Over 2 crore 'ghost beneficiaries' removed after ration card verification
What's the story
The Department of Food and Public Distribution (DFPD) has flagged over 2.12 crore ineligible beneficiaries for removal from the Targeted Public Distribution System (TPDS), which was carried out by states and Union Territories. The move is part of a massive data-driven review conducted by the government between 2024 and 2025. The Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution disclosed this information in response to a query on beneficiary scrutiny under the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Anna Yojana (PMGKAY).
Verification process
Data integration across key government databases
The verification process involved data integration across major government databases such as Aadhaar, Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT), Ministry of Road Transport and Highways, Ministry of Corporate Affairs and Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs. Over 8.51 crore beneficiaries were flagged for verification during this analytics-led review. The DFPD's analysis aimed to help states identify irregular or inactive entries in their ration card lists.
Flagging criteria
Criteria for flagging suspicious records
Several indicators were used to mark suspicious records, including beneficiaries over 100 years old, ration cards with no recent transactions, duplicate or overlapping entries, single-member ration cards issued to minors, and cases where individuals were reported deceased or had permanently shifted out of their location. These findings were shared with state and Union Territory administrations responsible for implementing the Public Distribution System.
Reforms impact
Ongoing TPDS reforms lead to further deletions
The ministry also noted that Bihar removed nearly 16.9 lakh ration cards in 2024 and an additional 1.49 lakh in 2025, while Haryana reported over 13.4 lakh deletions this year alone. Uttar Pradesh removed a total of over 14 lakh entries during the same period, with West Bengal and Madhya Pradesh also carrying out major cleanups exceeding five lakh deletions each in 2024.