Pongal gift hampers distributed to beneficiaries in Thoothukudi and Kanniyakumari districts

Thoothukudi district Collector K. Elambahavath inaugurated the distribution of Pongal gift hampers at the Kootampuli ration shop on Thursday.

As announced by the Tamil Nadu government, the distribution of pongal gift hampers began for all the smartcard holders in the State on Thursday. The hamper included 1 kg raw rice, 1 kg sugar and one whole sugarcane. The Collector distributed the free gift hampers along with free dhotis and sarees to the cardholders at the event.

Speaking on the occasion the Collector said, “there are 957 ration shops in the district benefitting 5,42,432 cardholders. Among these 5,30,761 rice cardholders will be receiving Pongal gift hampers from today.”

Mr. Elambahavath mentioned that along with the pongal gift hampers dhotis and sarees are also being distributed. Dhotis and sarees were available until January 30. However the gift hampers will be distributed to all beneficiaries before the festival.

He emphasised that to ensure the smooth distribution and to avoid overcrowding, tokens with specific collection dates have been distributed to the beneficiaries. He also requested the public to collect the hampers according to the allocated slots mentioned in the token without any rush or inconvenience.

Similarly the Kanniyakumari district Collector R. Alagumeena inaugurated the distribution at the Anathakarai ration shop in Asaripallam.

At the event, the Collector said that the district has a total of 765 ration shops which will distribute Pongal gift hampers to 5,77,849 cardholders. Nagercoil city corporation Mayor R. Mahesh and District Revenue Officer J. Balasubramanian were present at the event. Later in the day, the Collector also inspected the ration shops in Kottar, Layam and Keeriparai to ensure the smooth distribution of Pongal gift hampers.

Published - January 09, 2025 09:01 pm IST