The Odisha government plans to introduce rice ATMs in four more districts to improve food access for poor families, Food Supplies and Consumer Welfare Minister Krushna Chandra Patra informed the state assembly on Wednesday.
Replying to a written question by Gautam Buddha Das of the Biju Janata Dal, the minister said rice ATMs will soon be installed in the districts of Jharsuguda, Nabarangpur, Keonjhar and Dhenkanal.
Patra said the stateтАЩs first rice ATM was set up in 2024 in the Mancheswar area under the Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation in Bhubaneswar district.
Since July 2024, about 20,217 ration card holders have received nearly 3,800 quintals of rice from the Mancheswar rice ATM, he added.
The facility was established with support from the World Food Programme.
The minister said the state government has not made a separate budget allocation for the rice ATM initiative in the 2025тАУ26 financial year.
The rice ATM programme aims to improve food and nutrition security for poor households by ensuring round-the-clock access to rice.
Beneficiaries can collect rice through biometric authentication using their Unique Identification Authority of India Aadhaar card. After verification, the machine dispenses the allotted quantity of rice within about five minutes.
