This has to be the ultimate irony. Barely a few weeks after a Supreme Court committee comes out with a verdict that the public distribution system is bust and needs a drastic overhaul, the government clears a food security bill that seeks to push more food through this very same burst pipe. If newspaper reports are to be believed, the Congress president is not happy with even this and wants...
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Hard to stomach by Biraj Patnaik
As the nation debates the National Food Security Act (NFSA) and its implications on food security for the country, it is pertinent to pause for a moment and ponder some of the structural reasons for the mismanagement of the food economy of the country. Forget the past or the future or even the present set of policies being pursued. The UPA-II is pushing the nation inexorably towards a regime of...
More »Cracks In The Silo Wall by Lola Nayar
Flaws In The PDS… Poor verification norms, over two crore bogus BPL cards Over 1.2 crore BPL families don’t have a ration card No monitoring, resulting in pilferage, gaps in delivery, poor quality foodgrains Poor profit margins a major cause for corruption Lack of information hinders benefits from reaching the poor …and the Solutions Base fair price shops on new business model The Centre takes ‘responsibility’ for delivery in states Make verification...
More »Army of activists a boon or bane? by Shobhan Saxena
The Facebook page on the Right to Information challenges the government with some provocative questions. “We all pay taxes. Even a beggar on the street pays sales tax when he buys anything from the market. This money belongs to us. But where does this money go? Why are there no medicines in the hospitals? Why are people dying of starvation? Why are the roads in such pathetic conditions? Why are...
More »NAC watching, govt to revisit Food Security Bill
The Food Security Bill is going to be taken up afresh by the empowered group of ministers on Monday, on the back of relentless demands from activists to widen the ambit of the bill, with regard to quantum of ration and number of beneficiaries. The EGoM, headed by finance minister Pranab Mukherjee, will examine the draft in light of demands to increase monthly entitlement of foodgrain from 25kg provided for...
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