Chennai, Aug 12 (IANS) Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M.K. Stalin will on Tuesday launch the ‘Chief Minister’s Thayumanavar Scheme’, a new welfare initiative aimed at delivering essential commodities directly to the homes of senior citizens aged above 70 years and persons with disabilities.

The scheme is designed to ensure that vulnerable sections of society receive their Public Distribution System (PDS) entitlements without the hardship of visiting fair price shops. Beneficiaries will receive their monthly allocation of rice, sugar, wheat, palmolein oil, and toor dal — the key commodities supplied under the PDS — at their doorsteps.

According to official data, Tamil Nadu has 2.26 crore ration cards covering a population of around seven crore. Of these, 16.73 lakh ration cards, benefiting a total of 21.7 lakh people, will come under the Thayumanavar Scheme. This includes 15.81 lakh family ration cards with at least one elderly member, covering 20.42 lakh beneficiaries, and 91,969 ration cards for households with one or more disabled members, benefiting an additional 1.27 lakh people.

The state government had approved the plan earlier this year, and from now on, deliveries will be made on the second Saturday and Sunday of every month.

Staff from the Co-operation Department, attached to respective ration shops, will transport the goods using mini-vans and other vehicles equipped with point-of-sale (PoS) machines and weighing scales.

Beneficiaries will receive their commodities after Aadhaar authentication at their doorstep.

Officials said the scheme will be especially valuable for households where all members are aged above 70, with no adult below 18 years, and for households in which all members are disabled or where only one member is disabled with no other adult present.

By eliminating the need for vulnerable citizens to travel to ration shops, the initiative aims to enhance both convenience and food security.

“The Thayumanavar Scheme will make life easier for elderly and disabled people who find it difficult to collect their rations in person. It will ensure that they have uninterrupted access to their entitled commodities,” an official from the Co-operation Department said.

The government expects that the monthly service will not only improve the quality of life for these sections of the population but also set a model for inclusive welfare delivery in the state.

–IANS

aal/dpb