Is there a need for Food Security Bill ?

India is moving ahead with dream of development. But for development people in this country
have to be physically & mentally fit. Food is the basic necessity of human being. But
unfortunately, some people in our country sleeps everyday with empty stomach. This not at all
well from developmental as well as economical approach. The economic role of food and
nutrition is something which can be looked down upon and this in turn, becomes a rationale for
formulating a public policy. A proper food policy hence becomes the need of the hour. A well
targeted nutrition policy can create wonders and also provides a way analogous compared to
other policies. In this scenario, the National Food Security Bill can turn into something
revolutionary and can leave a huge impact in the economy of the country. This Bill can
transform and restructure the lives of people if carefully crafted and implemented.
The recent Food Security Bill proposed by the expert committee, headed by Dr. C. Rangarajan
was passed on 26
th
August,2013 in Lok Sabha.
The bill seeks to provide for food & nutritional security in human life cycle approach by
ensuring access to adequate quantity of quality food at affordable prices to people to live a life
with dignity & for matters connected with therewith & incidental thereto.
Objective is laudable since, according to a 2010 a World Bank Report,32.7% people in India
survive on less than $ 1.25 per day. Also, 47% of children in India suffer from malnutrition &
India is home of worlds highest population of underweight children in such scenario there is
strong need for legal implementation like this food security bill.
Food Security as a concept has continuously evolved over the last few decades. Originally the
focus was on the supply side of the food equation concentrating on adequate availability of
food at the national and international level. Food security as defined in the 1974 World Food
Summit underlines this: availability at all times of adequate world food supplies of basic
foodstuffs to sustain a steady expansion of food consumption and to offset fluctuations in
production and prices

Features of the food security bill :

Coverage of two thirds population to get highly subsidised food grains-
Upto 75% of the rural population and upto 50% of the urban population will have uniform
entitlement of 5 kg food grains per month at highly subsidized prices of Rs. 3, Rs. 2, Rs. 1 per
kg. for rice, wheat, coarse grains respectively .It will entitle about two thirds of our 1.2
billion population to subsidised food grains under the Targeted Public Distribution System.
Poorest of the poor continue to get 35 kg per household-
The poorest of poor households would continue to receive 35 Kg foodgrains per household per
month under Antyodaya Anna Yojana at subsidized prices of Rs 3, Rs 2 and Rs 1. It is also
proposed to protect the existing allocation of food grains to the States or union territories subject
to it being restricted to average annual offtake during last three years.
Eligible households to be identified by the States -
The work of identification of eligible households is left to the States or Union Territories, which
may frame their own criteria or use Social Economic and Caste Census data, if they so desire.
Special focus on nutritional support to women and children-
There is a special focus on nutritional support to women and children. Pregnant women and
lactating mothers, besides being entitled to nutritious meals as per the prescribed nutritional
norms will also receive maternity benefit of at least of Rs. 6000/-. Children in the age group of 6
months to 14 years will be entitled to take home ration or hot cooked food as per prescribed
nutritional norms.
Food Security Allowance in case of non supply of food grains-
The Central Government will provide funds to States/UTs in case of short supply of food grains
from Central pool, In case of non-supply of food grains or meals to entitled persons, the
concerned State/UT Governments will be required to provide such food security allowance as
may be prescribed by the Central Government to the beneficiaries.
States to get assistance for intra-State transportation and handling of foodgrains-
In order to address the concern of the States regarding additional financial burden, Central
Government will provide assistance to the States towards cost of intra-State transportation,
handling of foodgrains and FPS dealers margin, for which norms will be developed. This will
ensure timely transportation and efficient handling of foodgrains.
Reforms for doorstep delivery of food grains-
The Bill also contains provisions for reforms in PDS through doorstep delivery of food grains,
application of information and communication technology (ICT) including end to
end computerization, leveraging Aadhaar for unique identification of beneficiaries,
diversification of commodities under TPDS etc for effective implementation of the FoodSecurity
Act. Some of these reforms are already underway.
Women Empowerment-- Eldest women will be Head of the household-
Eldest woman of eighteen years of age or above will be head of the household for issue of ration
card, and if not available, the eldest male member is to be the head of the household.
Grievance redressal mechanism at district level-
There will be state and district level redressal mechanism with designated officers. The States
will be allowed to use the existing machinery for District Grievance Redressal Officer (DGRO),
State Food Commission, if they so desire, to save expenditure on establishment of
new redressal set up. Redressal mechanism may also include call centers, helpline etc.
Social audits and vigilance committees to ensure transparency and accountability-
Provisions have also been made for disclosure of records relating to PDS, social audits and
setting up of Vigilance Committees in order to ensure transparency and accountability.
Penalty for non compliance-
The Bill provides for penalty to be imposed on public servants or authority, if found guilty of
failing to comply with the relief recommended by the District Grievance Redressal Officer
(DGRO).
Expenditure-
At the proposed coverage of entitlement, total estimated annual food grains requirement is
612.3 lakh tons and corresponding estimated food subsidy for 2013-14 costs
is about Rs.1,24,724 crore.

