PDS: Telangana State goes hi-tech to track gunny bags

Hyderabad: For the first time in the country, the State IT and Electronics and Communication department has come with a unique concept of fixing RFID tags or QR code enabled system to track the inventory of gunny bags, besides arresting any discrepancies in the distribution of grains. Annually arranging gunny bags for supply of food […]

Hyderabad: For the first time in the country, the State IT and Electronics and Communication department has come with a unique concept of fixing RFID tags or QR code enabled system to track the inventory of gunny bags, besides arresting any discrepancies in the distribution of grains.

Annually arranging gunny bags for supply of food grains through Public Distribution System (PDS) and tracking them has been a perennial issue for the Civil Supplies Department.

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But not anymore, the Emerging Technologies wing of the department has taken up a project using blockchain to track the distribution of gunny bags. Under this initiative, RFID tags or QR codes are fixed to each gunny bag and their movement or location is tracked through a mobile app.

In the app, the users can track the source of the gunny bag, delivery point (at which shop they have been distributed), purpose for which the bag was used (paddy or wheat or other grains) and the batch details of the bags, an official from Emerging Technologies wing said.

A pilot project has been taken up in Siddipet last month. A wi-fi set up was installed at the Mandal Level Stock (MLS) point to facilitate internet service and 1,160 bags were fixed with RFID tags and QR codes.

Through the app, the Civil Supplies Department officials now track the location of the bags. From the MLS, officials can track all the details, including which PDS (ration dealer) shop, the stock were sent, how many bags were available with the particular shop etc, the official said.

“The tags are tampered proof and cannot be damaged. In case any attempts are made, an alert is raised in the central server through which officials can identify the location and initiate action accordingly,” the official explained.

On the reasons for coming up with the initiative, IT Principal Secretary Jayesh Ranjan said the State’s PDS has 2.83 million beneficiaries and uses about 110 million bags annually for food grain distribution.

But tracking the inventory of gunny bags and traceability of supplies is difficult. Hence, a pilot has been initiated where blockchain was deployed to track distribution at the gunny bag level, he said.

“The goal is to have an end-to-end tracking system, eliminating discrepancies in both quantity and quality of food grains,” said Jayesh Ranjan.

For the Civil Supplies Department it is a challenge to ensure sufficient quantity of gunny bags annually for supply of food grains during every season. The department uses about 110 million bags for supply of food grains but not all bags return to the department.

At least, 30 per cent of the procured bags go missing. They either get misplaced or sold in the open market by dealers, despite the Civil Supplies Department willing to purchase the gunny bags, an official from the department said.

Unfortunately, the department does not have any mechanism to track the movement of bags. This move to fix RFID tags or QR code can address the issue, the official added.

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