After a period of several months where the the issual of Ration Cards was suspended in order to identify and eliminate bogus cards (see update below dated February 2011), the Govt. of Karnataka has restarted the process of issuing new Ration Cards.

Additionally, for those living in urban areas, it is now possible to apply for a Ration Card online via the Karnataka Food & Civil Supplies (FCS) Department’s website. Those living in rural areas will, however, continue to follow the earlier process.

The online application form is very well designed and is available in both Kannada and English, which is a welcome departure from the earlier physical application form which was available only in Kannada.

The following are the steps to apply for a Ration Card in Bangalore, both online as well as physically:

1. Get your name deleted from your existing Ration Card (if applicable) and get a Surrender Certificate:

To do this, you need to visit the FCS office at your previous place of residence and apply for deletion of name due to change of residence. You need not go there personally – even your parents or family members can do it on your behalf.

If multiple family members’ names are to be transferred, then the Surrender Certificate must contain all their names. You may also submit separate Surrender Certificates for some or all of the family members (e.g. in case of marriage where the husband and wife’s names are being transferred from their respective families’ Ration Cards).

If your name was never added to your family’s Ration Card, or if your family doesn’t have a Ration Card, then approach the municipal office in your previous place of residence and get a letter certifying that you don’t possess a Ration Card there.

2. Apply for the Ration Card:

a. Applying online:

To apply for a Ration Card online, you need to visit the Govt. of Karnataka FCS website at http://ahara.kar.nic.in.

1) On the home page, click on “Click here to apply for a Ration Card – New or using Surrender Certificate” (see image below).

2) This will open the online Ration Card application form in a new window. On the first page, you need to choose your desired language (Kannada or English) to proceed.

As stated on the above page, you will need to provide the following information, so please have it ready before proceeding further:

• Names of the family head and other family members who are to be added to the Ration Card, along with their respective dates of birth
• Current residential address (including BBMP Ward Number, Taluk, City and District) and residential/mobile phone numbers
• BESCOM RR number and location code (if having an electricity connection in your name in Bangalore)
• LPG consumer number (if having a LPG connection from Indane, HP Gas or Bharat Gas in Bangalore)
• Previous Ration Card number (if transferring your name from an existing Ration Card and having a Surrender Certificate)
• PAN number (if having a PAN card in your name)

3) Upon selecting the language, you will be taken to the next page where you need to specify your location in Karnataka (see image below).

4) On selecting the appropriate District from the drop-down menu, you will be taken to another page where you will be asked to choose a Taluk from the list. See below image which shows list of Taluks under Bangalore District.

To find out which Taluk your area falls under, you can click on the links on the right to see the areas covered under the respective Taluks, and their respective BBMP Ward Numbers.

NOTE: You can also get your area’s BBMP Ward Number from this link: http://bbmpelections.in/home/wardmap

5) After you select your respective Taluk, you will be taken back to the previous page, where you need to select your City from the list and enter the BBMP Ward Number which you got from the previous page (see image below). Finally, click on “Next page” to continue.

6) On the next page, you need to provide your personal details such as name, date of birth, marital status, current residential address, phone numbers and email ID. If unmarried, you also need to provide your parents’ current residential address. Lastly, click on “Next page” to continue.

7) On the next page, you can add details of any family members whom you wish to add to the Ration Card (see image below). After entering each family member’s details, click on “Add”. To delete an entry, click on “Select” next to it and then click on “Delete”. Finally, click on “Next page” to continue.

On the next page, enter your family’s annual income and your PAN number (see image below). If holding a LPG connection in Bangalore, please furnish details of the same.

NOTE: If the system reports that your LPG consumer number is not in the database, approach your LPG distributor to get it added.

Lastly, you need to provide the reason for applying for the Ration Card by choosing the appropriate option from the list. Finally, click on “Submit” to complete the online application process.

NOTE: If you are applying under “Surrendered old Ration Card” category, and the form throws an error on submission saying “Old Ration Card no. not exists“, please change the category to “Non Computerised Ration Card” and mention your previous Ration Card number in the “Remarks” column and state that you have surrendered the same.

9) Upon submission, you will be taken to an acknowledgement page. Please take a print out of this page and keep it for your records. The receipt number is important and must be used for all subsequent communication with the FCS Department.

