-The Indian Express Temporary denial of food rations is one thing, cancellation of ration cards is far more serious. How many cards have been cancelled for lack of Aadhaar linkage? No one really knows. The Covid crisis has enhanced the dependence of poor people on social security schemes such as the public distribution system (PDS). Many of them, unfortunately, continue to have difficulties in accessing these schemes due to Aadhaar-related problems. Startling findings...
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Reinforcing social welfare schemes to withstand crises -Rituparna Sanyal and Shraddha Shrivastava
-IDROnline.org How did India’s Public Distribution System adapt during COVID-19 and what can other social protection schemes learn from it? Social Protection (SP) broadly refers to a set of policies and programmes aimed at protecting people against poverty, vulnerability, and social exclusion throughout their life. Over the last 15 years, India has witnessed a growth in rights-based entitlements and systemic reforms to build a more inclusive SP system. These encompass the Mid-Day...
More »Starvation stares poor in the face as PDS fails to safeguard Indians' Right to Food -Arghya Bhaskar
-Firstpost.com In the latest development in the Koili Devi vs Union of India case, the Supreme Court has sought the Centre’s response to the plea that 'three crore ration cards are gone' Santoshi Kumari was an 11-year-old girl from Karimati village of the Jaldega block in Simdega district of Jharkhand. On September 28, 2017, Santoshi fell unconscious. "Bhaat (rice)," she pleaded, recalls her mother. The mother rushed to the nearest Public Distribution...
More »Let’s strengthen and not dilute the National Food Security Act -Himanshu
-Livemint.com * We must widen its coverage to feed the needy instead of letting subsidy reductions get the better of it * Subsidy reduction is a key aim of Niti Aayog’s proposal to reduce food-security coverage, but our subsidy level is not as high as it looks and the move could thwart efforts to achieve nutrition goals A recent discussion paper by the Niti Aayog has suggested a reduction in the coverage of...
More »The pandemic has hampered social auditing of MGNREGA
When a massive sum of public money is spent on a programme like Mahatma Gandhi Rural Employment Guarantee Programme (MGNREGA)--a demand-driven programme, there is likelihood of financial misappropriations and mismanagement. Thankfully there are checks and balances in the rural employment guarantee legislation to counter such malpractices. It is worth noting that the total allocation under the Mahatma Gandhi Rural Employment Guarantee Programme (MGNREGA) for 2020-21 was Rs. 1,11,500.00 crore (R.E.), up...
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