Deprecated (16384): The ArrayAccess methods will be removed in 4.0.0.Use getParam(), getData() and getQuery() instead. - /home/brlfuser/public_html/src/Controller/ArtileDetailController.php, line: 73
 You can disable deprecation warnings by setting `Error.errorLevel` to `E_ALL & ~E_USER_DEPRECATED` in your config/app.php. [CORE/src/Core/functions.php, line 311]
Code Context


        trigger_error($message, E_USER_DEPRECATED);

    }
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 You can disable deprecation warnings by setting `Error.errorLevel` to `E_ALL & ~E_USER_DEPRECATED` in your config/app.php.'
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deprecationWarning - CORE/src/Core/functions.php, line 311
Cake\Http\ServerRequest::offsetGet() - CORE/src/Http/ServerRequest.php, line 2421
App\Controller\ArtileDetailController::printArticle() - APP/Controller/ArtileDetailController.php, line 73
Cake\Controller\Controller::invokeAction() - CORE/src/Controller/Controller.php, line 610
Cake\Http\ActionDispatcher::_invoke() - CORE/src/Http/ActionDispatcher.php, line 120
Cake\Http\ActionDispatcher::dispatch() - CORE/src/Http/ActionDispatcher.php, line 94
Cake\Http\BaseApplication::__invoke() - CORE/src/Http/BaseApplication.php, line 235
Cake\Http\Runner::__invoke() - CORE/src/Http/Runner.php, line 65
Cake\Routing\Middleware\RoutingMiddleware::__invoke() - CORE/src/Routing/Middleware/RoutingMiddleware.php, line 162
Cake\Http\Runner::__invoke() - CORE/src/Http/Runner.php, line 65
Cake\Routing\Middleware\AssetMiddleware::__invoke() - CORE/src/Routing/Middleware/AssetMiddleware.php, line 88
Cake\Http\Runner::__invoke() - CORE/src/Http/Runner.php, line 65
Cake\Error\Middleware\ErrorHandlerMiddleware::__invoke() - CORE/src/Error/Middleware/ErrorHandlerMiddleware.php, line 96
Cake\Http\Runner::__invoke() - CORE/src/Http/Runner.php, line 65
Cake\Http\Runner::run() - CORE/src/Http/Runner.php, line 51
Cake\Http\Server::run() - CORE/src/Http/Server.php, line 98

Deprecated (16384): The ArrayAccess methods will be removed in 4.0.0.Use getParam(), getData() and getQuery() instead. - /home/brlfuser/public_html/src/Controller/ArtileDetailController.php, line: 74
 You can disable deprecation warnings by setting `Error.errorLevel` to `E_ALL & ~E_USER_DEPRECATED` in your config/app.php. [CORE/src/Core/functions.php, line 311]
Code Context


        trigger_error($message, E_USER_DEPRECATED);

    }
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 You can disable deprecation warnings by setting `Error.errorLevel` to `E_ALL & ~E_USER_DEPRECATED` in your config/app.php.'
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deprecationWarning - CORE/src/Core/functions.php, line 311
Cake\Http\ServerRequest::offsetGet() - CORE/src/Http/ServerRequest.php, line 2421
App\Controller\ArtileDetailController::printArticle() - APP/Controller/ArtileDetailController.php, line 74
Cake\Controller\Controller::invokeAction() - CORE/src/Controller/Controller.php, line 610
Cake\Http\ActionDispatcher::_invoke() - CORE/src/Http/ActionDispatcher.php, line 120
Cake\Http\ActionDispatcher::dispatch() - CORE/src/Http/ActionDispatcher.php, line 94
Cake\Http\BaseApplication::__invoke() - CORE/src/Http/BaseApplication.php, line 235
Cake\Http\Runner::__invoke() - CORE/src/Http/Runner.php, line 65
Cake\Routing\Middleware\RoutingMiddleware::__invoke() - CORE/src/Routing/Middleware/RoutingMiddleware.php, line 162
Cake\Http\Runner::__invoke() - CORE/src/Http/Runner.php, line 65
Cake\Routing\Middleware\AssetMiddleware::__invoke() - CORE/src/Routing/Middleware/AssetMiddleware.php, line 88
Cake\Http\Runner::__invoke() - CORE/src/Http/Runner.php, line 65
Cake\Error\Middleware\ErrorHandlerMiddleware::__invoke() - CORE/src/Error/Middleware/ErrorHandlerMiddleware.php, line 96
Cake\Http\Runner::__invoke() - CORE/src/Http/Runner.php, line 65
Cake\Http\Runner::run() - CORE/src/Http/Runner.php, line 51
Cake\Http\Server::run() - CORE/src/Http/Server.php, line 98

Warning (512): Unable to emit headers. Headers sent in file=/home/brlfuser/public_html/vendor/cakephp/cakephp/src/Error/Debugger.php line=853 [CORE/src/Http/ResponseEmitter.php, line 48]
Code Context
            if (Configure::read('debug')) {

                trigger_error($message, E_USER_WARNING);

            } else {
$response = object(Cake\Http\Response) {

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		&#039;title&#039; =&gt; &#039;Prof. Abhijit Sen, member-Planning Commission interviewed by Yogima Seth &amp;amp; Madhvi Sally&#039;,
		&#039;subheading&#039; =&gt; &#039;&#039;,
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-The Economic Times
&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
The huge delay in bringing the Food Security Bill to Parliament and the massive opposition to it have seen most states going ahead with key provisions of the proposed Bill, Planning Commission member Abhijit Sen tells ET.
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
Sen has doubts whether the bill would be passed in the Monsoon Session of Parliament. Edited excerpts:
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&lt;em&gt;* Do you think Food Security Bill would be passed in the Monsoon Session?&lt;/em&gt;
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
I am not confident about it being passed even in the Monsoon Session. The point is that the monsoon session will be the last session in which the Bill can be introduced, otherwise it will have to wait for the next government next year.
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
It has taken us four years to bring the bill to Parliament and the huge differences on the Bill, both from within the government and the opposition, will not go away suddenly.
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&lt;em&gt;* Will the Bill address twin issues of siphoning off of foodgrain and availability of quality food?&lt;/em&gt;
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
Just passing the bill would not solve any of the problems related to siphoning off or access to good quality food. I think really what is happening is that in a sense the Bill is not just late in terms of 2009 and 2013, it has been overtaken by all sorts of other things and mainly opposition.
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
Moreover, the present Bill doesn&#039;t do very much more than increase eligibility by a little bit and reduce prices somewhat. Very large number of people in this country live in states where prices have already been reduced to below what the bill is proposing.
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
States like Orissa, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Andhra Pardesh have done it and most of these states have more coverage than the Bill provides for. So the Bill really would not have much effect on people living in those states though there will be some effect on people living in Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and may be Assam, West Bengal and Gujarat.
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&lt;em&gt;* Does this mean the Bill has lost its significance even before taking off?&lt;/em&gt;
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
The very fact that while a Central bill is languishing, a large number of states who are able to have already moved in that direction shows that in terms of importance, those states think that it&#039;s a good thing to do.
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
Obviously they think that rather than wait for the Centre they will do it on their own, may be partly because they just don&#039;t want to wait because it is taking too long and partly because Centre&#039;s delays are also part of the opposition blockage. I suppose the political message is they would rather do the same thing on their own than be seen as giving something from the centre.
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
The states have adopted, it&#039;s ours rather than from the Centre approach.
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&lt;em&gt;* Food ministry has decided not to sell huge wheat stock at a discounted price...&lt;/em&gt;
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
The sooner this stock moves the better it is and this is where the early passage of food security bill would have gained importance. At present, there is a psychosis attached with it that the bill is coming and therefore one needs to stock wheat. I think it&#039;s a stupid argument of not selling the stock wheat at a discounted price.
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
You have already bought the stuff, if you don&#039;t sell it, you will have to pay for stocking it and that stocking cost itself is Rs 3-5 per kg so if you don&#039;t pay the Rs 3-5 kg discount you are a stupid chap.
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
Anyway, world prices of wheat are coming down because of which export demand will go down. At the moment, there is demand in the domestic market, but why will anybody buy stock wheat at MSP and not fresh wheat?
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&lt;em&gt;* When do we see the new below poverty line cards being rolled out?&lt;/em&gt;
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
My sense is that it is going to happen only after the elections next year. Conducting a census is one thing, but the entire process of distribution of new cards is politically quite a charged thing.
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
I am quite certain that most states are unlikely to get into this when elections are about to happen. Unlike previous BPL census, there is less evident of people trying to game the system this time and it seems pretty much in line with any other data. This was based on the population census data and was done with hand-held computers so that the data was uploaded immediately.
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
Besides, even the Registrar General of India came on board for the first time and all this has made it more realistic.
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&lt;em&gt;* There&#039;s a growing imbalance between urea and other fertilizers...&lt;/em&gt;
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
As long as you continue to have urea under a low MRP and everything else is allowed to find its own price in the market, this imbalance will continue and is bad for productivity in the long run.
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&lt;em&gt;The Economic Times, 21 May, 2013, &lt;a href=&quot;http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/opinion/interviews/dont-think-food-bill-will-be-passed-this-session-planning-commission-member-abhijit-sen/articleshow/20161794.cms&quot;&gt;http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/opinion/interviews/dont-think-food-bill-will-be-passed-this-session-planning-commission-member-abhijit-sen/articleshow/20161794.cms&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/em&gt;
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&lt;strong&gt;Image Courtesy: The Economic Times&lt;/strong&gt; 
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-The Economic Times



The huge delay in bringing the Food Security Bill to Parliament and the massive opposition to it have seen most states going ahead with key provisions of the proposed Bill, Planning Commission member Abhijit Sen tells ET.


