Centre temporarily discontinues rice fortification under PMGKAY

CITES SHELF LIFE CONCERNS

- MPOST BUREAU

The Centre has temporarily halted the fortification of rice distributed under the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Anna Yojana and other welfare programmes, citing evidence that nutrients added to rice degrade during long periods of storage.

In an official statement, the food ministry said the move followed findings from a study conducted by IIT Kharagpur on the shelf life of Fortified Rice Kernels and Fortified Rice under real storage conditions across different agro-climatic zones. The study examined how fortified rice performs over time when stored and handled as part of the public distribution supply chain.