Challenges of the food security bill:-
Financial challenges:
Based on the requirements under NFSB production of wheat & rice need to be enhanced by 25
million tonnes. India has reaped a bumper harvest in 2011-12 and has procured a record 34.9
million tonnes of rice in KMS 2011-12 and 38.1 million tonnes of wheat in RMS 2012-13. But to
sustain these levels of procurement, additional agricultural investment to increase production
would be required.
The increased level of procurement and distribution of the food grains as result of the Bill will
require higher storage and warehousing capacities. The implementation of the Bill will require
storage capacity addition between 22- 32 million tonnes (current covered storage capacity is 45
million tonnes). Some rough estimates show that the additional cost of storage infrastructure
would be Rs. 2,500 to 8,500 crore depending upon whether the government invests in silos or
traditional storage. Indian Railways too would have to invest in procurement of rolling stock.
There will be excess burden on whole infrastructure.
Operational challenge:
Given that NFSB commits for legal entitlements of food (especially rice and wheat), India will
have to carry a much larger stock of these to avoid any eventuality of large scale imports of rice
and wheat in the event of domestic shortfall (as happened in 2002-03 when grain production fell
by 38 million tonnes). If this is not done, India will risk high cost of cereal imports in times of
need, especially drought years.
If the Bill is being passed in this form, there shall be too much of brokers that will erupt to take
the booty for the loot, which is going to happen in real term, the future course of action from the
side of the Govt. officials and the distributors, when and where there shall be no sincere
monitoring of the entire process of distribution.
Drawbacks of food security bill :
1. The major flaw of such a scheme is that the cheap grains will find its way to the blackmarket
where it will be sold at higher prices.
2. Small shops in rural areas will go out of business since they cannot sell grains at these prices.
3. It needs to be recognized that malnutrition is a multi-dimensional problem and needs a multi-
pronged strategy. The challenge of improving absorption lies in linking nutrition with health,
education and agriculture interventions. Womens education, access to clean drinking water,
availability of hygenic sanitation facilities are the prime prerequisites for improved nutrition.
To begin with an effective convergence of schemes like Mid-day meals, ICDS, etc can be
attempted.
4. The bill dwells on targeting vis--vis universalization, re-invoking the contentious BPL-APL
issue (priority and non-priority households). Intended benefits will be provided to people
based on these categories. It is a well-known fact that successive governments have failed to
identify the poor. As a result, a large part of the countrys population continues to struggle
with hunger in various forms. In such a grim scenario, the government should be talking
about universalization, which is an integral part of the fundamental right to life.
5. The bill provides for the supply of 7 kg of subsidized food grain per person per month to
priority households, whereas a person needs 14 kg a month to fulfill her basic food
requirements.
6. The proposed entitlements do not deal with the problem of nutritional insecurity. People in
India suffer undernourishment mainly due to protein and fat deficiencies. To cope with this
problem, the government should have included pulses (to compensate for protein) and edible
oil (to replenish fat). The preamble of the bill says: the Supreme Court of India has
recognized the right to food and nutrition as integral to the right to life
7. The bill also fails in diversification of food entitlements by not providing bajra, jowar, ragi
and maize. This diversification would not only provide nutritious alternatives, but also
encourage farmers to cultivate these grains due to compulsory procurement by the
government.
8. one major point of contention is the absence of any immediate timeframe for the execution of
the bill, instead the bill talks about a phased implementation which could well take a few
years to reach the desired levels.

9. The exact no. of poor is not calculated correctly. Different departments are giving different
numbers. And the criteria for measuring poor people percentage is not upto the mark.

