Current Affairs

Maharashtra's first 'Annapurti Grain ATM' opens at Nashik Road – beneficiaries get ration at their convenience

18-10-2026 · English

Maharashtra's first 'Annapurti Grain ATM' opens at Nashik Road – beneficiaries get ration at their convenience

Topics: Welfare Schemes · 18 October 2026 Current Affairs (UPSC / TNPSC / SSC / RRB)

News

Maharashtra's first 'Annapurti Grain ATM' was inaugurated at Nashik Road (Gorewadi Road, near the Divisional Commissioner's Office) by State Food and Civil Supplies Minister Chhagan Bhujbal on 17 Oct 2026. Set up by the State with the UN World Food Programme (WFP), it lets beneficiaries – such as workers and migrants who cannot reach fair price shops during fixed hours – collect grain round the clock at their convenience. The next two grain ATMs are planned at Nagpur and Thane.

Key facts

PlaceNashik Road, Nashik district, Maharashtra – State's first grain ATM
Opened byMinister Chhagan Bhujbal (Food, Civil Supplies & Consumer Protection); 17 Oct 2026
PartnerUN World Food Programme (WFP)
NextNagpur, Thane
State PDSAbout 54,000 fair price shops; 7–7.5 crore beneficiaries
India's firstBhubaneswar, Odisha – 9 Aug 2024 (WFP–Odisha Govt); up to 50 kg in 5 minutes

Background

  • Annapurti means 'fulfiller of food' in Hindi. It dispenses rice / wheat 24×7 after biometric (Aadhaar) authentication; no under-weighing; waiting time cut by 70%; can run on solar panels. India's first Annapurti – Bhubaneswar (Odisha), 9 Aug 2024; Gujarat's first – Bhavnagar, 17 Sept 2024.
  • Law: National Food Security Act (NFSA), 2013 – subsidised grain for up to 75% of the rural and 50% of the urban population; 5 kg per person a month for priority households and 35 kg per family for Antyodaya (AAY). PM Garib Kalyan Anna Yojana (PMGKAY) – free grain for 5 years from 1 Jan 2024 (to 2028). 'One Nation One Ration Card' (ONORC) – ration from any State.
  • World Food Programme (WFP): UN agency, 1961; HQ Rome (Italy); won the 2020 Nobel Peace Prize. Geography: Nashik is on the Godavari; one of the four Kumbh Mela sites.

Tamil Nadu link: Tamil Nadu follows a Universal PDS covering all family-card holders. The Tamil Nadu Civil Supplies Corporation (TNCSC) was set up in 1972 for procurement, storage and distribution – Tamil Nadu was the first State to set up such a corporation.

Source: Deshdoot, UNI, 17 Oct 2026; Free Press Journal, Saamana, News18 Marathi, 18 Oct 2026; UN India / WFP (Aug 2024); TNCSC website

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