AnyTime News 
Any Time News Network | Pooja Srivastava
In a landmark step toward strengthening India’s digital public infrastructure, the Government of India is set to launch a CBDC-based food subsidy distribution pilot under the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Anna Yojana (PMGKAY) in Puducherry on February 26, 2026.
The pilot project will be inaugurated by Union Minister for Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution Pralhad Joshi, in the presence of Lieutenant Governor K. Kailashnathan and Chief Minister N. Rangaswamy.
Under this initiative, beneficiaries of PMGKAY will receive food subsidy transfers in the form of programmable Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC) tokens directly into their CBDC wallets. The digital rupee, issued by the Reserve Bank of India, represents a tokenized digital version of the Indian currency.
The programmable nature of the CBDC ensures that the subsidy can only be utilized for purchasing food grains from authorized Fair Price Shops (FPS). This feature enhances transparency, traceability, and accountability within the Public Distribution System (PDS).
The pilot is being implemented in coordination with the Puducherry administration, the Reserve Bank of India, the Public Financial Management System (PFMS), and Canara Bank as the designated banking partner.
Officials view this as the next phase of digital transformation in India’s food security architecture. If successful, the CBDC-based subsidy model is expected to be expanded gradually to cover additional beneficiaries and other Union Territories.
