Chandigarh and Dadra & Nagar Haveli have become the first Union Territories to deliver food subsidy to eligible beneficiaries through Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC)-based Direct Benefit Transfer. Money is credited straight to beneficiaries' Digital Rupee (e₹) wallets rather than bank accounts, and can be spent using QR codes on smartphones or OTPs on feature phones. This is the first large-scale use of CBDC in a Central Government welfare programme, following pilots in Gujarat and Puducherry, and aims to make subsidy delivery under PMGKAY more transparent and traceable.