While the National Advisory Council (NAC), Planning Commission and the Prime Minister Office are grappling over the proposed National Food Security Bill, the government has been steadily increasing allocation under the Targetted Public Distribution System (TPDS) during last many years. According to Siraj Hussain, chairman and managing director, Food Corporation of India (FCI), with the rise in procurement of wheat and rice by the corporation during last few years, more and...

The Bharatiya Janata Party Nagaland expressed unhappiness over the Pubic Distribution System (PDS) of essential commodities in the state. It stated that the present PDS is in the hand of a few contractors, appointed by the government as state Stockiest and District Nominee, for mobilization/handling and transportation of essential commodities meant for districts on contractual basis by signing of an agreement for one year period. “These temporary deeds are purely for...

To meet the rising demand of storage space for food grains, especially during procurement seasons, the Food Corporation of India (FCI) and other agencies have invited tenders for 70 lakh metric tonnes of storage capacity. Principal Secretary to the Punjab Chief Minister Darbara Singh Guru, who was here to take stock of the arrangements of paddy procurement at the grain markets in border districts, said this on Tuesday. Talking to the...

The mountainous state-owned food stocks lying in the open and rotting in the rain are in stark conflict with a failing public distribution system , hunger, malnutrition and high food prices. The poor management of food stocks provoked the Supreme Court to transgress into executive domain when, on August 12, the court made certain directions like limiting procurement to covered warehousing capacity and distributing the rotting foodgrains free of cost...

Over 611,424 tonnes of paddy have been purchased by government agencies and private rice millers in Punjab, an official said here Tuesday. Government agencies have bought over 97 percent of the stocks while private rice millers have purchased nearly three percent in the first five days of the process. Six agencies -- the Food Corporation of India (FCI) of the central government and five of the Punjab government -- are engaged in...