Link Your Ration Card with Aadhaar: Methods

Last Updated: 15 Sep 2025

A Ration card is an official document issued by the respective state government to the citizens of India who are eligible for subsidized food, grain, and gasoline under the National Food Security Act (NSFA).The ration cards under NSFA are issued in two categories:

• Priority Household (PHH) Ration Cards
• Antyodaya Anna Yojana (AAY) Ration cards

A Ration card ensures food security by distributing essential commodities through fair-price shops under Public Distribution System (PDS) to eligible candidates residing anywhere in the country.Let’s under how to link Aadhar to ration card.

How to Link Ration Card with Aadhaar?

To maintain the efficiency and transparency of the system and prevent fraudulent activities along with availing some additional benefits, the government wants you to link your Aadhaar to a Ration card. Following are the ways to do it:

• Link ration card with Aadhaar card Online
• Link ration card with Aadhaar card Offline
• Link ration card with Aadhaar card through SMS

Let’s discuss each of these ways to learn the best-suited method

Steps to Link Ration Card with Aadhaar Online Process:

• Visit the official PDS website of your respective state.
• Enter your Ration card number.
• Enter your unique 12-digit Aadhaar number.
• Provide your registered mobile number.
• Click the continue/submit button to proceed to the next step.
• An OTP will be generated, and you will receive it on your registered mobile number.
• Provide the generated OTP to submit your request to link the Ration card with your Aadhaar.

Also Read: How to Link Aadhar with Mobile Number

Steps to Link Ration Card with Aadhaar Offline:

1. Collect and prepare all the necessary documents, such as photocopies of Ration card and
2. Aadhaar card of family members.
3. Carry a passport-size photograph of the family head.
4. If your bank account is not linked to your Aadhaar, carry a copy of your bank passbook.
5. Visit your nearest Ration shop or PDS office and submit all these documents.
6. The representative at the office might ask you for your fingerprint identification for first-time Aadhaar authentication.

Once the documents are submitted successfully, you will receive a notification through SMS or mail. After that, when the Aadhaar is successfully linked to the Ration card, you will be notified accordingly.

List of the Documents Necessary to Link a Ration Card with Aadhaar:

• Carry a photocopy of the original Ration card along with an original card for on-site verification.
• Carry photocopies of Aadhaar cards of all the family members.
• Carry a photocopy of the Aadhaar card of the head of the family.
• Carry passport-size photos of the head of the family.
• A copy of the bank passbook if the Aadhaar is not linked to your bank account.

Steps to Link Ration Card with Aadhaar through SMS:

• To link your Ration card with your Aadhaar card through SMS, type in the text box ‘UID SEED State Short Code> Scheme/Program Short Code> Scheme/Program ID> Aadhaar Number>’, for example, ‘UID SEED MH POSC 9876543 123478789012’.
• Send this text to 51969.
• Thereafter, you will receive notifications regarding the receipt of information, successful verification, and ultimately the status of the successful linking of the Ration card with Aadhaar.

That’s the whole process of how to link ration card with Aadhar card. With ration card Aadhaar linking online now mandatory across most states, doing it early means fewer queues and no surprises at the fair-price shop. A few clicks today save a lot of hassle tomorrow.

How can you check whether your Ration card is linked to your Aadhaar card or not?

• Download the ‘Mera ration’ application from Playstore.
• Click on the ‘Aadhaar Seeding’ option.
• Select ‘Ration card no.’ and enter it in the box.
• Click Submit to proceed.

You will get the results showing complete details of your Ration card along with the Aadhaar seeding status of all members.

You can also check Aadhaar-Ration linking status by visiting the National Food Security Portal.

Why is it important to link Ration card with Aadhaar card?

• It eliminates ineligible cardholders and bogus users from misemploying government schemes designed for the betterment of poverty-stricken people.
• Linking Ration cards to Aadhaar cards helps to avoid the duplicity of ration cards so one household cannot obtain more than one card to avail of the subsidies.
• With the integration of biometric identification through linking Ration-Aadhaar, the PDS system can become more efficient, identify real beneficiaries, and improve the overall distribution process.
• It helps to strengthen the ‘One Nation One Ration Card’ scheme of the government, where one beneficiary of a state can avail of the subsidies from the PDS of other states under this scheme.
• Aadhaar-Ration card linking allows for establishing an audit trail within the system to find leaks and diversions, helping to detect and eliminate corrupt middlemen and prevent fraudulent activities to improve the overall system’s efficiency.

Benefits of Linking Aadhaar and Ration Card

Connecting the two IDs isn’t just another task- it genuinely improves how food subsidies reach families.

• No duplicates: One person, one ration card. Aadhaar authentication blocks fake or duplicate cards, so grain subsidies go only to real households.
• Targets better: Because each beneficiary is verified, welfare schemes can zero in on the right people and leave nobody slipping through the cracks.
• Speeds up store visits: With Aadhaar seeded, fair-price shops can confirm your identity in seconds, making it easier to collect your monthly essentials.
• Direct cash & subsidies: When the card and Aadhaar share the same bank-linked ID, any cash transfers or price-difference refunds land straight in your account- no middlemen, no delays.
• Creates a clear audit trail: Digital records of every transaction curb corruption and let experts trace leakages quickly.
• Makes PDS transparent & accountable: The linkage turns a paper-heavy system into a technology-driven one that’s faster, fairer and easier for everyone to trust.

Wrapping Up

As a preventative measure for duplicity and ineligible beneficiaries and a step towards curbing corruption, the government has made it mandatory to link a Ration card with Aadhaar to avail the benefits of obtaining subsidized items from Public Distribution shops (PDS) to avoid duplicity and maintain the efficiency of the system.

Recently, the deadline to do so has been extended to September 30th. So, visit your nearest PDS office or their official website today to get your Ration card linked to Aadhaar.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why is linking necessary?

Think of your ration card as the key that unlocks subsidised grains, and Aadhaar as the lock-proof ID that stops duplicates. If you don’t link the two, the shop’s point-of-sale machine may simply refuse your purchase, leaving you without PDS supplies when you need them most. So, link ration card with Aadhaar to keep the food benefits flowing.

What if I skip the linkage?

Without the linkage, the PDS database might flag your card as “inactive”, so you could lose subsidised food until the records are updated.

How do I confirm they’re already connected?

Walk into any PDS outlet, place a thumb on the biometric reader, and ask the staff to pull up the linking status of Aadhaar and ration card.

Can an Aadhaar number help me download the card itself?

Aadhaar is great for authentication, but you still need your ration-card number to fetch a digital copy from the state portal.

Is online linking possible?

Absolutely. Open your state’s PDS website, look for “Aadhaar Seeding”, fill in both numbers, hit submit, enter the OTP, and you’re done – this is exactly how to link Aadhaar with ration card online.

My mobile number isn’t on Aadhaar. What should I do?

Update your phone number at any Aadhaar enrolment centre first. OTPs won’t land otherwise.

Can I finish the entire process from my home?

Yes. A laptop or phone plus the OTP is all you need – that’s how to link Aadhaar to ration card without stepping outside.

What’s e-KYC in this context?

It’s the digital ID check that compares your fingerprints or OTP with the UIDAI database before attaching Aadhaar to your ration record.

How do I re-check later?

Head back to the UIDAI‐backed “Check Seeding Status” page, pop in your Aadhaar, and the site will confirm whether the seed was successful.