Civil Supplies Minister GR Anil said that till now 73 per cent of the households have collected the food kits.
Thiruvananthapuram:
State Food and Civil Supplies Minister GR Anil has said that at least 68 lakh families in Kerala have received free Onam meal kits through ration shops.
The LDF government had started distribution of free Onam food kits containing 14 items to ration card holders from August 23.
The minister said that the purpose of distribution of food kits is to ensure that no one goes to bed hungry during the festival.
“So far, 73 per cent of the households have collected the food kits from the ration shops,” the minister said in a release on Saturday.
He urged everyone to collect the kits before Onam, which is to be held on September 8. The government had earlier announced that the meal kit distribution would go on till September 7.
The minister also urged people to make use of the special Onam market and other special fairs organized by the Agriculture Department and other cooperative societies in the state to check the rise in prices of essential commodities during this festive season.
The 14-item food kit includes sugar, green gram, coconut oil, tea powder, chili powder, turmeric powder, ghee, salt, cashew, among other things.