The Union government has disclosed in Parliament that more than 2.49 crore ration cards have been cancelled nationwide over the past five years, from 2020 to October 2025.

The information was shared on Tuesday (December 10) by minister of state for consumer affairs, food and public distribution, Nimuben Bambhaniya, in response to a question raised by MP P. Karti Chidambaram in the Lok Sabha, The Wire reported.

In her written reply, Bambhaniya clarified that the responsibility of identifying beneficiaries and maintaining ration card lists lies with state governments and Union Territories under the National Food Security Act.

She also provided a detailed, state-wise breakdown of cancellations over the five-year period, noting that the highest number of deletions occurred in 2022.

On the current status of active ration cards, the minister informed the House that 20,29,52,938 cards remain active as of December 10, 2025, with Uttar Pradesh accounting for the largest share, followed by Bihar and Maharashtra.

“Key reasons reported by States/UTs for cancellation of ration cards include identification of duplicate or ineligible beneficiaries, e-KYC mismatches, deaths, and permanent migration of households. No ration cards have been reported to be cancelled solely due to failure to complete e-KYC or Aadhaar authentication,” she said in the written reply.

She further added that “no specific report or complaints of wrongful cancellation” of ration cards has been received by the ministry.