-The Hindu Business Line Likely to be announced in Budget; will help tackle malnutrition, support ryots Bengaluru: In the National Year of Millets, the Centre proposes to adopt a mission-mode approach to promote the nutrient-rich cereals, including sorghum, ragi and foxtail millets. Official sources said a Millet Mission is being proposed with an outlay of ?800 crore for the next two years to boost production of these cereals, which are naturally rich with...

-The Hindu Many States have initiated ‘reforms’ of the public distribution system that are hurting millions of people India’s public distribution system (PDS) is in danger of being derailed in several States across the country. Recent disruptions of the PDS have taken different forms, from compulsory biometric authentication to so-called direct benefit transfer (DBT). The consequences are alarming, but tend to go unreported. Biometric mix-ups Jharkhand is a prime example of this problem. By...

-Hindustan Times Unless consumer preferences shift to climate resistant crops, goals associated with the policy won’t materialise After a gap of three years, the Karnataka government has reintroduced ragi/finger millet in its public distribution system (PDS). To feed the PDS system, the government has announced a procurement price much higher than the market price and introduced bonuses. With interventions on the sides of both production as well as consumption, the objectives are...

-The Hindu Business Line The government must universalise social security pensions for the elderly, single women and persons with disabilities and also operationalise the maternity entitlement scheme at the earliest, says Reetika Khera, Associate Professor of Economics at IIT-Delhi. In an interview to BusinessLine, Khera argued against the use of Aadhaar for authentication of beneficiaries and said it has “no role in plugging leakages or in the identification of correct beneficiaries”....

-The Hindu Business Line Akshaya Patra launches pilots with millet-based menu in Karnataka, Telangana Bengaluru: Nutrient-rich millets such as jowar, foxtail and pearl millets, considered as smart foods, are being introduced in the mid-day meal schemes in Karnataka and Telangana by the The Akshaya Patra Foundation (TAPF) on a pilot basis. The move is aimed at enhancing the nutritional intake of the students of the government and aided schools, besides benefiting the growers. Students...