Ranchi, Feb. 17: Apprehending a sharp increase in the number of BPL beneficiaries after revision, the state government has decided to frame stricter eligibility norms.

Families falling under the BPL category are entitled to various welfare schemes run by the central as well as the state governments.

At a review meeting chaired by chief minister Shibu Soren and attended by the deputy commissioners of all districts yesterday, it was decided that the earlier “unscientific” decision to include all Scheduled Caste (SC) and Scheduled Tribe (ST) members in the BPL list would be rectified.

Besides, the exclusion criteria will also be applicable in case of ST and SCs. The criteria will include families a member of which draws a salary of over Rs 10,000, owns a three or four-wheeler, files income tax returns and owns over two acre agricultural land among other. The same will also be applicable in case of non-ST/SC families as it was earlier.

The DCs, at the meeting, wanted to clarify many aspects about the ongoing work of survey to include/exclude BPL families in an attempt to rectify the earlier mistakes (i.e. inclusion of non-eligible BPL families in the list).

According to an earlier directive issued by chief secretary Shiv Basant, any household headed by a single woman or minor was supposed to be automatically included in the BPL list. But now the normal exclusion criteria will also be applicable in those cases.

Moreover, the exclusion criteria for families who own agricultural land of more than five acres have been changed. Now, the rule will be stricter with the government deciding to change the measure of land to two acres.

The government is yet to come up with a fresh notification, but Basant told The Telegraph that they were working out the nitty-gritty of exclusion and inclusion criteria.

Civil supplies department’s principal secretary B.K. Tripathy said the state would request the Centre to provide additional quota of foodgrain in future.

The ongoing exercise was started after the state cabinet decided at a meeting on December 30, 2009, to undertake a fresh survey as many deserving families did not figure on the official BPL list. Block development officers and block supply officers have been made responsible to execute the task. The ongoing task is supposed to be completed before February 28.