10. The cost of this bill Rs.1.24 lakh crore will be a burden for the government, and may lead to
fiscal deficit.
11. Small farmers may shift to other crops, as they will get the subsidized food grains. This will
reduce the production of food grains.
12. Farmers have to sell their food grains for procurement prices rather than market prices. It will
be loss for farmers.

Suggestions:
1. The state civil supplies organizations should takeover the FPS network to deal with the
large scale corruption. However the state food secretaries suggest allotment of FPS to
community based organizations like co-operatives/SHGs and measures to improve the viability
of the FPS by rationalizing commissions, extending credit and encouraging sale of non PDS
items.
2. The maximum diversion occurs in the Above Povery Line category, hence it should be
abolished. If this is not possible, he has suggested creation of another category marginally
above poverty line.
3. Others alternative to the Public Distribution System like food stamps, food coupons and
generic smart cards which can be used both in the FPS and open market. However barring some
limited experiments at the state level with food coupons and smart cards tied to a designated
FPS, no major scalable alternative to the PDS is currently available.
4. The solution aims to tackle the primary issue of identifying eligible beneficiaries,
removal of bogus ration cards provide choice of FPS to the beneficiary to procure food grains.
With respect to private sector participation in PDS reforms, Madhya Pradesh has taken a
significant step and used private sector to put in place a system to computerize the PDS and
register beneficiaries with their Aadhaar number and provide the food coupons to the
beneficiaries.
5. What needed to do is to create simple yet effective methods to ensure that most of our
produce that just goes waste. There is an argument that it would be better for the government to
focus on productivity enhancement rather than on doling out subsidies at the expense of
taxpayers. But these two things are not mutually exclusive, they are complementary.
6. There is need to educate our farmers and encourage the well off ones. The leaders of our
agrarian society need to take charge and help build storage facilities with the help of state
governments. The Non Renewable Energy ministry can be roped in to provide subsidy and
practical schemes to help our villages use solar power for longevity of their produce.
7. Local entrepreneurs need to be given that confidence and help to create small
manufacturing units. Where the local farmer can sell his produce, and the local businessmen can
create packed products like powder, paste, oils, perfumers and cosmetics etc. which gives a
longer shelf life to the same goods.
8. Industry needs to be encouraged to be a part of this storage revolution. It has to be an all
inclusive package pushed by the Government, where all resources are harnessed in the best
manner possible. Farmer gets good rates and full payment of his agricultural produce.The big
industry names need to tap these local brands and create their national chain across the country.
Industry needs to be convinced that the only way forward is when they walk hand in hand with
our farming community.
9. The people need food in their bellies, but it should be done in a sustainable manner. The
proposed NFSB may be a noble thought by UPA-II. But its just adding to the many problems
being faced by our economy like inflation, taxes and lack of political will to bring a balance
between industry and agriculture. Unfortunately, the current dispensation riddled with corruption
and credibility issues, seems to think that giving in to the wants of an election year will fulfill the
needs of our countrys poor.
10. One of the best ways to ensure distribution of food grains in the country is through
Public Distribution System which runs about 1k Fair Price Shops in the country. However, the
distribution system must be competent enough to deliver as the basic objective of the bill is to
curb hunger and malnutrition. Identification of beneficiaries should be done precisely and the
machinery should be programmed perfectly to assure that the schemes reach the needy.
11. Improving environmental sanitation is one of the most preferred tools to reduced
malnutrition and that is one measure the central government should adopt.
12. As the government aims to procure large quantities of food grains to meet the targets of
the proposed bill, the household budgets of the non-beneficiaries may be adversely affected as
there might be an unprecedented rise in the prices of food grains in the open market.

There is need of food security bill but with proper implementation. Drafting a Food Security
Bill and passing it in the parliament with absolute majority will alone not solve the purpose of
food and malnutrition, but implementation of proper measures to ensure that the schemes reach
the beneficiaries properly will only provide a better solution to solve the food crisis. People
should also have to be aware about government policies to have the benefit.

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Name- Nikita Sudhakar Tungare
References:
Live Mint interview High subsidy, PDS hurdles to food security plan with P.K. Joshi
Governance Knowledge Centre article National Food Security Bill and need for a
stronger implementation strategy by P.K. Joshi
IFPRIs Food Security Portals blog post Will India's National Food Security Bill Help or
Hurt? by Sara Gustafson
IFPRI Research Outputs
Subject articles in The Economic Times, The hindu
Pib.nic.in
News.bbc.co.uk