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LATEST NEWS UPDATES | Cabinet clears Food Security Bill

Cabinet clears Food Security Bill

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published Published on Dec 19, 2011   modified Modified on Dec 19, 2011

-Express News Service

In a major step towards fulfilling the ruling Congress’s poll promise, the Union Cabinet today cleared the National Food Security Bill that seeks to provide legal entitlement of foodgrain to 75 per cent of the rural population and up to 50 per cent of the urban population.

The Bill seeks to divide the eligible households into two broad categories — priority and general — wherein the “priority” group will comprise of at least 46 per cent of the rural population and 28 per cent of the urban population. However, the Bill does not specify the criteria for identifying these groups and puts the onus on the central government to “prescribe the guidelines for identification of priority households, general households and exclusion criteria”.

While the “priority” group will be eligible for seven kg of foodgrain per person at highly subsidised rates — Rs 3, 2, 1 per kg for rice, wheat and coarse grains respectively — the “general” group will be eligible for at least three kg of foodgrain at half the minimum support price.

In addition, the Bill also brings under its fold a basket of other ongoing welfare schemes — maternity benefit scheme, midday meal scheme, integrated child development services scheme, free/ affordable meals to destitutes, homeless, and persons living in starvation and affected by disaster — to make them a legal entitlement.

“The Union Cabinet which met this evening gave its approval to the National Food Security Bill 2011. It also decided that the Bill be introduced in the current winter session of the Parliament,” said Food Minister K V Thomas, talking to the media after the Cabinet meeing chaired by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. After being introduced in Parliament, the Bill is likely to be referred to the standing committee for detailed scrutiny.

Last week, the Cabinet had deferred a decision on the Bill after discussions remained “inconclusive” with several ministers voicing their reservations over the “fiscal implications” of such a generous rights-based legal entitlement. However, sources said the Cabinet today cleared the Bill without much acrimony. Thomas is reported to have briefed the PM an hour before the meeting to allay the concerns expressed by Cabinet members.

As per the Bill, the government is set to require about 60.74 million tonnes of foodgrain as against an average annual procurement of 44.95 million tonnes during the 11-year period of 2000-01 to 2010-11. On the fiscal expenditure front, the Bill is likely to entail food subsidy expenditure to the tune of Rs 94,973 crore per annum as against the estimated Rs 67,310 crore during 2010-11.

While the Bill seeks to raise the government’s food subsidy burden and foodgrain procurement, it provides a stick for the central government to push reforms in the Public Distribution System by linking entitlements to the “general” group with the reforms.

“The entitlements of persons belonging to general households shall be linked to such reforms in the Public Distribution System and from such dates as may be prescribed by the central government,” reads a proviso in sub-section 3 of Section 3 of the Bill.

As for reforms, Chapter 3 provides for “leveraging ‘aadhaar’ for unique identification” and “introducing schemes such as cash transfer, food coupons, or other schemes to the targeted beneficiaries in lieu of their foodgrain entitlements” for proper targeting of benefits along with “diversification of commodities distributed under PDS”.

The Bill also provides an elaborate grievance redressal mechanishm comprising of district grievance redressal officers and Food Commissions at state and national levels to monitor the implementation of the food security law.

Given that the Bill will be implemented by the state governments, the Bill provides for “cost sharing” between the state governments and the central government on various schemes. However, it does not specify the cost sharing pattern. The Centre is likely to discuss this with the states later.

A food security law was first formally announced by President Pratibha Patil in her address to the joint session of Parliament in June 2009. The issue was discussed by the Sonia Gandhi-led National Advisory Council (NAC) that came out with its sets of recommendations, which were scrutinised by a high-level committee under C Rangarajan, chairman of the Prime Minister’s Economic Advisory Council, who objected to such generous legal entitlements.

It was then scrutinised by an empowered group of ministers under Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee, which rationalised the provisions and granted its approval in July this year.

The Indian Express, 19 December, 2011, http://www.indianexpress.com/news/cabinet-clears-food-security-bill/889473/


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