Literature Review For:

Does the digitisation of PDS count as “Good Governance?”

Written By: Purvi Reddy, Luvya Khushalani, Abhisar Gupta, Soumik Chowdhury, Urja Manaktala

Citation Section Quotes Analysis

Masiero, Silvia. Digitisation of PDS The ‘rice mafia’ results from the systematic diversion, triggered by high Persistent problems with PDS,
"UID/Aadhar and the PDS: price differences, of PDS food grains to the open market, which results digitisation does not sufficiently
what new technologies in massive reductions in the amount of PDS commodities actually made deal with them
mean for India’s food available to the poor in ration shops.
security system." India at
LSE (2014).
However, my fieldwork findings –confirmed by previous literature; e.g.
Khera (2011) – indicate that a substantial share of diversion happens
before PDS food grains reach ration shops

Ferguson, Rhonda, et al. Digital Platforms in India The farmers’ experiences utilising eKutir’s technology are examined to Farmer using various kinds of
“Digital Technologies and understand how it aids them in meeting their food security technologies to improve
food security during crisis: requirements, sustaining their livelihoods and participating in local food outcomes - feasibility
Covid-19 experiences from systems before and during the pandemic.
smallholder farmers in
Odisha, India.” Frontiers in
Sustainable Food Systems,
Our findings reveal that access to eKutir’s platform enabled farmers to
vol. 7, 16 Jan. 2024, remain connected to essential markets, continue earning income, and
https://doi.org/10.3389/fsufs support local food systems during the COVID pandemic
.2023.1150197

Gupte, Aakanksha, and History of PDS in India Introduction of AePDS: Government policies that outline
Gayatri Doctor. "AADHAR ● AePDS was introduced in compliance with end-to-end PDS digitisation and
enabled public distribution computerization strategy by Government of India in 2015. implementation of technologies
system (AEPDS), ● This compelled beneficiaries to seed their Aadhar cards with
beneficiary survey and
ration cards. Also explores the objectives of
assessment framework."
(2021).
● Thus, authenticating the biometrics of the beneficiary coming digitisation
to the FPSs at the UIDAI server.
Objectives of AePDS:
 ● To issue food ration to genuine card holders
● To make a fool proof PDS System, free from hoarding, stock
diversions and corruption
● To monitor the movement of PDS stocks right from the FCI go
down to fair price shop point until it reaches the consumer

Masiero, Silvia. PDS digitisation harms In the newly computerised PDS, one phase of the supply chain Digitisation unable to solve core
“Redesigning the Indian (Kerala specific) (constituted by sales of goods by fair-price vendors, known as ration problem with ration dealers
Food Security System dealers) is monitored more strongly than the previous ones: this lowers corruption
through e-governance: The the potential of systems’ transformation, as it limits the scope of ICT-
case of Kerala.” World
based monitoring. Technology not just replacement
Development, vol. 67, Mar.
2015, pp. 126–137,
of current analog systems, but
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.wo The idea that technology can act as a “carrier of policies” (Cordella & can radically reform public
rlddev.2014.10.014. Iannacci, 2010), for governments to use ICTs as means to put forward a services
pro-poor political agenda, may constitute an optimal basis for
digitalizing food security programmes.

The core conclusion here is that technology, rather than simply

automatizing the functioning of anti-poverty mechanisms, can act as a
means to reform, which substantially redesigns the nature of existing
social safety nets.

Prakash, Amit & Masiero, PDS digitisation harms Ration dealers, as they use them for transactions, have quite a Digitisation efforts still prone to
Silvia. (2015). Does (Karnataka specific) high discretion in manipulating PoS machines. human manipulation, and
Computerisation Reduce improper adoption of digital
PDS Leakage? Lessons Ration dealers were hit severely by the shift to a targeted pds, practices
from Karnataka.
especially in South Indian states, where reduction in allocated
commodities (as compared to the pre-targeting scenario) was greatest
(Krishnakumar 2000; Swaminathan 2008; Masiero 2015).