Sen has...&#039;,
	&#039;disp&#039; =&gt; &#039;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;-The Economic Times&lt;/div&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The huge delay in bringing the Food Security Bill to Parliament and the massive opposition to it have seen most states going ahead with key provisions of the proposed Bill, Planning Commission member Abhijit Sen tells ET.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;Sen has doubts whether the bill would be passed in the Monsoon Session of Parliament. Edited excerpts:&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;* Do you think Food Security Bill would be passed in the Monsoon Session?&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;I am not confident about it being passed even in the Monsoon Session. The point is that the monsoon session will be the last session in which the Bill can be introduced, otherwise it will have to wait for the next government next year.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;It has taken us four years to bring the bill to Parliament and the huge differences on the Bill, both from within the government and the opposition, will not go away suddenly.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;* Will the Bill address twin issues of siphoning off of foodgrain and availability of quality food?&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;Just passing the bill would not solve any of the problems related to siphoning off or access to good quality food. I think really what is happening is that in a sense the Bill is not just late in terms of 2009 and 2013, it has been overtaken by all sorts of other things and mainly opposition.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;Moreover, the present Bill doesn&#039;t do very much more than increase eligibility by a little bit and reduce prices somewhat. Very large number of people in this country live in states where prices have already been reduced to below what the bill is proposing.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;States like Orissa, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Andhra Pardesh have done it and most of these states have more coverage than the Bill provides for. So the Bill really would not have much effect on people living in those states though there will be some effect on people living in Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and may be Assam, West Bengal and Gujarat.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;* Does this mean the Bill has lost its significance even before taking off?&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;The very fact that while a Central bill is languishing, a large number of states who are able to have already moved in that direction shows that in terms of importance, those states think that it&#039;s a good thing to do.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;Obviously they think that rather than wait for the Centre they will do it on their own, may be partly because they just don&#039;t want to wait because it is taking too long and partly because Centre&#039;s delays are also part of the opposition blockage. I suppose the political message is they would rather do the same thing on their own than be seen as giving something from the centre.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;The states have adopted, it&#039;s ours rather than from the Centre approach.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;* Food ministry has decided not to sell huge wheat stock at a discounted price...&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;The sooner this stock moves the better it is and this is where the early passage of food security bill would have gained importance. At present, there is a psychosis attached with it that the bill is coming and therefore one needs to stock wheat. I think it&#039;s a stupid argument of not selling the stock wheat at a discounted price.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;You have already bought the stuff, if you don&#039;t sell it, you will have to pay for stocking it and that stocking cost itself is Rs 3-5 per kg so if you don&#039;t pay the Rs 3-5 kg discount you are a stupid chap.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;Anyway, world prices of wheat are coming down because of which export demand will go down. At the moment, there is demand in the domestic market, but why will anybody buy stock wheat at MSP and not fresh wheat?&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;* When do we see the new below poverty line cards being rolled out?&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;My sense is that it is going to happen only after the elections next year. Conducting a census is one thing, but the entire process of distribution of new cards is politically quite a charged thing.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;I am quite certain that most states are unlikely to get into this when elections are about to happen. Unlike previous BPL census, there is less evident of people trying to game the system this time and it seems pretty much in line with any other data. This was based on the population census data and was done with hand-held computers so that the data was uploaded immediately.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;Besides, even the Registrar General of India came on board for the first time and all this has made it more realistic.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;* There&#039;s a growing imbalance between urea and other fertilizers...&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;As long as you continue to have urea under a low MRP and everything else is allowed to find its own price in the market, this imbalance will continue and is bad for productivity in the long run.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;The Economic Times, 21 May, 2013, &lt;a href=&quot;http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/opinion/interviews/dont-think-food-bill-will-be-passed-this-session-planning-commission-member-abhijit-sen/articleshow/20161794.cms&quot; title=&quot;http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/opinion/interviews/dont-think-food-bill-will-be-passed-this-session-planning-commission-member-abhijit-sen/articleshow/20161794.cms&quot;&gt;http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/opinion/interviews/don&lt;br /&gt;t-think-food-bill-will-be-passed-this-session-planning-com&lt;br /&gt;mission-member-abhijit-sen/articleshow/20161794.cms&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Image Courtesy: The Economic Times&lt;/strong&gt; &lt;/p&gt;&#039;,
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	&#039;id&#039; =&gt; (int) 21058,
	&#039;title&#039; =&gt; &#039;Prof. Abhijit Sen, member-Planning Commission interviewed by Yogima Seth &amp;amp; Madhvi Sally&#039;,
	&#039;subheading&#039; =&gt; &#039;&#039;,
	&#039;description&#039; =&gt; &#039;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
-The Economic Times
&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
The huge delay in bringing the Food Security Bill to Parliament and the massive opposition to it have seen most states going ahead with key provisions of the proposed Bill, Planning Commission member Abhijit Sen tells ET.
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
Sen has doubts whether the bill would be passed in the Monsoon Session of Parliament. Edited excerpts:
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&lt;em&gt;* Do you think Food Security Bill would be passed in the Monsoon Session?&lt;/em&gt;
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
I am not confident about it being passed even in the Monsoon Session. The point is that the monsoon session will be the last session in which the Bill can be introduced, otherwise it will have to wait for the next government next year.
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
It has taken us four years to bring the bill to Parliament and the huge differences on the Bill, both from within the government and the opposition, will not go away suddenly.
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&lt;em&gt;* Will the Bill address twin issues of siphoning off of foodgrain and availability of quality food?&lt;/em&gt;
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
Just passing the bill would not solve any of the problems related to siphoning off or access to good quality food. I think really what is happening is that in a sense the Bill is not just late in terms of 2009 and 2013, it has been overtaken by all sorts of other things and mainly opposition.
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
Moreover, the present Bill doesn&#039;t do very much more than increase eligibility by a little bit and reduce prices somewhat. Very large number of people in this country live in states where prices have already been reduced to below what the bill is proposing.
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
States like Orissa, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Andhra Pardesh have done it and most of these states have more coverage than the Bill provides for. So the Bill really would not have much effect on people living in those states though there will be some effect on people living in Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and may be Assam, West Bengal and Gujarat.
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&lt;em&gt;* Does this mean the Bill has lost its significance even before taking off?&lt;/em&gt;
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
The very fact that while a Central bill is languishing, a large number of states who are able to have already moved in that direction shows that in terms of importance, those states think that it&#039;s a good thing to do.
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
Obviously they think that rather than wait for the Centre they will do it on their own, may be partly because they just don&#039;t want to wait because it is taking too long and partly because Centre&#039;s delays are also part of the opposition blockage. I suppose the political message is they would rather do the same thing on their own than be seen as giving something from the centre.
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
The states have adopted, it&#039;s ours rather than from the Centre approach.
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&lt;em&gt;* Food ministry has decided not to sell huge wheat stock at a discounted price...&lt;/em&gt;
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
The sooner this stock moves the better it is and this is where the early passage of food security bill would have gained importance. At present, there is a psychosis attached with it that the bill is coming and therefore one needs to stock wheat. I think it&#039;s a stupid argument of not selling the stock wheat at a discounted price.
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
You have already bought the stuff, if you don&#039;t sell it, you will have to pay for stocking it and that stocking cost itself is Rs 3-5 per kg so if you don&#039;t pay the Rs 3-5 kg discount you are a stupid chap.
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
Anyway, world prices of wheat are coming down because of which export demand will go down. At the moment, there is demand in the domestic market, but why will anybody buy stock wheat at MSP and not fresh wheat?
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&lt;em&gt;* When do we see the new below poverty line cards being rolled out?&lt;/em&gt;
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
My sense is that it is going to happen only after the elections next year. Conducting a census is one thing, but the entire process of distribution of new cards is politically quite a charged thing.
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
I am quite certain that most states are unlikely to get into this when elections are about to happen. Unlike previous BPL census, there is less evident of people trying to game the system this time and it seems pretty much in line with any other data. This was based on the population census data and was done with hand-held computers so that the data was uploaded immediately.
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
Besides, even the Registrar General of India came on board for the first time and all this has made it more realistic.
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&lt;em&gt;* There&#039;s a growing imbalance between urea and other fertilizers...&lt;/em&gt;
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
As long as you continue to have urea under a low MRP and everything else is allowed to find its own price in the market, this imbalance will continue and is bad for productivity in the long run.
&lt;/p&gt;
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&lt;em&gt;The Economic Times, 21 May, 2013, &lt;a href=&quot;http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/opinion/interviews/dont-think-food-bill-will-be-passed-this-session-planning-commission-member-abhijit-sen/articleshow/20161794.cms&quot;&gt;http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/opinion/interviews/dont-think-food-bill-will-be-passed-this-session-planning-commission-member-abhijit-sen/articleshow/20161794.cms&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/em&gt;
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&lt;strong&gt;Image Courtesy: The Economic Times&lt;/strong&gt; 
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-The Economic Times



The huge delay in bringing the Food Security Bill to Parliament and the massive opposition to it have seen most states going ahead with key provisions of the proposed Bill, Planning Commission member Abhijit Sen tells ET.


Sen has...&#039;
$disp = &#039;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;-The Economic Times&lt;/div&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The huge delay in bringing the Food Security Bill to Parliament and the massive opposition to it have seen most states going ahead with key provisions of the proposed Bill, Planning Commission member Abhijit Sen tells ET.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;Sen has doubts whether the bill would be passed in the Monsoon Session of Parliament. Edited excerpts:&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;* Do you think Food Security Bill would be passed in the Monsoon Session?&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;I am not confident about it being passed even in the Monsoon Session. The point is that the monsoon session will be the last session in which the Bill can be introduced, otherwise it will have to wait for the next government next year.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;It has taken us four years to bring the bill to Parliament and the huge differences on the Bill, both from within the government and the opposition, will not go away suddenly.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;* Will the Bill address twin issues of siphoning off of foodgrain and availability of quality food?&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;Just passing the bill would not solve any of the problems related to siphoning off or access to good quality food. I think really what is happening is that in a sense the Bill is not just late in terms of 2009 and 2013, it has been overtaken by all sorts of other things and mainly opposition.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;Moreover, the present Bill doesn&#039;t do very much more than increase eligibility by a little bit and reduce prices somewhat. Very large number of people in this country live in states where prices have already been reduced to below what the bill is proposing.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;States like Orissa, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Andhra Pardesh have done it and most of these states have more coverage than the Bill provides for. So the Bill really would not have much effect on people living in those states though there will be some effect on people living in Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and may be Assam, West Bengal and Gujarat.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;* Does this mean the Bill has lost its significance even before taking off?&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;The very fact that while a Central bill is languishing, a large number of states who are able to have already moved in that direction shows that in terms of importance, those states think that it&#039;s a good thing to do.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;Obviously they think that rather than wait for the Centre they will do it on their own, may be partly because they just don&#039;t want to wait because it is taking too long and partly because Centre&#039;s delays are also part of the opposition blockage. I suppose the political message is they would rather do the same thing on their own than be seen as giving something from the centre.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;The states have adopted, it&#039;s ours rather than from the Centre approach.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;* Food ministry has decided not to sell huge wheat stock at a discounted price...&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;The sooner this stock moves the better it is and this is where the early passage of food security bill would have gained importance. At present, there is a psychosis attached with it that the bill is coming and therefore one needs to stock wheat. I think it&#039;s a stupid argument of not selling the stock wheat at a discounted price.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;You have already bought the stuff, if you don&#039;t sell it, you will have to pay for stocking it and that stocking cost itself is Rs 3-5 per kg so if you don&#039;t pay the Rs 3-5 kg discount you are a stupid chap.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;Anyway, world prices of wheat are coming down because of which export demand will go down. At the moment, there is demand in the domestic market, but why will anybody buy stock wheat at MSP and not fresh wheat?&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;* When do we see the new below poverty line cards being rolled out?&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;My sense is that it is going to happen only after the elections next year. Conducting a census is one thing, but the entire process of distribution of new cards is politically quite a charged thing.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;I am quite certain that most states are unlikely to get into this when elections are about to happen. Unlike previous BPL census, there is less evident of people trying to game the system this time and it seems pretty much in line with any other data. This was based on the population census data and was done with hand-held computers so that the data was uploaded immediately.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;Besides, even the Registrar General of India came on board for the first time and all this has made it more realistic.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;* There&#039;s a growing imbalance between urea and other fertilizers...&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;As long as you continue to have urea under a low MRP and everything else is allowed to find its own price in the market, this imbalance will continue and is bad for productivity in the long run.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;The Economic Times, 21 May, 2013, &lt;a href=&quot;http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/opinion/interviews/dont-think-food-bill-will-be-passed-this-session-planning-commission-member-abhijit-sen/articleshow/20161794.cms&quot; title=&quot;http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/opinion/interviews/dont-think-food-bill-will-be-passed-this-session-planning-commission-member-abhijit-sen/articleshow/20161794.cms&quot;&gt;http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/opinion/interviews/don&lt;br /&gt;t-think-food-bill-will-be-passed-this-session-planning-com&lt;br /&gt;mission-member-abhijit-sen/articleshow/20161794.cms&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Image Courtesy: The Economic Times&lt;/strong&gt; &lt;/p&gt;&#039;
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-The Economic Times



The huge delay in bringing the Food Security Bill to Parliament and the massive opposition to it have seen most states going ahead with key provisions of the proposed Bill, Planning Commission member Abhijit Sen tells ET.


