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LATEST NEWS UPDATES | Food security does not need this ‘surgical strike’ -Madhura Swaminathan and Deepak Johnson

Food security does not need this ‘surgical strike’ -Madhura Swaminathan and Deepak Johnson

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published Published on May 23, 2022   modified Modified on May 23, 2022

-The Hindu

India’s flip-flop on the export of wheat is an example of the Government lacking a coherent policy of food security

The Government of India announced a sudden ban on export of wheat on May 13, 2022, a few days after Prime Minister Narendra Modi had stated that “at a time when the world is facing a shortage of wheat, the farmers of India have stepped forward to feed the world”. Even a day before the export ban came into effect, Government officials were looking out for possible export locations, indicating that there were no plans for control of wheat exports. With the latest announcement, the Government has sent out confusing policy signals

Status of procurement

The sudden turnaround in the export policy appears to be on account of fears that low public procurement would affect domestic food security.

The system of public procurement has been in place since the mid-1960s, and has been the backbone of food policy in India. Progressive economists and social scientists have always argued that for a country the size of India, food security has to be ensured through domestic production. As part of the liberalisation policy, many other economists suggested that food stocks be run down in India and that needs of food security be met through world trade and the Chicago futures market.

This summer, procurement of wheat by the Food Corporation of India (FCI) has been very low. Last year, the FCI and other agencies procured 43.34 million tonnes of wheat. For the current season, procurement has only been 17.8 million tonnes, as of May 10, 2022. Given the low levels of procurement, the Government has reduced the procurement target for the current season from 44.4 to 19.5 million tonnes.

Is there a concern on that front now, in particular in terms of availability of food grain? The answer is an emphatic “no”, but if and only if policy measures ensure adequate distribution through the food rationing network and open market operations are undertaken to ensure stable prices. (The assumption here is that both rice and wheat are now consumed in all parts of the country, and if needed, rice can be distributed in lieu of wheat. As of April 2022, there were 33 million tonnes of rice held as stocks.)

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The Hindu, 23 May, 2022, https://www.thehindu.com/opinion/lead/food-security-does-not-need-this-surgical-strike/article65447720.ece?homepage=true


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