ISLAMABAD, Feb 6: The government on Wednesday announced that it had made arrangements for launching the ration cards scheme on Friday. The scheme aims at providing essential food items to people in the low-income group at reduced prices through Utility Stores.

“We have finalised criteria for the scheme which will be presented to the prime minister on Thursday for approval. The ration cards will be issued to people after the approval of the scheme,” Utility Stores Corporation managing director Brig (retd) Hafeez Ahmed said.

Sources said that people with a monthly income of Rs4,600 or less would get the cards, but the method to determine the income was yet to be worked out. However, they said, the provincial governments and the capital administration still did not know how the scheme would be implemented.

The National Database Registration Authority (Nadra) has offered help in this respect as it has information about the financial status of CNIC holders.

The scheme proposes to provide five kitchen items -- flour, rice, dal chana, vegetable ghee and tea.

Mr Hafeez said that a committee comprising representatives of the ministries concerned and Pakistan Baitul Maal had finalised the methodology for issuing ration cards.

He said the USC would continue its routine operations, adding that the launching of the scheme did not mean that there was a food crisis in the country.

He said the expansion programme of Utility Stores at the union council level was going on and it would be completed by the end of next month.