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                <strong>Prof. Abhijit Sen, member-Planning Commission interviewed by Yogima Seth &amp; Madhvi Sally</strong></h1>
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                <div align="justify">-The Economic Times</div><p align="justify"><br />The huge delay in bringing the Food Security Bill to Parliament and the massive opposition to it have seen most states going ahead with key provisions of the proposed Bill, Planning Commission member Abhijit Sen tells ET.</p><p align="justify">Sen has doubts whether the bill would be passed in the Monsoon Session of Parliament. Edited excerpts:</p><p align="justify"><em>* Do you think Food Security Bill would be passed in the Monsoon Session?</em></p><p align="justify">I am not confident about it being passed even in the Monsoon Session. The point is that the monsoon session will be the last session in which the Bill can be introduced, otherwise it will have to wait for the next government next year.</p><p align="justify">It has taken us four years to bring the bill to Parliament and the huge differences on the Bill, both from within the government and the opposition, will not go away suddenly.</p><p align="justify"><em>* Will the Bill address twin issues of siphoning off of foodgrain and availability of quality food?</em></p><p align="justify">Just passing the bill would not solve any of the problems related to siphoning off or access to good quality food. I think really what is happening is that in a sense the Bill is not just late in terms of 2009 and 2013, it has been overtaken by all sorts of other things and mainly opposition.</p><p align="justify">Moreover, the present Bill doesn't do very much more than increase eligibility by a little bit and reduce prices somewhat. Very large number of people in this country live in states where prices have already been reduced to below what the bill is proposing.</p><p align="justify">States like Orissa, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Andhra Pardesh have done it and most of these states have more coverage than the Bill provides for. So the Bill really would not have much effect on people living in those states though there will be some effect on people living in Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and may be Assam, West Bengal and Gujarat.</p><p align="justify"><em>* Does this mean the Bill has lost its significance even before taking off?</em></p><p align="justify">The very fact that while a Central bill is languishing, a large number of states who are able to have already moved in that direction shows that in terms of importance, those states think that it's a good thing to do.</p><p align="justify">Obviously they think that rather than wait for the Centre they will do it on their own, may be partly because they just don't want to wait because it is taking too long and partly because Centre's delays are also part of the opposition blockage. I suppose the political message is they would rather do the same thing on their own than be seen as giving something from the centre.</p><p align="justify">The states have adopted, it's ours rather than from the Centre approach.</p><p align="justify"><em>* Food ministry has decided not to sell huge wheat stock at a discounted price...</em></p><p align="justify">The sooner this stock moves the better it is and this is where the early passage of food security bill would have gained importance. At present, there is a psychosis attached with it that the bill is coming and therefore one needs to stock wheat. I think it's a stupid argument of not selling the stock wheat at a discounted price.</p><p align="justify">You have already bought the stuff, if you don't sell it, you will have to pay for stocking it and that stocking cost itself is Rs 3-5 per kg so if you don't pay the Rs 3-5 kg discount you are a stupid chap.</p><p align="justify">Anyway, world prices of wheat are coming down because of which export demand will go down. At the moment, there is demand in the domestic market, but why will anybody buy stock wheat at MSP and not fresh wheat?</p><p align="justify"><em>* When do we see the new below poverty line cards being rolled out?</em></p><p align="justify">My sense is that it is going to happen only after the elections next year. Conducting a census is one thing, but the entire process of distribution of new cards is politically quite a charged thing.</p><p align="justify">I am quite certain that most states are unlikely to get into this when elections are about to happen. Unlike previous BPL census, there is less evident of people trying to game the system this time and it seems pretty much in line with any other data. This was based on the population census data and was done with hand-held computers so that the data was uploaded immediately.</p><p align="justify">Besides, even the Registrar General of India came on board for the first time and all this has made it more realistic.</p><p align="justify"><em>* There's a growing imbalance between urea and other fertilizers...</em></p><p align="justify">As long as you continue to have urea under a low MRP and everything else is allowed to find its own price in the market, this imbalance will continue and is bad for productivity in the long run.</p><p align="justify"><em>The Economic Times, 21 May, 2013, <a href="http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/opinion/interviews/dont-think-food-bill-will-be-passed-this-session-planning-commission-member-abhijit-sen/articleshow/20161794.cms" title="http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/opinion/interviews/dont-think-food-bill-will-be-passed-this-session-planning-commission-member-abhijit-sen/articleshow/20161794.cms">http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/opinion/interviews/don<br />t-think-food-bill-will-be-passed-this-session-planning-com<br />mission-member-abhijit-sen/articleshow/20161794.cms</a></em></p><p align="justify"><strong>Image Courtesy: The Economic Times</strong> </p>               </font>
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-The Economic Times
&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
The huge delay in bringing the Food Security Bill to Parliament and the massive opposition to it have seen most states going ahead with key provisions of the proposed Bill, Planning Commission member Abhijit Sen tells ET.
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
Sen has doubts whether the bill would be passed in the Monsoon Session of Parliament. Edited excerpts:
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&lt;em&gt;* Do you think Food Security Bill would be passed in the Monsoon Session?&lt;/em&gt;
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
I am not confident about it being passed even in the Monsoon Session. The point is that the monsoon session will be the last session in which the Bill can be introduced, otherwise it will have to wait for the next government next year.
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
It has taken us four years to bring the bill to Parliament and the huge differences on the Bill, both from within the government and the opposition, will not go away suddenly.
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&lt;em&gt;* Will the Bill address twin issues of siphoning off of foodgrain and availability of quality food?&lt;/em&gt;
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
Just passing the bill would not solve any of the problems related to siphoning off or access to good quality food. I think really what is happening is that in a sense the Bill is not just late in terms of 2009 and 2013, it has been overtaken by all sorts of other things and mainly opposition.
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
Moreover, the present Bill doesn&#039;t do very much more than increase eligibility by a little bit and reduce prices somewhat. Very large number of people in this country live in states where prices have already been reduced to below what the bill is proposing.
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
States like Orissa, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Andhra Pardesh have done it and most of these states have more coverage than the Bill provides for. So the Bill really would not have much effect on people living in those states though there will be some effect on people living in Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and may be Assam, West Bengal and Gujarat.
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&lt;em&gt;* Does this mean the Bill has lost its significance even before taking off?&lt;/em&gt;
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
The very fact that while a Central bill is languishing, a large number of states who are able to have already moved in that direction shows that in terms of importance, those states think that it&#039;s a good thing to do.
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
Obviously they think that rather than wait for the Centre they will do it on their own, may be partly because they just don&#039;t want to wait because it is taking too long and partly because Centre&#039;s delays are also part of the opposition blockage. I suppose the political message is they would rather do the same thing on their own than be seen as giving something from the centre.
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
The states have adopted, it&#039;s ours rather than from the Centre approach.
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&lt;em&gt;* Food ministry has decided not to sell huge wheat stock at a discounted price...&lt;/em&gt;
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
The sooner this stock moves the better it is and this is where the early passage of food security bill would have gained importance. At present, there is a psychosis attached with it that the bill is coming and therefore one needs to stock wheat. I think it&#039;s a stupid argument of not selling the stock wheat at a discounted price.
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
You have already bought the stuff, if you don&#039;t sell it, you will have to pay for stocking it and that stocking cost itself is Rs 3-5 per kg so if you don&#039;t pay the Rs 3-5 kg discount you are a stupid chap.
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
Anyway, world prices of wheat are coming down because of which export demand will go down. At the moment, there is demand in the domestic market, but why will anybody buy stock wheat at MSP and not fresh wheat?
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&lt;em&gt;* When do we see the new below poverty line cards being rolled out?&lt;/em&gt;
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
My sense is that it is going to happen only after the elections next year. Conducting a census is one thing, but the entire process of distribution of new cards is politically quite a charged thing.
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
I am quite certain that most states are unlikely to get into this when elections are about to happen. Unlike previous BPL census, there is less evident of people trying to game the system this time and it seems pretty much in line with any other data. This was based on the population census data and was done with hand-held computers so that the data was uploaded immediately.
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
Besides, even the Registrar General of India came on board for the first time and all this has made it more realistic.
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&lt;em&gt;* There&#039;s a growing imbalance between urea and other fertilizers...&lt;/em&gt;
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
As long as you continue to have urea under a low MRP and everything else is allowed to find its own price in the market, this imbalance will continue and is bad for productivity in the long run.
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&lt;em&gt;The Economic Times, 21 May, 2013, &lt;a href=&quot;http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/opinion/interviews/dont-think-food-bill-will-be-passed-this-session-planning-commission-member-abhijit-sen/articleshow/20161794.cms&quot;&gt;http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/opinion/interviews/dont-think-food-bill-will-be-passed-this-session-planning-commission-member-abhijit-sen/articleshow/20161794.cms&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/em&gt;
&lt;/p&gt;
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&lt;strong&gt;Image Courtesy: The Economic Times&lt;/strong&gt; 
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-The Economic Times



The huge delay in bringing the Food Security Bill to Parliament and the massive opposition to it have seen most states going ahead with key provisions of the proposed Bill, Planning Commission member Abhijit Sen tells ET.


