Documents required for a ration card in India
Quick answer: There is no single national list. Ration cards are issued by your state’s Food & Civil Supplies department under the NFSA, and the states genuinely differ — Uttar Pradesh asks for photos and a bank passbook page, Bihar for five uploads including an income certificate, Madhya Pradesh for a Samagra family ID, Rajasthan for a sworn affidavit, and Maharashtra for a single identity proof. Aadhaar appears on every state’s list, though Maharashtra will take a PAN card, driving licence or government ID instead.
The lists below are what most states ask for with a new application. For what your own state actually publishes, jump to your state’s own list — we checked five of them against the state’s own portal, form or gazette.
🪪 Family head — identity (any one)
- Aadhaar card
- Voter ID (EPIC)
- PAN card
- Passport
🏠 Proof of address (any one)
- Aadhaar card
- Electricity / water bill
- Registered rent agreement
- Voter ID
👨👩👧 Family & extras
- Aadhaar of every family member
- Passport-size photo of the family head
- Income certificate (for some categories/states)
- Surrender/deletion certificate if you held a ration card elsewhere
How to apply for a new ration card
The documents above are what a new application asks for. Where you file it depends on your state — and in one of the five we checked, you don’t file it yourself:
- Bihar — fully online, on the state’s own ration card portal.
- Rajasthan — online, through the state SSO portal and e-Mitra.
- Uttar Pradesh — through the e-Sathi e-district portal, which needs a login.
- Maharashtra — online through Aaple Sarkar, or on paper at the rationing office.
- Madhya Pradesh — not self-service: the panchayat secretary or ward in-charge files it for you.
Each state’s page has the steps and its exact list. In any other state, start from nfsa.gov.in → your state’s food portal, or ask at a CSC. Document lists differ by state and category and change over time — always confirm the current list on the official portal before you apply.
Your state’s own list
The list above is the common core, but states differ more than most pages admit. We checked the five largest against the state’s own portal, form or gazette — and found four different ideas of what “documents required” even means:
- Uttar Pradesh — photos of the head and of every member, bank passbook first page, Aadhaar copy
- Bihar — five uploads, most of them merged into one self-attested PDF
- Madhya Pradesh — a Samagra family ID first, and you don’t apply online yourself
- Rajasthan — includes a sworn affidavit, and the card is separate from food-security inclusion
- Maharashtra — just one identity proof, out of four
What it costs
Nothing. Foodgrains under the National Food Security Act have been free to Antyodaya and Priority Household beneficiaries since 1 January 2023, and the free period was extended for five years from 1 January 2024. The ₹3 a kg for rice, ₹2 for wheat and ₹1 for coarse grains quoted on most websites are the Act’s Schedule I prices, which were guaranteed only for three years from its commencement in 2013.
Frequently asked questions
What documents are needed for a ration card?
It depends on your state — there is no single national list. Aadhaar appears on every state’s list, but beyond that Uttar Pradesh asks for photos and a bank passbook page, Bihar for five uploads including an income certificate, Madhya Pradesh for a Samagra family ID, Rajasthan for a sworn affidavit, and Maharashtra for just one identity proof.
How do I apply for a new ration card?
It depends on your state. In Bihar and Rajasthan you apply online yourself; Uttar Pradesh takes applications through its e-Sathi portal, which needs a login; Maharashtra takes them online through Aaple Sarkar or on paper at the rationing office; and in Madhya Pradesh the panchayat secretary or ward in-charge enters the application for you. In other states, start from your Food & Civil Supplies department’s portal (find it via nfsa.gov.in) or a local CSC.
Do all family members need Aadhaar?
Most states require the Aadhaar of every member listed on the card, linked to the family head.
General information, not legal advice — and ToolGalli is not affiliated with any government department. Requirements change; verify the current list on the official portal.