In the run-up to the 2024 general election, the Central government is spending around ₹15 crore in five States, to procure bags with the logo of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, that would be used to distribute foodgrains under the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Anna Yojana (PMGKAY).
Activist Ajay Bose received replies under the Right to Information (RTI) Act that the regional offices of Food Corporation of India (FCI) in Rajasthan, Sikkim, Mizoram, Tripura, and Meghalaya have finalised tenders for procuring “woven laminated bags with an indicative logo of PM Modi” to distribute food grains.
Under the PMGKAY, free foodgrains are provided to about 81.35 crore beneficiaries of Antyodaya Anna Yojana (AAY) and Priority Households (PHH). The Central government claims that over 75 crore people benefitted each year under PMGKAY in 2020-21 and 2021-22.