Sen has...&#039;,
	&#039;disp&#039; =&gt; &#039;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;-The Economic Times&lt;/div&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The huge delay in bringing the Food Security Bill to Parliament and the massive opposition to it have seen most states going ahead with key provisions of the proposed Bill, Planning Commission member Abhijit Sen tells ET.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;Sen has doubts whether the bill would be passed in the Monsoon Session of Parliament. Edited excerpts:&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;* Do you think Food Security Bill would be passed in the Monsoon Session?&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;I am not confident about it being passed even in the Monsoon Session. The point is that the monsoon session will be the last session in which the Bill can be introduced, otherwise it will have to wait for the next government next year.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;It has taken us four years to bring the bill to Parliament and the huge differences on the Bill, both from within the government and the opposition, will not go away suddenly.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;* Will the Bill address twin issues of siphoning off of foodgrain and availability of quality food?&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;Just passing the bill would not solve any of the problems related to siphoning off or access to good quality food. I think really what is happening is that in a sense the Bill is not just late in terms of 2009 and 2013, it has been overtaken by all sorts of other things and mainly opposition.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;Moreover, the present Bill doesn&#039;t do very much more than increase eligibility by a little bit and reduce prices somewhat. Very large number of people in this country live in states where prices have already been reduced to below what the bill is proposing.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;States like Orissa, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Andhra Pardesh have done it and most of these states have more coverage than the Bill provides for. So the Bill really would not have much effect on people living in those states though there will be some effect on people living in Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and may be Assam, West Bengal and Gujarat.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;* Does this mean the Bill has lost its significance even before taking off?&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;The very fact that while a Central bill is languishing, a large number of states who are able to have already moved in that direction shows that in terms of importance, those states think that it&#039;s a good thing to do.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;Obviously they think that rather than wait for the Centre they will do it on their own, may be partly because they just don&#039;t want to wait because it is taking too long and partly because Centre&#039;s delays are also part of the opposition blockage. I suppose the political message is they would rather do the same thing on their own than be seen as giving something from the centre.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;The states have adopted, it&#039;s ours rather than from the Centre approach.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;* Food ministry has decided not to sell huge wheat stock at a discounted price...&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;The sooner this stock moves the better it is and this is where the early passage of food security bill would have gained importance. At present, there is a psychosis attached with it that the bill is coming and therefore one needs to stock wheat. I think it&#039;s a stupid argument of not selling the stock wheat at a discounted price.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;You have already bought the stuff, if you don&#039;t sell it, you will have to pay for stocking it and that stocking cost itself is Rs 3-5 per kg so if you don&#039;t pay the Rs 3-5 kg discount you are a stupid chap.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;Anyway, world prices of wheat are coming down because of which export demand will go down. At the moment, there is demand in the domestic market, but why will anybody buy stock wheat at MSP and not fresh wheat?&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;* When do we see the new below poverty line cards being rolled out?&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;My sense is that it is going to happen only after the elections next year. Conducting a census is one thing, but the entire process of distribution of new cards is politically quite a charged thing.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;I am quite certain that most states are unlikely to get into this when elections are about to happen. Unlike previous BPL census, there is less evident of people trying to game the system this time and it seems pretty much in line with any other data. This was based on the population census data and was done with hand-held computers so that the data was uploaded immediately.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;Besides, even the Registrar General of India came on board for the first time and all this has made it more realistic.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;* There&#039;s a growing imbalance between urea and other fertilizers...&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;As long as you continue to have urea under a low MRP and everything else is allowed to find its own price in the market, this imbalance will continue and is bad for productivity in the long run.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;The Economic Times, 21 May, 2013, &lt;a href=&quot;http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/opinion/interviews/dont-think-food-bill-will-be-passed-this-session-planning-commission-member-abhijit-sen/articleshow/20161794.cms&quot; title=&quot;http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/opinion/interviews/dont-think-food-bill-will-be-passed-this-session-planning-commission-member-abhijit-sen/articleshow/20161794.cms&quot;&gt;http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/opinion/interviews/don&lt;br /&gt;t-think-food-bill-will-be-passed-this-session-planning-com&lt;br /&gt;mission-member-abhijit-sen/articleshow/20161794.cms&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Image Courtesy: The Economic Times&lt;/strong&gt; &lt;/p&gt;&#039;,
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	&#039;id&#039; =&gt; (int) 21058,
	&#039;title&#039; =&gt; &#039;Prof. Abhijit Sen, member-Planning Commission interviewed by Yogima Seth &amp;amp; Madhvi Sally&#039;,
	&#039;subheading&#039; =&gt; &#039;&#039;,
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-The Economic Times
&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
The huge delay in bringing the Food Security Bill to Parliament and the massive opposition to it have seen most states going ahead with key provisions of the proposed Bill, Planning Commission member Abhijit Sen tells ET.
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
Sen has doubts whether the bill would be passed in the Monsoon Session of Parliament. Edited excerpts:
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&lt;em&gt;* Do you think Food Security Bill would be passed in the Monsoon Session?&lt;/em&gt;
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
I am not confident about it being passed even in the Monsoon Session. The point is that the monsoon session will be the last session in which the Bill can be introduced, otherwise it will have to wait for the next government next year.
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
It has taken us four years to bring the bill to Parliament and the huge differences on the Bill, both from within the government and the opposition, will not go away suddenly.
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&lt;em&gt;* Will the Bill address twin issues of siphoning off of foodgrain and availability of quality food?&lt;/em&gt;
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
Just passing the bill would not solve any of the problems related to siphoning off or access to good quality food. I think really what is happening is that in a sense the Bill is not just late in terms of 2009 and 2013, it has been overtaken by all sorts of other things and mainly opposition.
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
Moreover, the present Bill doesn&#039;t do very much more than increase eligibility by a little bit and reduce prices somewhat. Very large number of people in this country live in states where prices have already been reduced to below what the bill is proposing.
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
States like Orissa, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Andhra Pardesh have done it and most of these states have more coverage than the Bill provides for. So the Bill really would not have much effect on people living in those states though there will be some effect on people living in Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and may be Assam, West Bengal and Gujarat.
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&lt;em&gt;* Does this mean the Bill has lost its significance even before taking off?&lt;/em&gt;
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
The very fact that while a Central bill is languishing, a large number of states who are able to have already moved in that direction shows that in terms of importance, those states think that it&#039;s a good thing to do.
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
Obviously they think that rather than wait for the Centre they will do it on their own, may be partly because they just don&#039;t want to wait because it is taking too long and partly because Centre&#039;s delays are also part of the opposition blockage. I suppose the political message is they would rather do the same thing on their own than be seen as giving something from the centre.
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
The states have adopted, it&#039;s ours rather than from the Centre approach.
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&lt;em&gt;* Food ministry has decided not to sell huge wheat stock at a discounted price...&lt;/em&gt;
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
The sooner this stock moves the better it is and this is where the early passage of food security bill would have gained importance. At present, there is a psychosis attached with it that the bill is coming and therefore one needs to stock wheat. I think it&#039;s a stupid argument of not selling the stock wheat at a discounted price.
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
You have already bought the stuff, if you don&#039;t sell it, you will have to pay for stocking it and that stocking cost itself is Rs 3-5 per kg so if you don&#039;t pay the Rs 3-5 kg discount you are a stupid chap.
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
Anyway, world prices of wheat are coming down because of which export demand will go down. At the moment, there is demand in the domestic market, but why will anybody buy stock wheat at MSP and not fresh wheat?
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&lt;em&gt;* When do we see the new below poverty line cards being rolled out?&lt;/em&gt;
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
My sense is that it is going to happen only after the elections next year. Conducting a census is one thing, but the entire process of distribution of new cards is politically quite a charged thing.
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
I am quite certain that most states are unlikely to get into this when elections are about to happen. Unlike previous BPL census, there is less evident of people trying to game the system this time and it seems pretty much in line with any other data. This was based on the population census data and was done with hand-held computers so that the data was uploaded immediately.
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
Besides, even the Registrar General of India came on board for the first time and all this has made it more realistic.
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&lt;em&gt;* There&#039;s a growing imbalance between urea and other fertilizers...&lt;/em&gt;
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
As long as you continue to have urea under a low MRP and everything else is allowed to find its own price in the market, this imbalance will continue and is bad for productivity in the long run.
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&lt;em&gt;The Economic Times, 21 May, 2013, &lt;a href=&quot;http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/opinion/interviews/dont-think-food-bill-will-be-passed-this-session-planning-commission-member-abhijit-sen/articleshow/20161794.cms&quot;&gt;http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/opinion/interviews/dont-think-food-bill-will-be-passed-this-session-planning-commission-member-abhijit-sen/articleshow/20161794.cms&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/em&gt;
&lt;/p&gt;
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&lt;strong&gt;Image Courtesy: The Economic Times&lt;/strong&gt; 
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-The Economic Times



The huge delay in bringing the Food Security Bill to Parliament and the massive opposition to it have seen most states going ahead with key provisions of the proposed Bill, Planning Commission member Abhijit Sen tells ET.


Sen has...&#039;
$disp = &#039;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;-The Economic Times&lt;/div&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The huge delay in bringing the Food Security Bill to Parliament and the massive opposition to it have seen most states going ahead with key provisions of the proposed Bill, Planning Commission member Abhijit Sen tells ET.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;Sen has doubts whether the bill would be passed in the Monsoon Session of Parliament. Edited excerpts:&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;* Do you think Food Security Bill would be passed in the Monsoon Session?&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;I am not confident about it being passed even in the Monsoon Session. The point is that the monsoon session will be the last session in which the Bill can be introduced, otherwise it will have to wait for the next government next year.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;It has taken us four years to bring the bill to Parliament and the huge differences on the Bill, both from within the government and the opposition, will not go away suddenly.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;* Will the Bill address twin issues of siphoning off of foodgrain and availability of quality food?&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;Just passing the bill would not solve any of the problems related to siphoning off or access to good quality food. I think really what is happening is that in a sense the Bill is not just late in terms of 2009 and 2013, it has been overtaken by all sorts of other things and mainly opposition.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;Moreover, the present Bill doesn&#039;t do very much more than increase eligibility by a little bit and reduce prices somewhat. Very large number of people in this country live in states where prices have already been reduced to below what the bill is proposing.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;States like Orissa, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Andhra Pardesh have done it and most of these states have more coverage than the Bill provides for. So the Bill really would not have much effect on people living in those states though there will be some effect on people living in Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and may be Assam, West Bengal and Gujarat.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;* Does this mean the Bill has lost its significance even before taking off?&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;The very fact that while a Central bill is languishing, a large number of states who are able to have already moved in that direction shows that in terms of importance, those states think that it&#039;s a good thing to do.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;Obviously they think that rather than wait for the Centre they will do it on their own, may be partly because they just don&#039;t want to wait because it is taking too long and partly because Centre&#039;s delays are also part of the opposition blockage. I suppose the political message is they would rather do the same thing on their own than be seen as giving something from the centre.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;The states have adopted, it&#039;s ours rather than from the Centre approach.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;* Food ministry has decided not to sell huge wheat stock at a discounted price...&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;The sooner this stock moves the better it is and this is where the early passage of food security bill would have gained importance. At present, there is a psychosis attached with it that the bill is coming and therefore one needs to stock wheat. I think it&#039;s a stupid argument of not selling the stock wheat at a discounted price.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;You have already bought the stuff, if you don&#039;t sell it, you will have to pay for stocking it and that stocking cost itself is Rs 3-5 per kg so if you don&#039;t pay the Rs 3-5 kg discount you are a stupid chap.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;Anyway, world prices of wheat are coming down because of which export demand will go down. At the moment, there is demand in the domestic market, but why will anybody buy stock wheat at MSP and not fresh wheat?&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;* When do we see the new below poverty line cards being rolled out?&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;My sense is that it is going to happen only after the elections next year. Conducting a census is one thing, but the entire process of distribution of new cards is politically quite a charged thing.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;I am quite certain that most states are unlikely to get into this when elections are about to happen. Unlike previous BPL census, there is less evident of people trying to game the system this time and it seems pretty much in line with any other data. This was based on the population census data and was done with hand-held computers so that the data was uploaded immediately.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;Besides, even the Registrar General of India came on board for the first time and all this has made it more realistic.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;* There&#039;s a growing imbalance between urea and other fertilizers...&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;As long as you continue to have urea under a low MRP and everything else is allowed to find its own price in the market, this imbalance will continue and is bad for productivity in the long run.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;The Economic Times, 21 May, 2013, &lt;a href=&quot;http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/opinion/interviews/dont-think-food-bill-will-be-passed-this-session-planning-commission-member-abhijit-sen/articleshow/20161794.cms&quot; title=&quot;http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/opinion/interviews/dont-think-food-bill-will-be-passed-this-session-planning-commission-member-abhijit-sen/articleshow/20161794.cms&quot;&gt;http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/opinion/interviews/don&lt;br /&gt;t-think-food-bill-will-be-passed-this-session-planning-com&lt;br /&gt;mission-member-abhijit-sen/articleshow/20161794.cms&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Image Courtesy: The Economic Times&lt;/strong&gt; &lt;/p&gt;&#039;
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-The Economic Times



The huge delay in bringing the Food Security Bill to Parliament and the massive opposition to it have seen most states going ahead with key provisions of the proposed Bill, Planning Commission member Abhijit Sen tells ET.


