Digital currency-based PDS to debut in Gujarat tomorrow

Gandhinagar: Union home minister Amit Shah will inaugurate India's first Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC)-based Public Distribution System (PDS) on Sunday, marking a major step in the digitisation of subsidy delivery in Gujarat.The initiative, rolled out by the state's food, civil supplies and consumer affairs department, enables subsidy transfers through a Reserve Bank of India-authorised CBDC platform. Developed by Punjab National Bank, the system will credit beneficiaries' digital wallets with tokens specifying the commodity, quantity and price.
In the pilot phase, 26,333 families in the Sabarmati zone of Ahmedabad, as well as in Surat, Anand and Valsad, have been covered. Beneficiaries with smartphones can authenticate transactions using QR codes, while feature phone users will receive one-time passwords through Aadhaar-based verification, according to an official statement.Chief minister Bhupendra Patel, Union minister Pralhad Joshi and deputy chief minister Harsh Sanghavi will attend the launch.The state will also begin distributing ‘tur' and ‘chana' in standardised 1kg sealed packs to beneficiaries under the National Food Security Act, replacing loose grain distribution to ensure quality.An ‘Annapurti Grain ATM' capable of dispensing up to 25kg of grain in 35 seconds will be launched in Sabarmati. Additionally, the govt will sign MoUs with CARE Ratings and the Consumer Education and Research Centre to introduce a Consumer Responsibility Index and set up a pre-litigation conciliation mechanism for faster dispute resolution.