Darjeeling Hills Face Challenges as Wheat Replaces Atta in PDS Supply

AMITAVA BANERJEE, MP,  May 29, 2026, Darjeeling :  Come June, the Darjeeling Hills could face a major challenge with Atta set to be discontinued from the Public Distribution System (PDS) and wheat supplied instead.

With the Hills currently having no flour mills — not even the small private mills commonly found across the plains — there is virtually no mechanism to grind the wheat into Atta.

Following the change in guard in the state, Food and Supplies Minister Ashok Kirtania had announced that pre-packaged Atta (whole wheat flour) would no longer be supplied through the PDS.

Instead, beneficiaries would receive high-quality wheat.

The decision was taken to curb “corruption, adulteration and illegal diversion” of subsidised Atta into the open market.

In 2016, during the conversion of ration cards in the hills of North Bengal, the state government had introduced a blanket categorisation of all hill residents under the “AAY” (Antyodaya Anna Yojana) category in digital ration cards.

The AAY, a Central Government scheme launched in 2000, covered 14.799 lakh beneficiaries in West Bengal as of January 1, 2015, providing free rice and Atta.

Under the system, each family receives 15 kg rice and 20 packets of Atta (around 18 kg) free of cost every month.

In addition, families with more than three members receive 11 kg rice per person per month under a special scheme for the Hills.

“We will face grave problems with the discontinuation of Atta. Now we will have to buy Atta, which will be an additional economic burden. We do not have any objection to good-quality wheat, but how will we convert it into Atta with no mills in the Hills? What will we do with the wheat then? The Government should resolve this problem so that the Hills also benefit like other parts of the State,” urged Kabita Mukhia, a local resident.

“We have verbally apprised the authorities of the Food Department at Khadya Bhavan, Kolkata, of this unique problem. We have requested special provisions for the Hills; otherwise, many people will be deprived of part of the benefits of the PDS. We have not received any feedback yet,” stated Manoj Gurung, president of the MR Dealers’ Association of North Bengal.

Darjeeling was the place from where wholemeal Atta distribution through the PDS had started in the state.

Kishan Garg of Marigold Industries Pvt. Ltd. stated, “Under the Atta scheme launched in 1998 as a pilot project, we would convert wheat into Atta, mix nutritious additives imported from Canada, prepare Atta packets and supply wholemeal Atta through the PDS. It was a successful project and was later replicated across the state. During the Gorkhaland agitation in 2017, owing to certain political reasons, the industry was shut down.”

However, with the change in government, the owners are now looking at a revival.

“If things work out, beneficiaries could get their wheat converted into Atta from us,” stated Garg.