Why in the news?

  • The Union Minister for Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution had announced four new digital upgrades to strengthen the Food storage, logistics and Public Distribution System.

Anna Sahayata Holistic AI Solution (ASHA)

  • What is it?: It is an AI-based platform that enables beneficiaries of the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Anna Yojana (PMGKAY) / PDS to give feedback via automatic calls in their preferred language.
  • Nodal Ministry: Launched by the Department of Food & Public Distribution (DFPD), Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution.
  • Features:
    • Multilingual translation
    • Sentiment analysis
    • Automatic grievance categorisation
    • Real-time dashboards for administrators.
  • Roll Out:
    • The pilot phase started in 5 states.
    • Expected to cover all 36 States/UTs & reach 20 lakh beneficiaries per month by March 2026.

Bhandaran 360

  • What is it?: A new ERP platform by the Central Warehousing Corporation (CWC), based on SAP S/4HANA.
  • Features:
    • Integrates 41 modules (HR, finance, warehouse-management etc) and linked with 35 external systems (ICEGATE, FCI, NAFED, etc) for seamless digital connectivity across food-storage & movement ecosystem.
    • Provides:
      • Single sign-on & role-based access.
      • End-to-end data encryption & audit-trails
      • Real-time dashboards
      • Automated workflows with Chatbots/RPA
      • Predictive analytics for faster decisions.

Smart EXIM Warehouse System

  • What is it?: Designed for container freight stations (CFS/ICD) and general warehouses. Uses technologies like AI, IoT, FASTag, OCR/ANPR, GNSS.
  • Features:
    • Rolled out under the “Digital Transformation 2.0” initiative of Central Warehousing Corporation.
    • Gate Automation System integrated with port/rail systems (auto-fetching vehicle/container details, FASTag-based entries, automatic records).
    • Yard Management with Digital Twin (real-time tracking of containers/equipment; optimize internal yard movement).
    • Smart Inventory Management (real-time count & tracking of cargo, auto-updates via ERP-WMS integration)

ANNA DARPAN

  • What is it?: New microservices-based integrated supply-chain management system by the Food Corporation of India (FCI).
  • Objectives:
    • Improved efficiency & productivity
    • User-friendly UI
    • Data-driven decision-making
    • Integration across systems
    • Mobile-first access.
  • Features:
    • Replaces the existing “Depot Online System”. 
    • Covers operations at mandis, mills, depots (owned & hired), divisional, regional, zonal, headquarters levels.
    • Real-time dashboards across the supply chain (mandis, railheads, depots, offices).
    • Architecture:
      • Cloud environment
      • Service-mesh for microservices
      • API-based integration with internal/external apps
      • Central analytics platform for data-driven decisions.