Thiruvananthapuram: There is no end in sight to the hassles faced by ration card owners in Kerala to buy items as the one-time password (OTP)-based system continues to malfunction.

In fact, official data says that 8,54,561 card owners had to wait for the password in the state during December 2022.

There were delays in receiving OTP on the registered mobile numbers after frequent breakdowns in the ration E-POS (electronic point of sale) network.

Dealers can sell ration items to card holders only after biometric verification on the E-POS machines installed at the shops.

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Initially, Aadhaar-based verification was utilized for the purpose.

However, it developed serious snags soon and the authorities introduced the OTP-based system whereby a four-digit number is sent to the registered mobile number.

With the OTP-based system also getting regularly derailed, ration distribution did not take place smoothly in most districts during December. Moreover, a large number of ration card holders visited the outlets without carrying the mobile with the registered phone number. Sales could not be conducted due to this reason also. Considering these facts, the Food and Civil Supplies Department has now extended the last date for ration distribution for the month of December till January 5.

Earlier, on November 24 last year, the authorities had regulated the working hours of ration shops in various districts to tackle the issue of failure in OTP generation. But, as the problem is still persisting, the state government has decided to take up the issue with the National Informatics Centre.

Incidentally, the official data also says that a majority of the OTP-based transactions took place during the last couple of weeks.

Working hours
The following would be the working hours of ration shops in Kerala during the current week (Till January 7):

8 am to 1 pm in Ernakulam, Kozhikode, Thiruvananthapuram, Kannur, Kottayam, Kasaragod and Idukki districts.

2 pm to 7 pm in Malappuram, Thrissur, Palakkad, Kollam, Alappuzha, Pathanamthitta and Wayanad districts.

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