-heavy diets and address health issues such as obesity and pre-diabetes.
The Karnataka government has decided to distribute toor dal, moong dal, sugar, salt and cooking oil in lieu of an additional five kilograms of rice that is currently being distributed for free under the Anna Bhagya guarantee scheme to Below Poverty Line (BPL) families with Antyodaya Anna Yojana (AAY) and Priority Household (PHH) ration cards.
Doctors and food rights activists have welcomed the move, noting it will help people consume a more balanced diet with better sources of protein and fat.
Dr Veena Shatrugna, former Deputy Director of the National Institute of Nutrition (NIN), Hyderabad, explained that Indians need to reduce dependency on cereal-heavy diets.
“It is good that the government is replacing rice with pulse and oil. The problem is Indians are consuming a lot of carbohydrates from our cereal-pulse diet, which leads to obesity and chronic diseases,” Dr Shatrugna told South First.
Food and Civil Supplies Minister KH Muniyappa, speaking to reporters after the Cabinet meeting on Thursday, 9 October, said a survey found that 90 percent of beneficiaries preferred dal, sugar, cooking oil and salt over the additional rice and felt that it would add to nutrition.
The items will be distributed as the Indira (nutritional) food kit in different slabs to 1.26 crore households with 4.48 crore beneficiaries, based on the size of the family.
Families with one or two members will get half a kilogram of each item; families with three or four members will get one kilogram of each item; while families with five or more members will receive one and a half kilograms of each item.
According to a study conducted by the Madras Diabetes Research Foundation and the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) on dietary patterns and metabolic diseases, an individual with the highest intake of carbohydrates could be at a 15–30 percent higher likelihood of developing pre-diabetes, obesity and abdominal obesity compared to those with the lowest intake.
“The replacement of carbohydrates with total protein or protein from various food sources was not associated with risk of general or abdominal obesity,” the study further noted.
Breaking down the ideal diet, Dr Shatrugna said not more than 45–50 percent of calories must come from carbohydrates, 15 percent from good-quality proteins such as milk, eggs and chicken, and 30 percent from fats.
“These must come from diverse foods. So reducing cereals is a good idea,” Dr Shatrugna said.
Dr Shatrugna also called for an improvement in the quality of the food provided.
“Despite these changes, the poor may continue to be deprived of good quality proteins in adequate quantities. For example, mothers may use just 10 grams of dal to make a watery rasam or sambar for a family of five. Poverty teaches women to stretch the little resources they have,” she said.
Researcher and public health doctor Dr Sylvia Karpagam said that the ratio of cereal to pulses should ideally be 3:1 in each meal. “So there should be enough for a family to have a thick dal (rather than watery),” Dr Karpagam told South First.
With the addition of the new nutritional kit, Dr Karpagam said more food groups are being included, such as pulses, oils and fats. “Oils and fats increase the absorption of Vitamins A, D, E and K which is shown to be deficient in children and adolescents in Karnataka,” she added.
However, the researcher also pointed out that these are still only three of the six or seven essential food groups. She called for active efforts to make vegetables, eggs, meat and milk or dairy products available.
“These should also be included in the mid-day meal schemes, Integrated Child Development Services Scheme (ICDS), Indira canteens and HOPCOMS, as these are accessed by the most vulnerable,” she said.
Dr Karpagam also urged the government to ensure that vulnerable groups are not left out in the absence of a BPL card or other necessary documents. “No one who needs the ration should be left out,” she said.
The supply of 10 kg rice under Anna Bhagya, in addition to the Central Government providing five kg of rice for every beneficiary under the National Food Security Act (NFSA), was among the many pre-poll promises that helped the ruling Congress gain power in the 2023 assembly elections.
The promise was to provide five kg rice over and above the five kg distributed to BPL card holders under the existing scheme, which was first launched by the Siddaramaiah government in 2013.
However, the state government could only supply five kg rice initially and provided ₹170 per person per month in lieu of the rest of the promised rice, as the Centre refused to supply the required quantity for the Anna Bhagya scheme.
The issue had also become a bone of contention between the state and the Union government, with Chief Minister Siddaramaiah alleging that the latter was doing politics over the issue.
“The Union government is doing politics. We had written to them (the Food Corporation of India) on 9 June that they should give us 2.28 lakh metric tonnes of rice. They answered on 12 June that they would supply the same. However, on 14 June, the MD and the chairman of the FCI wrote to us that it could not give us rice,” he had said.
Once the Centre agreed to resume supply last year, the state withdrew the Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) of ₹170 and commenced the supply of the additional five kg rice. However, Muniyappa said large-scale diversion of rice and misuse by beneficiaries had also been reported.
“We have been giving 10 kg rice. But later, we did a survey, where we found that 10 kg rice was being misused a bit,” he added.
The state government has also termed the move as a cost-cutting measure. It was spending ₹6,426 crore annually on the additional five kg rice under the Anna Bhagya scheme. With the Indira food kit, the cost will come down to ₹6,119.52 crore annually.
(Edited by Dese Gowda)
