-The Indian Express The finance minister plans to scrap the supply of subsidised kerosene through the public Distribution system (PDS) and high time, too. To begin with, why has the kerosene subsidy needed reform for decades and yet reform never materialised? Kerosene obtained through the PDS, being cheaper, is used to adulterate diesel and petrol. Kerosene leakages in the PDS are estimated to be 40 per cent of total allocations. The diversion...
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Food Corporation to implement major recommendations of high-level panel -Madhvi Sally
-The Economic Times NEW DELHI: In a major boost to reforms in food procurement and Distribution, the Food Corporation of India (FCI) has assured the government it will be able to implement major recommendations of the high-level panel that has recommended a complete revamp of the body that plays a key role in the country's food security. The panel has made path-breaking recommendations such as direct cash transfer for fertilizers and grains...
More »Just how leaky is the PDS? -Rukmini S
-The Hindu Why do we not have a clear answer on just how much grain is leaking out of the Public Distribution System? If you're interested in just what ‘leakage' means and how it's worked out, here's a little primer. So first: what is leakage? Since we know anecdotally that many households do not get all the grain they are entitled to, we can assume some is being illegally diverted. It's...
More »Did FCI panel inflate leakage figures to bolster case for cash transfers? -Sayantan Bera
-Livemint.com Experts say the panel's suggestions on public Distribution system overlooked reforms undertaken by states New Delhi: The high-level committee on restructuring of the Food Corporation of India (FCI), which suggested sweeping changes in the procurement and Distribution of foodgrains, may have based its conclusions on inflated leakages in the public Distribution system (PDS), experts say. The panel recommended that coverage under the National Food Security Act (NFSA) be reduced from 67%...
More »Food security: economists challenge official panel’s conclusions -Yogesh Rajput
-Governance Now Shanta Kumar committee recommendation to curtail PDS based on "motivated data fudging" A group of economists have challenged the government move to scale down the ambit of the food security initiative, arguing that leakages in the public Distribution system (PDS) are not as bad as an official committee has concluded. A ‘high-level committee on restructuring of FCI', headed by Shanta Kumar, submitted its report to prime minister Narendra Modi last month,...
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