Unfortunately, this is not the case, and quality control is the "big
absentee" from digital pds.

Isaac, T. T., & Ramakumar, Exclusion errors with PDS Two official committee reports submitted in 2009—the Tendulkar How did government try to
R. (2010, January). - Tendulkar and Saxena Committee and the Saxena Committee—on the estimation and better system of TPDS, and did
Expanding Welfare Committee identification of the poor in India. these committees resolve issues
Entitlements in the Neo- of exclusion and inclusion
 Liberal Era: The Case of Tendulkar Committee - The committee recommended a new method
Food Security in Kerala. where the present all-India urban poverty line would be the basis for
Indian Journal of Human estimating every other poverty line in the country. With the urban
Development, 4(1), 99–119. poverty line as the basis, the parity levels at the state level for rural and
https://doi.org/10.1177/0973
urban areas were to be separately estimated by using a typical
703020100106
purchasing power parity (PPP) method.

Saxena Committee - The Committee’s recommendations are based on

three principles: (a) identify the households that need to be
automatically excluded; (b) identify the households that need to be
automatically included; (c) grade the rest of the households in an order
of deprivation so as to be able to apply a cut-off.

Das, S., & Masiero, S. Digital transformation in Datafication allows facilitation of two vital components of the social Perspectives of people in how
(2019, January 4). The India - integration of welfare and benefit distribution process – identity verification and they interact with digitisation
datafication of anti-poverty Aadhaar into PDS proper utilisation of resources. and ground level narratives on
programmes. Proceedings of this matter
the Tenth International
Techno - Rational Perspective: A wide set of interviewee narratives
Conference on Information
and Communication
encompassing fair-price shop owners, employees and users starkly
Technologies and emphasises the reduction in inclusion and exclusion errors due to the
Development. new Aadhaar-based authentication system.
https://doi.org/10.1145/3287
098.3287135 Socio-Political Embeddedness: The current system is yet to check
inclusion errors – we have come across instances of people from
privileged economic backgrounds standing in line at ration shops,
accessing benefits offered through a core anti-poverty programme.

Silvia Masiero & Diego Effects of Digitisation - Reduction of leakages: Efforts to prevent leakage have been enhanced Benefits realised of the digital
Maiorano (2017): benefits by utilizing Aadhaar-verified customer identities for monitoring goods transformation of the PDS
MGNREGA, Power distribution at ration shops. In addition to verifying buyers’ identities,
Politics, and point-of-sale machines record the quantity of commodities sold during
Computerization in Andhra
each transaction. These sales data are then stored in a dedicated
Pradesh, Forum for
Development Studies, DOI:
database, thereby minimizing the possibility of ration dealers
10.1080/08039410.2017.13 fabricating sales that did not actually occur.
45785
Reduction in illicit dealings: a digital system makes it difficult for
ration shop owners to sell on the private market. Earlier, ration shop
 owners could claim to have sold to beneficiaries, who often held
counterfeit ration cards/card numbers. The use of Aadhaar
infrastructure, which verifies identification through biometrics, makes it
challenging for ration dealers to create fictitious customers. As a result,
opportunities for corruption within the system are significantly reduced.

Sekher, Madhushree, et al. Benefits of Digitisation Decentralisation is also evident in the distribu-tion of the PDS food to Effects of end-to-end
“Empowering People to households. One of the first reforms carried out in Chhattisgarh was to digitisation in Chhattisgarh
Power the Public rule out private holding ofFPS, which is responsible for ensuring the
Distribution System: A receipt and timely distribution of foodgrains to the beneficiary under
Process Mapping Analysis
the PDS. Noprivate party was to be given the management of a FPS.
of Six Indian States.”
Economic and Political
Weekly, vol. 52, no. 51, 23 Instead, the state required that members of the community
Dec. 2017, pp. 97–107. itself,through the gram panchayat, women’s self-help groups
(WSHGs),and other local cooperatives, take over this role. With the
FPSbeing managed by a local collective/group, the aim was to im-prove
accountability of the system to the beneficiaries.

