Kerala govt to distibute food kits to 90 lakh ration card holders for Onam

Thiruvananthapuram: The Kerala government will distribute special food kits during Onam festival season to 90 lakh ration card holders, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan said on Friday.

A decision in this regard was taken by the state cabinet at a meeting on Thursday.

"Onam is Kerala's most popular festival. We will distribute special food kits so that Onam can be celebrated by all Keralites. More than 90 lakh ration card holders will be benefited. The pandemic induced economic challenges should not dampen the festive spirits of our people," Vijayan tweeted.

The much popular free food kit distribution to nearly 90 lakh families across Kerala started as a welfare measure to aid people when the state went into a lockdown due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Since the outbreak of the pandemic, each family in the state, including both below poverty line (BPL) and above poverty line (APL) ration card holders, had been receiving the same.

The kit contains 17 ingredients. For this Onam, the government plans to increase the number of ingredients in the kit.