You can check the status of your application online at this link: http://web1.kar.nic.in/fcslpg1/

b. Applying physically in person:

To apply in person, you need to approach the appropriate FCS office, based on your current area of residence. The following is a tentative list of FCS offices in Bangalore:

Bangalore South:
No. 4, Opp To RNR Catering Services, 5th Mn Rd, Chamarajpet, Bangalore – 560018
Phone: +91-80-26613531

Bangalore East:
Corporation Bldg, Nr RBANMS College, St John’s Rd, Bangalore – 560042
Phone: +91-80-25360750

Bangalore North:
No. 3, Nr Police Station, Vyalikaval Extension, 11th C Crs, Bangalore – 560003
Phone: +91-80-23445702

No.101, Bellary Rd, Ganganagar, Bangalore – 560032
Phone: +91-80-23332550

Bangalore Central:
Central Range Mohan Bldg, Opp Visveswaraiah Museum, Kasturba Rd, Bangalore – 560001
Phone: +91-80-22214431

Bangalore West:
No. 16/I, Vasanth Nagar, Miller Tank Bund Rd, Bangalore – 560052
Phone: +91-80-22260932, 22200660, 22260752, 22353423, 22096557

Commissioner’s office, Dept. of Food & Civil Supplies:
No. 8, Sahakari Bldg, Nr Chandrika Hotel, Cunningham Rd, Bangalore – 560052
Phone: +91-80-22262187, 22267205, 22264062
Email: bngfcs@kar.nic.in

If you’re not sure about the correct FCS office, call them first to confirm which office your area of residence comes under (better to ask in Kannada, or get a localite to ask them).

Next, you need to go to the FCS office with the following documents:

• Copy of address proof (such as rent agreement, BSNL phone bill, latest property tax paid receipt for own house in Bangalore, etc.)
• Copy of identity proof (such as Passport, PAN card, Driving License, etc.), one for each family member
• Surrender Certificate(s) or the municipal letter, whichever is applicable

You need to pay Rs. 10 and get an application form. It will be in Kannada, but you may fill it in English too. So in case you don’t know Kannada, get it filled by someone else or take a localite friend along. You may also refer to this translated form which tells you what to fill in which section (leave the untranslated sections blank).

Fill the form and submit it. If the officer asks you the purpose of applying, tell him it’s for applying for a LPG connection.

3. Wait for the Food Inspector to come to your residence for verification:

As per the rules, a Food Inspector will come to your residence for verification of the particulars provided by you in the application. This should happen in about a week or so.

Note that if applying physically, for some people the Ration Card is given on the spot without any verification being conducted. So it seems to be on a case by case basis.

4. Once the inspection is done, call them again and ask when you should come to get the Ration Card:

On the appointed date, go to your respective FCS office and take your application from the information counter, and go to the computer room. There you need to pay Rs. 45 as charges for making the Ration Card. The operator will then enter your details into their software, take your picture with a webcam, and will give you an original color print-out of the Ration Card. You then need to go to another desk where a person will laminate it for you.

Here the process is complete. Things at the FCS offices usually move fast (at least in the Chamrajpet office) and most of the officers are straightforward.

Concluding notes

For me, it took two weeks from the time of applying to get the Ration Card. In between, the Food Inspector came to my house to verify that we’re staying there. He was straightforward, and we didn’t need to pay any bribe.

Still, remember that in case you face any prolonged harassment or unjustified demands for money, you can always take the help of the Govt. Public Grievances cell or file a RTI application.

UPDATE: February 2011

In an effort to weed out bogus LPG connections and Ration Cards, the Govt. of Karnataka has asked all LPG consumers to submit copies of their Ration Card, LPG Consumer Number and BESCOM Electricity Bill either directly to the FCS Dept. or to their respective LPG retailer. Refer to this blog post for details.

You can upload scanned copies of the above documents at this link: http://web5.kar.nic.in/fcslpg/

Upon submission, you will be shown an acknowledgement page. Save a copy of it for reference.

You can check the verification status of your Ration Card at this link: http://web1.kar.nic.in/fcslpg1/

In case of any doubts, you can call the Food & Civil Supplies Dept. at 1800-425-9339 (toll-free) for details. You may also refer to this FAQ for help.

Useful links:

• Food & Civil Supplies Dept., Govt. of Karnataka: http://ahara.kar.nic.in/ or 1800-425-9339 (toll-free)
• New Ration Card/transfer of Ration Card online application: http://web1.kar.nic.in/rconline/
• Official guide for online application of Ration Card: http://web1.kar.nic.in/rconline/Images/Help_for_online_RC.pdf
• BBMP Ward Map: http://bbmpelections.in/home/wardmap
• Dept. of Administrative Reforms & Public Grievances portal: http://pgportal.gov.in/