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                <strong>Prof. Abhijit Sen, member-Planning Commission interviewed by Yogima Seth &amp; Madhvi Sally</strong></h1>
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                <div align="justify">-The Economic Times</div><p align="justify"><br />The huge delay in bringing the Food Security Bill to Parliament and the massive opposition to it have seen most states going ahead with key provisions of the proposed Bill, Planning Commission member Abhijit Sen tells ET.</p><p align="justify">Sen has doubts whether the bill would be passed in the Monsoon Session of Parliament. Edited excerpts:</p><p align="justify"><em>* Do you think Food Security Bill would be passed in the Monsoon Session?</em></p><p align="justify">I am not confident about it being passed even in the Monsoon Session. The point is that the monsoon session will be the last session in which the Bill can be introduced, otherwise it will have to wait for the next government next year.</p><p align="justify">It has taken us four years to bring the bill to Parliament and the huge differences on the Bill, both from within the government and the opposition, will not go away suddenly.</p><p align="justify"><em>* Will the Bill address twin issues of siphoning off of foodgrain and availability of quality food?</em></p><p align="justify">Just passing the bill would not solve any of the problems related to siphoning off or access to good quality food. I think really what is happening is that in a sense the Bill is not just late in terms of 2009 and 2013, it has been overtaken by all sorts of other things and mainly opposition.</p><p align="justify">Moreover, the present Bill doesn't do very much more than increase eligibility by a little bit and reduce prices somewhat. Very large number of people in this country live in states where prices have already been reduced to below what the bill is proposing.</p><p align="justify">States like Orissa, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Andhra Pardesh have done it and most of these states have more coverage than the Bill provides for. So the Bill really would not have much effect on people living in those states though there will be some effect on people living in Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and may be Assam, West Bengal and Gujarat.</p><p align="justify"><em>* Does this mean the Bill has lost its significance even before taking off?</em></p><p align="justify">The very fact that while a Central bill is languishing, a large number of states who are able to have already moved in that direction shows that in terms of importance, those states think that it's a good thing to do.</p><p align="justify">Obviously they think that rather than wait for the Centre they will do it on their own, may be partly because they just don't want to wait because it is taking too long and partly because Centre's delays are also part of the opposition blockage. I suppose the political message is they would rather do the same thing on their own than be seen as giving something from the centre.</p><p align="justify">The states have adopted, it's ours rather than from the Centre approach.</p><p align="justify"><em>* Food ministry has decided not to sell huge wheat stock at a discounted price...</em></p><p align="justify">The sooner this stock moves the better it is and this is where the early passage of food security bill would have gained importance. At present, there is a psychosis attached with it that the bill is coming and therefore one needs to stock wheat. I think it's a stupid argument of not selling the stock wheat at a discounted price.</p><p align="justify">You have already bought the stuff, if you don't sell it, you will have to pay for stocking it and that stocking cost itself is Rs 3-5 per kg so if you don't pay the Rs 3-5 kg discount you are a stupid chap.</p><p align="justify">Anyway, world prices of wheat are coming down because of which export demand will go down. At the moment, there is demand in the domestic market, but why will anybody buy stock wheat at MSP and not fresh wheat?</p><p align="justify"><em>* When do we see the new below poverty line cards being rolled out?</em></p><p align="justify">My sense is that it is going to happen only after the elections next year. Conducting a census is one thing, but the entire process of distribution of new cards is politically quite a charged thing.</p><p align="justify">I am quite certain that most states are unlikely to get into this when elections are about to happen. Unlike previous BPL census, there is less evident of people trying to game the system this time and it seems pretty much in line with any other data. This was based on the population census data and was done with hand-held computers so that the data was uploaded immediately.</p><p align="justify">Besides, even the Registrar General of India came on board for the first time and all this has made it more realistic.</p><p align="justify"><em>* There's a growing imbalance between urea and other fertilizers...</em></p><p align="justify">As long as you continue to have urea under a low MRP and everything else is allowed to find its own price in the market, this imbalance will continue and is bad for productivity in the long run.</p><p align="justify"><em>The Economic Times, 21 May, 2013, <a href="http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/opinion/interviews/dont-think-food-bill-will-be-passed-this-session-planning-commission-member-abhijit-sen/articleshow/20161794.cms" title="http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/opinion/interviews/dont-think-food-bill-will-be-passed-this-session-planning-commission-member-abhijit-sen/articleshow/20161794.cms">http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/opinion/interviews/don<br />t-think-food-bill-will-be-passed-this-session-planning-com<br />mission-member-abhijit-sen/articleshow/20161794.cms</a></em></p><p align="justify"><strong>Image Courtesy: The Economic Times</strong> </p>               </font>
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		&#039;title&#039; =&gt; &#039;Prof. Abhijit Sen, member-Planning Commission interviewed by Yogima Seth &amp;amp; Madhvi Sally&#039;,
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-The Economic Times
&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
The huge delay in bringing the Food Security Bill to Parliament and the massive opposition to it have seen most states going ahead with key provisions of the proposed Bill, Planning Commission member Abhijit Sen tells ET.
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
Sen has doubts whether the bill would be passed in the Monsoon Session of Parliament. Edited excerpts:
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&lt;em&gt;* Do you think Food Security Bill would be passed in the Monsoon Session?&lt;/em&gt;
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
I am not confident about it being passed even in the Monsoon Session. The point is that the monsoon session will be the last session in which the Bill can be introduced, otherwise it will have to wait for the next government next year.
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
It has taken us four years to bring the bill to Parliament and the huge differences on the Bill, both from within the government and the opposition, will not go away suddenly.
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&lt;em&gt;* Will the Bill address twin issues of siphoning off of foodgrain and availability of quality food?&lt;/em&gt;
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
Just passing the bill would not solve any of the problems related to siphoning off or access to good quality food. I think really what is happening is that in a sense the Bill is not just late in terms of 2009 and 2013, it has been overtaken by all sorts of other things and mainly opposition.
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
Moreover, the present Bill doesn&#039;t do very much more than increase eligibility by a little bit and reduce prices somewhat. Very large number of people in this country live in states where prices have already been reduced to below what the bill is proposing.
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
States like Orissa, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Andhra Pardesh have done it and most of these states have more coverage than the Bill provides for. So the Bill really would not have much effect on people living in those states though there will be some effect on people living in Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and may be Assam, West Bengal and Gujarat.
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&lt;em&gt;* Does this mean the Bill has lost its significance even before taking off?&lt;/em&gt;
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
The very fact that while a Central bill is languishing, a large number of states who are able to have already moved in that direction shows that in terms of importance, those states think that it&#039;s a good thing to do.
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
Obviously they think that rather than wait for the Centre they will do it on their own, may be partly because they just don&#039;t want to wait because it is taking too long and partly because Centre&#039;s delays are also part of the opposition blockage. I suppose the political message is they would rather do the same thing on their own than be seen as giving something from the centre.
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
The states have adopted, it&#039;s ours rather than from the Centre approach.
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&lt;em&gt;* Food ministry has decided not to sell huge wheat stock at a discounted price...&lt;/em&gt;
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
The sooner this stock moves the better it is and this is where the early passage of food security bill would have gained importance. At present, there is a psychosis attached with it that the bill is coming and therefore one needs to stock wheat. I think it&#039;s a stupid argument of not selling the stock wheat at a discounted price.
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
You have already bought the stuff, if you don&#039;t sell it, you will have to pay for stocking it and that stocking cost itself is Rs 3-5 per kg so if you don&#039;t pay the Rs 3-5 kg discount you are a stupid chap.
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
Anyway, world prices of wheat are coming down because of which export demand will go down. At the moment, there is demand in the domestic market, but why will anybody buy stock wheat at MSP and not fresh wheat?
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&lt;em&gt;* When do we see the new below poverty line cards being rolled out?&lt;/em&gt;
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
My sense is that it is going to happen only after the elections next year. Conducting a census is one thing, but the entire process of distribution of new cards is politically quite a charged thing.
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
I am quite certain that most states are unlikely to get into this when elections are about to happen. Unlike previous BPL census, there is less evident of people trying to game the system this time and it seems pretty much in line with any other data. This was based on the population census data and was done with hand-held computers so that the data was uploaded immediately.
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
Besides, even the Registrar General of India came on board for the first time and all this has made it more realistic.
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&lt;em&gt;* There&#039;s a growing imbalance between urea and other fertilizers...&lt;/em&gt;
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
As long as you continue to have urea under a low MRP and everything else is allowed to find its own price in the market, this imbalance will continue and is bad for productivity in the long run.
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&lt;em&gt;The Economic Times, 21 May, 2013, &lt;a href=&quot;http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/opinion/interviews/dont-think-food-bill-will-be-passed-this-session-planning-commission-member-abhijit-sen/articleshow/20161794.cms&quot;&gt;http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/opinion/interviews/dont-think-food-bill-will-be-passed-this-session-planning-commission-member-abhijit-sen/articleshow/20161794.cms&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/em&gt;
&lt;/p&gt;
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&lt;strong&gt;Image Courtesy: The Economic Times&lt;/strong&gt; 
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-The Economic Times



The huge delay in bringing the Food Security Bill to Parliament and the massive opposition to it have seen most states going ahead with key provisions of the proposed Bill, Planning Commission member Abhijit Sen tells ET.


Sen has...&#039;,
	&#039;disp&#039; =&gt; &#039;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;-The Economic Times&lt;/div&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The huge delay in bringing the Food Security Bill to Parliament and the massive opposition to it have seen most states going ahead with key provisions of the proposed Bill, Planning Commission member Abhijit Sen tells ET.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;Sen has doubts whether the bill would be passed in the Monsoon Session of Parliament. Edited excerpts:&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;* Do you think Food Security Bill would be passed in the Monsoon Session?&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;I am not confident about it being passed even in the Monsoon Session. The point is that the monsoon session will be the last session in which the Bill can be introduced, otherwise it will have to wait for the next government next year.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;It has taken us four years to bring the bill to Parliament and the huge differences on the Bill, both from within the government and the opposition, will not go away suddenly.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;* Will the Bill address twin issues of siphoning off of foodgrain and availability of quality food?&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;Just passing the bill would not solve any of the problems related to siphoning off or access to good quality food. I think really what is happening is that in a sense the Bill is not just late in terms of 2009 and 2013, it has been overtaken by all sorts of other things and mainly opposition.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;Moreover, the present Bill doesn&#039;t do very much more than increase eligibility by a little bit and reduce prices somewhat. Very large number of people in this country live in states where prices have already been reduced to below what the bill is proposing.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;States like Orissa, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Andhra Pardesh have done it and most of these states have more coverage than the Bill provides for. So the Bill really would not have much effect on people living in those states though there will be some effect on people living in Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and may be Assam, West Bengal and Gujarat.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;* Does this mean the Bill has lost its significance even before taking off?&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;The very fact that while a Central bill is languishing, a large number of states who are able to have already moved in that direction shows that in terms of importance, those states think that it&#039;s a good thing to do.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;Obviously they think that rather than wait for the Centre they will do it on their own, may be partly because they just don&#039;t want to wait because it is taking too long and partly because Centre&#039;s delays are also part of the opposition blockage. I suppose the political message is they would rather do the same thing on their own than be seen as giving something from the centre.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;The states have adopted, it&#039;s ours rather than from the Centre approach.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;* Food ministry has decided not to sell huge wheat stock at a discounted price...&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;The sooner this stock moves the better it is and this is where the early passage of food security bill would have gained importance. At present, there is a psychosis attached with it that the bill is coming and therefore one needs to stock wheat. I think it&#039;s a stupid argument of not selling the stock wheat at a discounted price.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;You have already bought the stuff, if you don&#039;t sell it, you will have to pay for stocking it and that stocking cost itself is Rs 3-5 per kg so if you don&#039;t pay the Rs 3-5 kg discount you are a stupid chap.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;Anyway, world prices of wheat are coming down because of which export demand will go down. At the moment, there is demand in the domestic market, but why will anybody buy stock wheat at MSP and not fresh wheat?&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;* When do we see the new below poverty line cards being rolled out?&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;My sense is that it is going to happen only after the elections next year. Conducting a census is one thing, but the entire process of distribution of new cards is politically quite a charged thing.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;I am quite certain that most states are unlikely to get into this when elections are about to happen. Unlike previous BPL census, there is less evident of people trying to game the system this time and it seems pretty much in line with any other data. This was based on the population census data and was done with hand-held computers so that the data was uploaded immediately.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;Besides, even the Registrar General of India came on board for the first time and all this has made it more realistic.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;* There&#039;s a growing imbalance between urea and other fertilizers...&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;As long as you continue to have urea under a low MRP and everything else is allowed to find its own price in the market, this imbalance will continue and is bad for productivity in the long run.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;The Economic Times, 21 May, 2013, &lt;a href=&quot;http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/opinion/interviews/dont-think-food-bill-will-be-passed-this-session-planning-commission-member-abhijit-sen/articleshow/20161794.cms&quot; title=&quot;http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/opinion/interviews/dont-think-food-bill-will-be-passed-this-session-planning-commission-member-abhijit-sen/articleshow/20161794.cms&quot;&gt;http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/opinion/interviews/don&lt;br /&gt;t-think-food-bill-will-be-passed-this-session-planning-com&lt;br /&gt;mission-member-abhijit-sen/articleshow/20161794.cms&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Image Courtesy: The Economic Times&lt;/strong&gt; &lt;/p&gt;&#039;,
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	&#039;id&#039; =&gt; (int) 21058,
	&#039;title&#039; =&gt; &#039;Prof. Abhijit Sen, member-Planning Commission interviewed by Yogima Seth &amp;amp; Madhvi Sally&#039;,
	&#039;subheading&#039; =&gt; &#039;&#039;,
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-The Economic Times
&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
The huge delay in bringing the Food Security Bill to Parliament and the massive opposition to it have seen most states going ahead with key provisions of the proposed Bill, Planning Commission member Abhijit Sen tells ET.
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
Sen has doubts whether the bill would be passed in the Monsoon Session of Parliament. Edited excerpts:
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&lt;em&gt;* Do you think Food Security Bill would be passed in the Monsoon Session?&lt;/em&gt;
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
I am not confident about it being passed even in the Monsoon Session. The point is that the monsoon session will be the last session in which the Bill can be introduced, otherwise it will have to wait for the next government next year.
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
It has taken us four years to bring the bill to Parliament and the huge differences on the Bill, both from within the government and the opposition, will not go away suddenly.
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&lt;em&gt;* Will the Bill address twin issues of siphoning off of foodgrain and availability of quality food?&lt;/em&gt;
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
Just passing the bill would not solve any of the problems related to siphoning off or access to good quality food. I think really what is happening is that in a sense the Bill is not just late in terms of 2009 and 2013, it has been overtaken by all sorts of other things and mainly opposition.
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
Moreover, the present Bill doesn&#039;t do very much more than increase eligibility by a little bit and reduce prices somewhat. Very large number of people in this country live in states where prices have already been reduced to below what the bill is proposing.
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
States like Orissa, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Andhra Pardesh have done it and most of these states have more coverage than the Bill provides for. So the Bill really would not have much effect on people living in those states though there will be some effect on people living in Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and may be Assam, West Bengal and Gujarat.
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&lt;em&gt;* Does this mean the Bill has lost its significance even before taking off?&lt;/em&gt;
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
The very fact that while a Central bill is languishing, a large number of states who are able to have already moved in that direction shows that in terms of importance, those states think that it&#039;s a good thing to do.
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
Obviously they think that rather than wait for the Centre they will do it on their own, may be partly because they just don&#039;t want to wait because it is taking too long and partly because Centre&#039;s delays are also part of the opposition blockage. I suppose the political message is they would rather do the same thing on their own than be seen as giving something from the centre.
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
The states have adopted, it&#039;s ours rather than from the Centre approach.
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&lt;em&gt;* Food ministry has decided not to sell huge wheat stock at a discounted price...&lt;/em&gt;
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
The sooner this stock moves the better it is and this is where the early passage of food security bill would have gained importance. At present, there is a psychosis attached with it that the bill is coming and therefore one needs to stock wheat. I think it&#039;s a stupid argument of not selling the stock wheat at a discounted price.
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
You have already bought the stuff, if you don&#039;t sell it, you will have to pay for stocking it and that stocking cost itself is Rs 3-5 per kg so if you don&#039;t pay the Rs 3-5 kg discount you are a stupid chap.
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
Anyway, world prices of wheat are coming down because of which export demand will go down. At the moment, there is demand in the domestic market, but why will anybody buy stock wheat at MSP and not fresh wheat?
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&lt;em&gt;* When do we see the new below poverty line cards being rolled out?&lt;/em&gt;
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
My sense is that it is going to happen only after the elections next year. Conducting a census is one thing, but the entire process of distribution of new cards is politically quite a charged thing.
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
I am quite certain that most states are unlikely to get into this when elections are about to happen. Unlike previous BPL census, there is less evident of people trying to game the system this time and it seems pretty much in line with any other data. This was based on the population census data and was done with hand-held computers so that the data was uploaded immediately.
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
Besides, even the Registrar General of India came on board for the first time and all this has made it more realistic.
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&lt;em&gt;* There&#039;s a growing imbalance between urea and other fertilizers...&lt;/em&gt;
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
As long as you continue to have urea under a low MRP and everything else is allowed to find its own price in the market, this imbalance will continue and is bad for productivity in the long run.
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&lt;em&gt;The Economic Times, 21 May, 2013, &lt;a href=&quot;http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/opinion/interviews/dont-think-food-bill-will-be-passed-this-session-planning-commission-member-abhijit-sen/articleshow/20161794.cms&quot;&gt;http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/opinion/interviews/dont-think-food-bill-will-be-passed-this-session-planning-commission-member-abhijit-sen/articleshow/20161794.cms&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/em&gt;
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&lt;strong&gt;Image Courtesy: The Economic Times&lt;/strong&gt; 
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-The Economic Times



