Even as Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has promised that “nobody will go hungry” in the country, the Centre is asking the States to put a ceiling on the number of Below Poverty Line (BPL) beneficiaries under the Targeted public distribution system for the purpose of the National Food Security Bill that is in the making. Poverty estimates The Union government wants to limit the “targeted” BPL beneficiaries to 5.91 crore...

A food security law will be meaningful only if it is based on universal food provision and ensures that every citizen’s nutritional needs are met. At an outlet of the public distribution system in Erode, Tamil Nadu. States such as Kerala, Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh have defined BPL in such an inclusive way that the vast majority of the population is included, which makes their food distribution schemes...

Agriculture is not just a food producing machine but the backbone of the livelihood of 60 per cent of Indians. The extensive drought spotlights a situation of mass rural deprivation and a mindset that is insensitive to it. But there are some encouraging signs. What should be done to meet the challenge?  There are reports in financial newspapers that the ongoing drought affecting nearly 200 districts in the country may...

UPA's promised blanket of food security backed by a law could shrink very quickly leaving several crore families out of its cover if the food ministry's proposal on Food Security Act finds favour with the Cabinet. In a note that has left several state governments seething with anger, the food ministry has recommended that the number of families that get subsidised foodgrain under the Food Security Act be reduced to...

Is the government trying to shirk its responsibility of providing a social security net even as it contemplates a right to food act? In a move that could undercut the very logic of UPA’s much-touted right to food Act, the Planning Commission has recommended that the government do away with the public distribution system (PDS) and begin cash-for-food schemes instead. Running counter to the logic of the much successful mid-day meal...