-The Financial Express In an article published in this newspaper on September 4, 2013, Surjit Bhalla takes us to task for critiquing his earlier estimates of the cost of the food security bill. Bhalla asserted that subsidy expenditures would more than triple and the FSB would cost the government R3,14,000 crore annually or 3% of GDP. We argued that Bhalla was barking up the wrong tree and that the main things...
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In the relief camps of Muzaffarnagar and Shamli
-Kafila.org A Preliminary Citizens' Report September 20, 2013 A. On September 17-18, 2013, an 11 member team consisting of both independent activists as well as activists affiliated with 5 organizations based in Lucknow, Chitrakoot, Muzaffarnagar and Delhi visited relief camps in two affected districts of Muzaffarnagar (3 Relief Camps - Madrasa camp at Bassi Kalan, Madrasa camp at Tawli and camp at Haji Aala's house, Shahpur) and Shamli (3 Relief Camps -...
More »Financial and Distributional Implications of the Food Security Law-Prachi Mishra
-Economic and Political Weekly The financial implications of the National food security bill, which has now become law, are going to be huge. This analysis points out that one needs to take into account not only the cost of the food subsidy but also the costs of setting up or running new institutions and bureaucracies, and the costs that are likely to arise if there are political pressures to protect the...
More »India Matters: Food secure in the Capital -Sutapa Deb
-NDTV The debate on the merits and demerits of the National food security bill went on for months. But most of it seems disconnected to the reality on the ground to the churning lakhs of low income families are experiencing as they register for the new scheme. There is anxiety and desperation to get subsidised foodgrain. In the office of the Food and Supply Officer in Delhi's north east district, many have...
More »Cost of Implementing the National Food Security Act-Dipa Sinha
-Economic and Political Weekly A number of independent estimates have been made of the cost of implementation of the National food security bill, now an Act. However, these estimates are either based on wrong assumptions or work with numbers that are not in the public domain. The one thing that most of them share is an attempt to demonstrate that the costs will be unaffordable. Please click here to access the entire...
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