Lucknow

In his first cabinet meeting on Saturday after taking charge as Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister for the second consecutive term, Adityanath said his government has extended the free ration scheme for the next three months for the benefit of 15 crore people of the state.

"In the cabinet meeting today, we have decided to extend the free ration scheme for the next 3 months. It will benefit 15 crore people of the state," Adityanath said.

Deputy Chief Minister Keshav Prasad Maurya said that the government will spend Rs 3,270 crore for the scheme.

"In the first cabinet meeting today, we have extended the free ration scheme for the next 3 months. For this, the govt will spend Rs 3,270 crore. It will benefit 15 crore people," he added.

The Chief Minister chaired the first cabinet meeting at 10 am on Saturday in Lok Bhawan, Lucknow.

Earlier on Friday, Adityanath took oath as the chief minister of the state in a jam-packed Atal Bihari Vajpayee Ekana Cricket Stadium in Lucknow. A total of 52 ministers took oath as ministers, including two deputy Chief Ministers.

As per the eligibility prescribed under the National Food Security (NFS) Act 2013, five kg of foodgrains is given free of cost to the needy people including migrant workers, unorganised workers, construction workers, domestic helpers, and those who do not have ration cards. Of this 5 kg food, 4 kg is wheat and 1 kg is rice per person per month.

The free ration scheme for the economically weaker sections was started during the corona pandemic period. The scheme was supposed to last till November 2021 but the Centre extended Pradhan Mantri Garib Anna Yojana till March 2022.