MASIERO, SILVIA. “Will What is the JAM trinity, I therefore submit that the jam trinity should not be classified as a JAM trinity likely to strengthen
the JAM Trinity Dismantle how is it helping PDS means to dismantle the pds, as commentators have too quickly framed PDS, should not seek to replace
the PDS?” Economic and digitisation it. Technology acquires its purpose in the hands of policymakers, and and instead reinforce it
Political Weekly, vol. 50, the very same jam tools can be paramount in the fight to the diversion
no. 45, 2015, pp. 21–23.
that largely causes leakage: they can therefore serve as a means for
JSTOR,
http://www.jstor.org/stable/
strengthening the pds, rather than dismantling it.
44003987. Accessed 17
May 2024.

Mooij, Jos. “Food Policy What is the history of PDS The first scheme for centralised purchase of foodgrains was discussed Pivotal changes to PDS across
and Politics. The Political - how did it come to be by the sixth Price Control Conference in September 1942. During this history, from WW2 to the
Economy of the Public conference the basic principles of a public distribution system were laid advent of TPDS
Distribution System in down for the first time: a central government organisation that would
India”. The Journal of
make its purchases in surplus provinces, allocation of the supplies to
Peasant Studies 25.2 (1998):
77–101.
deficit provinces, and distribution through fair price shops and
cooperative societies in industrial areas and big cities.

In 1957 the demand for foodgrains was outstripping supply. Distortions

of the free market became
 increasingly evident. In 1957 the Government of India again reversed
food policy and reintroduced controls (ibid:103-124). The year 1957
can be seen as a second watershed in the history of Indian distribution
policy.

Drèze, Jean. “Democracy Right to food in Indian Right to food is not always ‘justiciable’, in the sense of being How to truly ensure right to
and Right to Food.” Context enforceable in a court of law. If a girl is undernourished because of food - not through courts really,
Economic and Political discrimination within the family, I doubt that the best response would but through civil and democratic
Weekly, vol. 39, no. 17, 24 be to take her parents to court. actions
Apr. 2004, pp. 1723–1731,
https://doi.org/10.2307/4414
934.
The third argument for asserting the right to food is that, even when
they are not enforceable in court, economic and social rights can have a
profound influence on public perceptions of who is entitled to what.

In cases where rights cannot be enforced through the courts, they can be
asserted through other democratic means, based for instance on
parliamentary interventions, the electoral process, the media,
international solidarity, street action, or even civil disobedience.

Heeks, R. (2001). E-governance, how ICT New information and communication technologies can make a E-governance as a distinct idea,
Understanding e- can lead to good significant contribution to the achievement of good governance goals. can have radical uses, further
Governance for governance This 'e-governance' can make governance more efficient and more transform public services
Development. SSRN effective, and bring other benefits too.
Electronic Journal.
https://doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.
3540058
An integrated role for ICTs: e-governance means using ICTs as
servants to the master of good governance. ICTs are no longer seen as
an end in themselves and they are seen to work only as part of a wider
systemic 'package'.

Overall, then, e-governance is the ICT-enabled route to achieving good

governance. We might prefer to think of it as 'i-governance' – integrated
governance – since it integrates both the processing and the
communication technologies; and since it integrates people, processes,
information, and technology in the service of achieving governance
objectives.

Anser, M.K.; Godil, D.I.; Comparison with other The result from system GMM shows that innovation and social Impact of social innovation and
Aderounmu, B.; Onabote, countires inclusion are drivers of food security. The implication of this is that inclusion on food security.
A.; Osabohien, R.; increased level of social inclusion and innovation in West African may
Ashraf, J.; Peng, M.Y.-P. increase the level of food security by about 41.5% and 13.6%
Social Inclusion, respectively.
Innovation and Food
Security in West Africa.
Sustainability 2021, 13,
2619.