The huge delay in bringing the Food Security Bill to Parliament and the massive opposition to it have seen most states going ahead with key provisions of the proposed Bill, Planning Commission member Abhijit Sen tells ET.


Sen has...&#039;
$disp = &#039;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;-The Economic Times&lt;/div&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The huge delay in bringing the Food Security Bill to Parliament and the massive opposition to it have seen most states going ahead with key provisions of the proposed Bill, Planning Commission member Abhijit Sen tells ET.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;Sen has doubts whether the bill would be passed in the Monsoon Session of Parliament. Edited excerpts:&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;* Do you think Food Security Bill would be passed in the Monsoon Session?&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;I am not confident about it being passed even in the Monsoon Session. The point is that the monsoon session will be the last session in which the Bill can be introduced, otherwise it will have to wait for the next government next year.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;It has taken us four years to bring the bill to Parliament and the huge differences on the Bill, both from within the government and the opposition, will not go away suddenly.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;* Will the Bill address twin issues of siphoning off of foodgrain and availability of quality food?&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;Just passing the bill would not solve any of the problems related to siphoning off or access to good quality food. I think really what is happening is that in a sense the Bill is not just late in terms of 2009 and 2013, it has been overtaken by all sorts of other things and mainly opposition.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;Moreover, the present Bill doesn&#039;t do very much more than increase eligibility by a little bit and reduce prices somewhat. Very large number of people in this country live in states where prices have already been reduced to below what the bill is proposing.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;States like Orissa, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Andhra Pardesh have done it and most of these states have more coverage than the Bill provides for. So the Bill really would not have much effect on people living in those states though there will be some effect on people living in Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and may be Assam, West Bengal and Gujarat.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;* Does this mean the Bill has lost its significance even before taking off?&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;The very fact that while a Central bill is languishing, a large number of states who are able to have already moved in that direction shows that in terms of importance, those states think that it&#039;s a good thing to do.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;Obviously they think that rather than wait for the Centre they will do it on their own, may be partly because they just don&#039;t want to wait because it is taking too long and partly because Centre&#039;s delays are also part of the opposition blockage. I suppose the political message is they would rather do the same thing on their own than be seen as giving something from the centre.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;The states have adopted, it&#039;s ours rather than from the Centre approach.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;* Food ministry has decided not to sell huge wheat stock at a discounted price...&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;The sooner this stock moves the better it is and this is where the early passage of food security bill would have gained importance. At present, there is a psychosis attached with it that the bill is coming and therefore one needs to stock wheat. I think it&#039;s a stupid argument of not selling the stock wheat at a discounted price.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;You have already bought the stuff, if you don&#039;t sell it, you will have to pay for stocking it and that stocking cost itself is Rs 3-5 per kg so if you don&#039;t pay the Rs 3-5 kg discount you are a stupid chap.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;Anyway, world prices of wheat are coming down because of which export demand will go down. At the moment, there is demand in the domestic market, but why will anybody buy stock wheat at MSP and not fresh wheat?&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;* When do we see the new below poverty line cards being rolled out?&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;My sense is that it is going to happen only after the elections next year. Conducting a census is one thing, but the entire process of distribution of new cards is politically quite a charged thing.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;I am quite certain that most states are unlikely to get into this when elections are about to happen. Unlike previous BPL census, there is less evident of people trying to game the system this time and it seems pretty much in line with any other data. This was based on the population census data and was done with hand-held computers so that the data was uploaded immediately.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;Besides, even the Registrar General of India came on board for the first time and all this has made it more realistic.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;* There&#039;s a growing imbalance between urea and other fertilizers...&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;As long as you continue to have urea under a low MRP and everything else is allowed to find its own price in the market, this imbalance will continue and is bad for productivity in the long run.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;The Economic Times, 21 May, 2013, &lt;a href=&quot;http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/opinion/interviews/dont-think-food-bill-will-be-passed-this-session-planning-commission-member-abhijit-sen/articleshow/20161794.cms&quot; title=&quot;http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/opinion/interviews/dont-think-food-bill-will-be-passed-this-session-planning-commission-member-abhijit-sen/articleshow/20161794.cms&quot;&gt;http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/opinion/interviews/don&lt;br /&gt;t-think-food-bill-will-be-passed-this-session-planning-com&lt;br /&gt;mission-member-abhijit-sen/articleshow/20161794.cms&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Image Courtesy: The Economic Times&lt;/strong&gt; &lt;/p&gt;&#039;
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-The Economic Times



The huge delay in bringing the Food Security Bill to Parliament and the massive opposition to it have seen most states going ahead with key provisions of the proposed Bill, Planning Commission member Abhijit Sen tells ET.


