Punjab has witnessed a massive surge in applications for new ration cards, with 19.50 lakh applicants from across the state filing online applications.The number is nearly double the 10 lakh new ration cards the state government had announced it would issue this year. Punjab currently has around 41.47 lakh ration-card holders and 1.54 crore beneficiaries, according to the state’s ration-card management system.The surge follows the Punjab Government’s decision to relax the eligibility conditions for ration cards earlier this year. The government issued a notification on March 11, widening the eligibility criteria under the Smart Ration Card Scheme.The relaxation extended the scheme to sections of relatively well-off households that were earlier excluded under norms based on the Centre’s criteria. The measures included raising the annual income ceiling for eligibility to Rs 8 lakh from Rs 1.80 lakh and making households possessing vehicles and land eligible in certain cases, subjects to other criteria.CM Bhagwant Mann announced on July 22 that 10 lakh new ration cards would be issued. Applications for new ration cards and inclusion of family members were invited from July 22 to August 11.“Since the number of applications is almost double the number of new ration cards we can issue, a scheme to prepare a merit list of applicants has been devised. It is based on this merit list that we will accommodate 7-10 lakh eligible beneficiaries,” a senior officer in the Food and Supplies Department told The Tribune.The attraction of getting new ration cards is significant as holders are entitled to benefits under both state and Centre’s schemes. While the Punjab Government provides ration kits under the Meri Rasoi scheme, the Centre provides 5 kg of wheat per beneficiary every month under the food subsidy programme.Ludhiana recorded the highest number of applications at 2.25 lakh, followed by Amritsar (1.81 lakh), Jalandhar (1.42 lakh), Gurdaspur (1.39 lakh), Patiala (1.35 lakh) and Hoshiarpur (1.20 lakh). Fatehgarh Sahib recorded the lowest number, with around 28,500 applications. In at least six districts, applications crossed the 1-lakh mark.Officials in the Food and Supplies Department said deputy commissioners in all districts had begun scrutinising the applications, with the verification process scheduled to be completed by September 30.A senior government officer said 600 to 700 verifying officers had been deployed in each district to scrutinise the applications. Since the number of applications exceeds the number of cards announced by the government, merit criteria have been formulated for selection. The criteria assign additional marks to certain categories. For instance, applicants belonging to Scheduled Castes and those suffering from serious illnesses have been assigned 10 merit points each, among other parameters.