Food and agriculture minister Sharad Pawar is being praised in some quarters for daring to take a politically incorrect position. In a sharp disagreement with the Sonia Gandhi-led National Advisory Council's (NAC) proposal to supply subsidised food to 75% of the population, Pawar has pointed out two flaws in the proposal: first, that it is unaffordable and second that it is near impossible to procure and store the required food...

The NAC proposals for the food security bill are narrow and lack in vision. What is needed is a comprehensive bill with universalisation of PDS and a focus on child malnutrition.   There was much excitement when food security became one of the issues in the manifestos of most major political parties in the run up to the 2009 General Elections. With burgeoning food stocks, double-digit food inflation, stagnant malnutrition rates, declining...

The Centre informed the Supreme Court on Thursday that it would soon put in place the National Food Security legislation after taking into consideration the recommendations of the National Advisory Council. This law would address the court's concerns over making foodgrains allotment to the States. Attorney-General G. E. Vahanvati told a Bench of Justices Dalveer Bhandari and Deepak Verma that pending enactment of the legislation, a committee was constituted to monitor...

The Centre today informed the Supreme Court it has set up a 10-member committee to monitor creation of foodgrain storage capacity and prudently manage stocks but sidestepped the matter of releasing more to the public distribution system (PDS). The committee will be headed by the secretary, food and public distribution. The court has repeatedly asked for more grain for ration shops so that it reaches the poor. The government has been resisting,...

India has missed a historic opportunity to abolish hunger through a universal public distribution system (PDS), which entitles all citizens to affordable food. The National Advisory Council (NAC), a progressive body established by the United Progressive Alliance, was to draft such a law, but has recommended a Bill which greatly reduces the public's entitlements. This is a setback. India's annual per capita cereal consumption has fallen to 174 kg, lower than...