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                <strong>Prof. Abhijit Sen, member-Planning Commission interviewed by Yogima Seth &amp; Madhvi Sally</strong></h1>
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                <div align="justify">-The Economic Times</div><p align="justify"><br />The huge delay in bringing the Food Security Bill to Parliament and the massive opposition to it have seen most states going ahead with key provisions of the proposed Bill, Planning Commission member Abhijit Sen tells ET.</p><p align="justify">Sen has doubts whether the bill would be passed in the Monsoon Session of Parliament. Edited excerpts:</p><p align="justify"><em>* Do you think Food Security Bill would be passed in the Monsoon Session?</em></p><p align="justify">I am not confident about it being passed even in the Monsoon Session. The point is that the monsoon session will be the last session in which the Bill can be introduced, otherwise it will have to wait for the next government next year.</p><p align="justify">It has taken us four years to bring the bill to Parliament and the huge differences on the Bill, both from within the government and the opposition, will not go away suddenly.</p><p align="justify"><em>* Will the Bill address twin issues of siphoning off of foodgrain and availability of quality food?</em></p><p align="justify">Just passing the bill would not solve any of the problems related to siphoning off or access to good quality food. I think really what is happening is that in a sense the Bill is not just late in terms of 2009 and 2013, it has been overtaken by all sorts of other things and mainly opposition.</p><p align="justify">Moreover, the present Bill doesn't do very much more than increase eligibility by a little bit and reduce prices somewhat. Very large number of people in this country live in states where prices have already been reduced to below what the bill is proposing.</p><p align="justify">States like Orissa, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Andhra Pardesh have done it and most of these states have more coverage than the Bill provides for. So the Bill really would not have much effect on people living in those states though there will be some effect on people living in Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and may be Assam, West Bengal and Gujarat.</p><p align="justify"><em>* Does this mean the Bill has lost its significance even before taking off?</em></p><p align="justify">The very fact that while a Central bill is languishing, a large number of states who are able to have already moved in that direction shows that in terms of importance, those states think that it's a good thing to do.</p><p align="justify">Obviously they think that rather than wait for the Centre they will do it on their own, may be partly because they just don't want to wait because it is taking too long and partly because Centre's delays are also part of the opposition blockage. I suppose the political message is they would rather do the same thing on their own than be seen as giving something from the centre.</p><p align="justify">The states have adopted, it's ours rather than from the Centre approach.</p><p align="justify"><em>* Food ministry has decided not to sell huge wheat stock at a discounted price...</em></p><p align="justify">The sooner this stock moves the better it is and this is where the early passage of food security bill would have gained importance. At present, there is a psychosis attached with it that the bill is coming and therefore one needs to stock wheat. I think it's a stupid argument of not selling the stock wheat at a discounted price.</p><p align="justify">You have already bought the stuff, if you don't sell it, you will have to pay for stocking it and that stocking cost itself is Rs 3-5 per kg so if you don't pay the Rs 3-5 kg discount you are a stupid chap.</p><p align="justify">Anyway, world prices of wheat are coming down because of which export demand will go down. At the moment, there is demand in the domestic market, but why will anybody buy stock wheat at MSP and not fresh wheat?</p><p align="justify"><em>* When do we see the new below poverty line cards being rolled out?</em></p><p align="justify">My sense is that it is going to happen only after the elections next year. Conducting a census is one thing, but the entire process of distribution of new cards is politically quite a charged thing.</p><p align="justify">I am quite certain that most states are unlikely to get into this when elections are about to happen. Unlike previous BPL census, there is less evident of people trying to game the system this time and it seems pretty much in line with any other data. This was based on the population census data and was done with hand-held computers so that the data was uploaded immediately.</p><p align="justify">Besides, even the Registrar General of India came on board for the first time and all this has made it more realistic.</p><p align="justify"><em>* There's a growing imbalance between urea and other fertilizers...</em></p><p align="justify">As long as you continue to have urea under a low MRP and everything else is allowed to find its own price in the market, this imbalance will continue and is bad for productivity in the long run.</p><p align="justify"><em>The Economic Times, 21 May, 2013, <a href="http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/opinion/interviews/dont-think-food-bill-will-be-passed-this-session-planning-commission-member-abhijit-sen/articleshow/20161794.cms" title="http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/opinion/interviews/dont-think-food-bill-will-be-passed-this-session-planning-commission-member-abhijit-sen/articleshow/20161794.cms">http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/opinion/interviews/don<br />t-think-food-bill-will-be-passed-this-session-planning-com<br />mission-member-abhijit-sen/articleshow/20161794.cms</a></em></p><p align="justify"><strong>Image Courtesy: The Economic Times</strong> </p>               </font>
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		'title' => 'Prof. Abhijit Sen, member-Planning Commission interviewed by Yogima Seth & Madhvi Sally',
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		'description' => '<div align="justify">
-The Economic Times
</div>
<p align="justify">
<br />
The huge delay in bringing the Food Security Bill to Parliament and the massive opposition to it have seen most states going ahead with key provisions of the proposed Bill, Planning Commission member Abhijit Sen tells ET.
</p>
<p align="justify">
Sen has doubts whether the bill would be passed in the Monsoon Session of Parliament. Edited excerpts:
</p>
<p align="justify">
<em>* Do you think Food Security Bill would be passed in the Monsoon Session?</em>
</p>
<p align="justify">
I am not confident about it being passed even in the Monsoon Session. The point is that the monsoon session will be the last session in which the Bill can be introduced, otherwise it will have to wait for the next government next year.
</p>
<p align="justify">
It has taken us four years to bring the bill to Parliament and the huge differences on the Bill, both from within the government and the opposition, will not go away suddenly.
</p>
<p align="justify">
<em>* Will the Bill address twin issues of siphoning off of foodgrain and availability of quality food?</em>
</p>
<p align="justify">
Just passing the bill would not solve any of the problems related to siphoning off or access to good quality food. I think really what is happening is that in a sense the Bill is not just late in terms of 2009 and 2013, it has been overtaken by all sorts of other things and mainly opposition.
</p>
<p align="justify">
Moreover, the present Bill doesn't do very much more than increase eligibility by a little bit and reduce prices somewhat. Very large number of people in this country live in states where prices have already been reduced to below what the bill is proposing.
</p>
<p align="justify">
States like Orissa, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Andhra Pardesh have done it and most of these states have more coverage than the Bill provides for. So the Bill really would not have much effect on people living in those states though there will be some effect on people living in Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and may be Assam, West Bengal and Gujarat.
</p>
<p align="justify">
<em>* Does this mean the Bill has lost its significance even before taking off?</em>
</p>
<p align="justify">
The very fact that while a Central bill is languishing, a large number of states who are able to have already moved in that direction shows that in terms of importance, those states think that it's a good thing to do.
</p>
<p align="justify">
Obviously they think that rather than wait for the Centre they will do it on their own, may be partly because they just don't want to wait because it is taking too long and partly because Centre's delays are also part of the opposition blockage. I suppose the political message is they would rather do the same thing on their own than be seen as giving something from the centre.
</p>
<p align="justify">
The states have adopted, it's ours rather than from the Centre approach.
</p>
<p align="justify">
<em>* Food ministry has decided not to sell huge wheat stock at a discounted price...</em>
</p>
<p align="justify">
The sooner this stock moves the better it is and this is where the early passage of food security bill would have gained importance. At present, there is a psychosis attached with it that the bill is coming and therefore one needs to stock wheat. I think it's a stupid argument of not selling the stock wheat at a discounted price.
</p>
<p align="justify">
You have already bought the stuff, if you don't sell it, you will have to pay for stocking it and that stocking cost itself is Rs 3-5 per kg so if you don't pay the Rs 3-5 kg discount you are a stupid chap.
</p>
<p align="justify">
Anyway, world prices of wheat are coming down because of which export demand will go down. At the moment, there is demand in the domestic market, but why will anybody buy stock wheat at MSP and not fresh wheat?
</p>
<p align="justify">
<em>* When do we see the new below poverty line cards being rolled out?</em>
</p>
<p align="justify">
My sense is that it is going to happen only after the elections next year. Conducting a census is one thing, but the entire process of distribution of new cards is politically quite a charged thing.
</p>
<p align="justify">
I am quite certain that most states are unlikely to get into this when elections are about to happen. Unlike previous BPL census, there is less evident of people trying to game the system this time and it seems pretty much in line with any other data. This was based on the population census data and was done with hand-held computers so that the data was uploaded immediately.
</p>
<p align="justify">
Besides, even the Registrar General of India came on board for the first time and all this has made it more realistic.
</p>
<p align="justify">
<em>* There's a growing imbalance between urea and other fertilizers...</em>
</p>
<p align="justify">
As long as you continue to have urea under a low MRP and everything else is allowed to find its own price in the market, this imbalance will continue and is bad for productivity in the long run.
</p>
<p align="justify">
<em>The Economic Times, 21 May, 2013, <a href="http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/opinion/interviews/dont-think-food-bill-will-be-passed-this-session-planning-commission-member-abhijit-sen/articleshow/20161794.cms">http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/opinion/interviews/dont-think-food-bill-will-be-passed-this-session-planning-commission-member-abhijit-sen/articleshow/20161794.cms</a></em>
</p>
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<strong>Image Courtesy: The Economic Times</strong> 
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-The Economic Times



The huge delay in bringing the Food Security Bill to Parliament and the massive opposition to it have seen most states going ahead with key provisions of the proposed Bill, Planning Commission member Abhijit Sen tells ET.


Sen has...',
	'disp' => '<div align="justify">-The Economic Times</div><p align="justify"><br />The huge delay in bringing the Food Security Bill to Parliament and the massive opposition to it have seen most states going ahead with key provisions of the proposed Bill, Planning Commission member Abhijit Sen tells ET.</p><p align="justify">Sen has doubts whether the bill would be passed in the Monsoon Session of Parliament. Edited excerpts:</p><p align="justify"><em>* Do you think Food Security Bill would be passed in the Monsoon Session?</em></p><p align="justify">I am not confident about it being passed even in the Monsoon Session. The point is that the monsoon session will be the last session in which the Bill can be introduced, otherwise it will have to wait for the next government next year.</p><p align="justify">It has taken us four years to bring the bill to Parliament and the huge differences on the Bill, both from within the government and the opposition, will not go away suddenly.</p><p align="justify"><em>* Will the Bill address twin issues of siphoning off of foodgrain and availability of quality food?</em></p><p align="justify">Just passing the bill would not solve any of the problems related to siphoning off or access to good quality food. I think really what is happening is that in a sense the Bill is not just late in terms of 2009 and 2013, it has been overtaken by all sorts of other things and mainly opposition.</p><p align="justify">Moreover, the present Bill doesn't do very much more than increase eligibility by a little bit and reduce prices somewhat. Very large number of people in this country live in states where prices have already been reduced to below what the bill is proposing.</p><p align="justify">States like Orissa, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Andhra Pardesh have done it and most of these states have more coverage than the Bill provides for. So the Bill really would not have much effect on people living in those states though there will be some effect on people living in Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and may be Assam, West Bengal and Gujarat.</p><p align="justify"><em>* Does this mean the Bill has lost its significance even before taking off?</em></p><p align="justify">The very fact that while a Central bill is languishing, a large number of states who are able to have already moved in that direction shows that in terms of importance, those states think that it's a good thing to do.</p><p align="justify">Obviously they think that rather than wait for the Centre they will do it on their own, may be partly because they just don't want to wait because it is taking too long and partly because Centre's delays are also part of the opposition blockage. I suppose the political message is they would rather do the same thing on their own than be seen as giving something from the centre.</p><p align="justify">The states have adopted, it's ours rather than from the Centre approach.</p><p align="justify"><em>* Food ministry has decided not to sell huge wheat stock at a discounted price...</em></p><p align="justify">The sooner this stock moves the better it is and this is where the early passage of food security bill would have gained importance. At present, there is a psychosis attached with it that the bill is coming and therefore one needs to stock wheat. I think it's a stupid argument of not selling the stock wheat at a discounted price.</p><p align="justify">You have already bought the stuff, if you don't sell it, you will have to pay for stocking it and that stocking cost itself is Rs 3-5 per kg so if you don't pay the Rs 3-5 kg discount you are a stupid chap.</p><p align="justify">Anyway, world prices of wheat are coming down because of which export demand will go down. At the moment, there is demand in the domestic market, but why will anybody buy stock wheat at MSP and not fresh wheat?</p><p align="justify"><em>* When do we see the new below poverty line cards being rolled out?</em></p><p align="justify">My sense is that it is going to happen only after the elections next year. Conducting a census is one thing, but the entire process of distribution of new cards is politically quite a charged thing.</p><p align="justify">I am quite certain that most states are unlikely to get into this when elections are about to happen. Unlike previous BPL census, there is less evident of people trying to game the system this time and it seems pretty much in line with any other data. This was based on the population census data and was done with hand-held computers so that the data was uploaded immediately.</p><p align="justify">Besides, even the Registrar General of India came on board for the first time and all this has made it more realistic.</p><p align="justify"><em>* There's a growing imbalance between urea and other fertilizers...</em></p><p align="justify">As long as you continue to have urea under a low MRP and everything else is allowed to find its own price in the market, this imbalance will continue and is bad for productivity in the long run.</p><p align="justify"><em>The Economic Times, 21 May, 2013, <a href="http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/opinion/interviews/dont-think-food-bill-will-be-passed-this-session-planning-commission-member-abhijit-sen/articleshow/20161794.cms" title="http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/opinion/interviews/dont-think-food-bill-will-be-passed-this-session-planning-commission-member-abhijit-sen/articleshow/20161794.cms">http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/opinion/interviews/don<br />t-think-food-bill-will-be-passed-this-session-planning-com<br />mission-member-abhijit-sen/articleshow/20161794.cms</a></em></p><p align="justify"><strong>Image Courtesy: The Economic Times</strong> </p>',
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-The Economic Times
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<p align="justify">
<br />
The huge delay in bringing the Food Security Bill to Parliament and the massive opposition to it have seen most states going ahead with key provisions of the proposed Bill, Planning Commission member Abhijit Sen tells ET.
</p>
<p align="justify">
Sen has doubts whether the bill would be passed in the Monsoon Session of Parliament. Edited excerpts:
</p>
<p align="justify">
<em>* Do you think Food Security Bill would be passed in the Monsoon Session?</em>
</p>
<p align="justify">
I am not confident about it being passed even in the Monsoon Session. The point is that the monsoon session will be the last session in which the Bill can be introduced, otherwise it will have to wait for the next government next year.
</p>
<p align="justify">
It has taken us four years to bring the bill to Parliament and the huge differences on the Bill, both from within the government and the opposition, will not go away suddenly.
</p>
<p align="justify">
<em>* Will the Bill address twin issues of siphoning off of foodgrain and availability of quality food?</em>
</p>
<p align="justify">
Just passing the bill would not solve any of the problems related to siphoning off or access to good quality food. I think really what is happening is that in a sense the Bill is not just late in terms of 2009 and 2013, it has been overtaken by all sorts of other things and mainly opposition.
</p>
<p align="justify">
Moreover, the present Bill doesn't do very much more than increase eligibility by a little bit and reduce prices somewhat. Very large number of people in this country live in states where prices have already been reduced to below what the bill is proposing.
</p>
<p align="justify">
States like Orissa, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Andhra Pardesh have done it and most of these states have more coverage than the Bill provides for. So the Bill really would not have much effect on people living in those states though there will be some effect on people living in Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and may be Assam, West Bengal and Gujarat.
</p>
<p align="justify">
<em>* Does this mean the Bill has lost its significance even before taking off?</em>
</p>
<p align="justify">
The very fact that while a Central bill is languishing, a large number of states who are able to have already moved in that direction shows that in terms of importance, those states think that it's a good thing to do.
</p>
<p align="justify">
Obviously they think that rather than wait for the Centre they will do it on their own, may be partly because they just don't want to wait because it is taking too long and partly because Centre's delays are also part of the opposition blockage. I suppose the political message is they would rather do the same thing on their own than be seen as giving something from the centre.
</p>
<p align="justify">
The states have adopted, it's ours rather than from the Centre approach.
</p>
<p align="justify">
<em>* Food ministry has decided not to sell huge wheat stock at a discounted price...</em>
</p>
<p align="justify">
The sooner this stock moves the better it is and this is where the early passage of food security bill would have gained importance. At present, there is a psychosis attached with it that the bill is coming and therefore one needs to stock wheat. I think it's a stupid argument of not selling the stock wheat at a discounted price.
</p>
<p align="justify">
You have already bought the stuff, if you don't sell it, you will have to pay for stocking it and that stocking cost itself is Rs 3-5 per kg so if you don't pay the Rs 3-5 kg discount you are a stupid chap.
</p>
<p align="justify">
Anyway, world prices of wheat are coming down because of which export demand will go down. At the moment, there is demand in the domestic market, but why will anybody buy stock wheat at MSP and not fresh wheat?
</p>
<p align="justify">
<em>* When do we see the new below poverty line cards being rolled out?</em>
</p>
<p align="justify">
My sense is that it is going to happen only after the elections next year. Conducting a census is one thing, but the entire process of distribution of new cards is politically quite a charged thing.
</p>
<p align="justify">
I am quite certain that most states are unlikely to get into this when elections are about to happen. Unlike previous BPL census, there is less evident of people trying to game the system this time and it seems pretty much in line with any other data. This was based on the population census data and was done with hand-held computers so that the data was uploaded immediately.
</p>
<p align="justify">
Besides, even the Registrar General of India came on board for the first time and all this has made it more realistic.
</p>
<p align="justify">
<em>* There's a growing imbalance between urea and other fertilizers...</em>
</p>
<p align="justify">
As long as you continue to have urea under a low MRP and everything else is allowed to find its own price in the market, this imbalance will continue and is bad for productivity in the long run.
</p>
<p align="justify">
<em>The Economic Times, 21 May, 2013, <a href="http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/opinion/interviews/dont-think-food-bill-will-be-passed-this-session-planning-commission-member-abhijit-sen/articleshow/20161794.cms">http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/opinion/interviews/dont-think-food-bill-will-be-passed-this-session-planning-commission-member-abhijit-sen/articleshow/20161794.cms</a></em>
</p>
<p align="justify">
<strong>Image Courtesy: The Economic Times</strong> 
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-The Economic Times



