"The scheme will cover 21,94,000 odd citizens and leave approximately seven lakh others (in Meghalaya) from its purview (in Meghalaya)," Surjewala told reporters.
Setting aside the pessimistic view of the scheme, the Congress leader said, "If take the entire expenditure of the scheme, it comes to about 1.7 percent of GDP."
He said the Government of India is paying about Rs 1.3 lakh crore on the current food subsidy scheme in the country.
The ordinance was not a welfare measure but a statutory right of millions of people, a legislation that would go a "long way in eradicating poverty, hunger and malnutrition", he said.