The huge delay in bringing the Food Security Bill to Parliament and the massive opposition to it have seen most states going ahead with key provisions of the proposed Bill, Planning Commission member Abhijit Sen tells ET.


Sen has...'
$disp = '<div align="justify">-The Economic Times</div><p align="justify"><br />The huge delay in bringing the Food Security Bill to Parliament and the massive opposition to it have seen most states going ahead with key provisions of the proposed Bill, Planning Commission member Abhijit Sen tells ET.</p><p align="justify">Sen has doubts whether the bill would be passed in the Monsoon Session of Parliament. Edited excerpts:</p><p align="justify"><em>* Do you think Food Security Bill would be passed in the Monsoon Session?</em></p><p align="justify">I am not confident about it being passed even in the Monsoon Session. The point is that the monsoon session will be the last session in which the Bill can be introduced, otherwise it will have to wait for the next government next year.</p><p align="justify">It has taken us four years to bring the bill to Parliament and the huge differences on the Bill, both from within the government and the opposition, will not go away suddenly.</p><p align="justify"><em>* Will the Bill address twin issues of siphoning off of foodgrain and availability of quality food?</em></p><p align="justify">Just passing the bill would not solve any of the problems related to siphoning off or access to good quality food. I think really what is happening is that in a sense the Bill is not just late in terms of 2009 and 2013, it has been overtaken by all sorts of other things and mainly opposition.</p><p align="justify">Moreover, the present Bill doesn't do very much more than increase eligibility by a little bit and reduce prices somewhat. Very large number of people in this country live in states where prices have already been reduced to below what the bill is proposing.</p><p align="justify">States like Orissa, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Andhra Pardesh have done it and most of these states have more coverage than the Bill provides for. So the Bill really would not have much effect on people living in those states though there will be some effect on people living in Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and may be Assam, West Bengal and Gujarat.</p><p align="justify"><em>* Does this mean the Bill has lost its significance even before taking off?</em></p><p align="justify">The very fact that while a Central bill is languishing, a large number of states who are able to have already moved in that direction shows that in terms of importance, those states think that it's a good thing to do.</p><p align="justify">Obviously they think that rather than wait for the Centre they will do it on their own, may be partly because they just don't want to wait because it is taking too long and partly because Centre's delays are also part of the opposition blockage. I suppose the political message is they would rather do the same thing on their own than be seen as giving something from the centre.</p><p align="justify">The states have adopted, it's ours rather than from the Centre approach.</p><p align="justify"><em>* Food ministry has decided not to sell huge wheat stock at a discounted price...</em></p><p align="justify">The sooner this stock moves the better it is and this is where the early passage of food security bill would have gained importance. At present, there is a psychosis attached with it that the bill is coming and therefore one needs to stock wheat. I think it's a stupid argument of not selling the stock wheat at a discounted price.</p><p align="justify">You have already bought the stuff, if you don't sell it, you will have to pay for stocking it and that stocking cost itself is Rs 3-5 per kg so if you don't pay the Rs 3-5 kg discount you are a stupid chap.</p><p align="justify">Anyway, world prices of wheat are coming down because of which export demand will go down. At the moment, there is demand in the domestic market, but why will anybody buy stock wheat at MSP and not fresh wheat?</p><p align="justify"><em>* When do we see the new below poverty line cards being rolled out?</em></p><p align="justify">My sense is that it is going to happen only after the elections next year. Conducting a census is one thing, but the entire process of distribution of new cards is politically quite a charged thing.</p><p align="justify">I am quite certain that most states are unlikely to get into this when elections are about to happen. Unlike previous BPL census, there is less evident of people trying to game the system this time and it seems pretty much in line with any other data. This was based on the population census data and was done with hand-held computers so that the data was uploaded immediately.</p><p align="justify">Besides, even the Registrar General of India came on board for the first time and all this has made it more realistic.</p><p align="justify"><em>* There's a growing imbalance between urea and other fertilizers...</em></p><p align="justify">As long as you continue to have urea under a low MRP and everything else is allowed to find its own price in the market, this imbalance will continue and is bad for productivity in the long run.</p><p align="justify"><em>The Economic Times, 21 May, 2013, <a href="http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/opinion/interviews/dont-think-food-bill-will-be-passed-this-session-planning-commission-member-abhijit-sen/articleshow/20161794.cms" title="http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/opinion/interviews/dont-think-food-bill-will-be-passed-this-session-planning-commission-member-abhijit-sen/articleshow/20161794.cms">http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/opinion/interviews/don<br />t-think-food-bill-will-be-passed-this-session-planning-com<br />mission-member-abhijit-sen/articleshow/20161794.cms</a></em></p><p align="justify"><strong>Image Courtesy: The Economic Times</strong> </p>'
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Prof. Abhijit Sen, member-Planning Commission interviewed by Yogima Seth & Madhvi Sally

-The Economic Times The huge delay in bringing the Food Security Bill to Parliament and the massive opposition to it have seen most states going ahead with key provisions of the proposed Bill, Planning Commission member Abhijit Sen tells ET. Sen has doubts whether the bill would be passed in the Monsoon Session of Parliament. Edited excerpts: * Do you think Food Security Bill would be passed in the Monsoon Session? I am not confident about it being passed even in the Monsoon Session. The point is that the monsoon session will be the last session in which the Bill can be introduced, otherwise it will have to wait for the next government next year. It has taken us four years to bring the bill to Parliament and the huge differences on the Bill, both from within the government and the opposition, will not go away suddenly. * Will the Bill address twin issues of siphoning off of foodgrain and availability of quality food? Just passing the bill would not solve any of the problems related to siphoning off or access to good quality food. I think really what is happening is that in a sense the Bill is not just late in terms of 2009 and 2013, it has been overtaken by all sorts of other things and mainly opposition. Moreover, the present Bill doesn't do very much more than increase eligibility by a little bit and reduce prices somewhat. Very large number of people in this country live in states where prices have already been reduced to below what the bill is proposing. States like Orissa, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Andhra Pardesh have done it and most of these states have more coverage than the Bill provides for. So the Bill really would not have much effect on people living in those states though there will be some effect on people living in Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and may be Assam, West Bengal and Gujarat. * Does this mean the Bill has lost its significance even before taking off? The very fact that while a Central bill is languishing, a large number of states who are able to have already moved in that direction shows that in terms of importance, those states think that it's a good thing to do. Obviously they think that rather than wait for the Centre they will do it on their own, may be partly because they just don't want to wait because it is taking too long and partly because Centre's delays are also part of the opposition blockage. I suppose the political message is they would rather do the same thing on their own than be seen as giving something from the centre. The states have adopted, it's ours rather than from the Centre approach. * Food ministry has decided not to sell huge wheat stock at a discounted price... The sooner this stock moves the better it is and this is where the early passage of food security bill would have gained importance. At present, there is a psychosis attached with it that the bill is coming and therefore one needs to stock wheat. I think it's a stupid argument of not selling the stock wheat at a discounted price. You have already bought the stuff, if you don't sell it, you will have to pay for stocking it and that stocking cost itself is Rs 3-5 per kg so if you don't pay the Rs 3-5 kg discount you are a stupid chap. Anyway, world prices of wheat are coming down because of which export demand will go down. At the moment, there is demand in the domestic market, but why will anybody buy stock wheat at MSP and not fresh wheat? * When do we see the new below poverty line cards being rolled out? My sense is that it is going to happen only after the elections next year. Conducting a census is one thing, but the entire process of distribution of new cards is politically quite a charged thing. I am quite certain that most states are unlikely to get into this when elections are about to happen. Unlike previous BPL census, there is less evident of people trying to game the system this time and it seems pretty much in line with any other data. This was based on the population census data and was done with hand-held computers so that the data was uploaded immediately. Besides, even the Registrar General of India came on board for the first time and all this has made it more realistic. * There's a growing imbalance between urea and other fertilizers... As long as you continue to have urea under a low MRP and everything else is allowed to find its own price in the market, this imbalance will continue and is bad for productivity in the long run. The Economic Times, 21 May, 2013, http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/opinion/interviews/don t-think-food-bill-will-be-passed-this-session-planning-com mission-member-abhijit-sen/articleshow/20161794.cms Image Courtesy: The Economic Times