Active Stocks
Thu Mar 28 2024 15:59:33
  1. Tata Steel share price
  2. 155.90 2.00%
  1. ICICI Bank share price
  2. 1,095.75 1.08%
  1. HDFC Bank share price
  2. 1,448.20 0.52%
  1. ITC share price
  2. 428.55 0.13%
  1. Power Grid Corporation Of India share price
  2. 277.05 2.21%
Business News/ Politics / Policy/  Three more states roll out food security law, taking tally to 18
BackBack

Three more states roll out food security law, taking tally to 18

Jharkhand, Telangana and Uttarakhand roll out the National Food Security Act

The scheme is expected to cost the government `1.2 trillion in 2015-16. Photo: MintPremium
The scheme is expected to cost the government `1.2 trillion in 2015-16. Photo: Mint

New Delhi: Three more states—Jharkhand, Telangana and Uttarakhand—on Thursday rolled out the National Food Security Act (NFSA) that aims to provide subsidized foodgrains to nearly 67% of the country’s population, a day after the extended deadline for implementing the scheme expired.

So far, 18 states and Union territories (UTs) have implemented the law, while 10 more are expected to roll out the scheme by the end of the year.

The NFSA was enacted by Parliament in 2013 and entitles beneficiary households nearly 810 million people to draw 5kg of foodgrains per person per month at a subsidised price of 2-3 per kg. The scheme is expected to cost the government 1.2 trillion in 2015-16.

Eighteen states and Union territories are yet to implement the Act. This includes large states such as Uttar Pradesh, Gujarat, Odisha, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and Kerala.

Officials in the food ministry said identification of beneficiaries and digitization of records by states are causing the delay.

The Union government, in its efforts to check leakages, has made digitization of records of beneficiaries and end-to-end computerization of the public distribution system (PDS) preconditions for the implementation of the act.

“States have to take a call on who to include or exclude under the scheme and many have not completed the process of identifying beneficiaries. Some states like Jharkhand and Odisha have used data from the Socio Economic Caste Census for identification of beneficiaries," an official of the food and consumer affairs department said, requesting anonymity.

So far, 92% of the records of beneficiaries have been digitized and 18% seeded with the Aadhaar number. The 18 states and Union territories that have implemented the act include Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Punjab, Rajasthan, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Karnataka, Delhi, Tripura, Puducherry and Lakswadeep.

Of these, two Union territories —Puducherry and Chandigarh—have gone a step ahead and implemented direct cash transfer of PDS benefits. A total of 41,000 households in Chandigarh and 118,000 households in Puducherry now receive direct cash payments to buy foodgrains from the market.

“We are hoping that 10 states will come on board (to roll out the act) by January next year... (the centre) is encouraging seeding with Aadhar numbers, but it is not mandatory," said the official cited above, who did not want to be named.

The centre’s insistence on digitization for rolling out the scheme is because it wants to expand cash transfer in more areas, said Dipa Sinha, who is involved in the right to food campaign. “Some states like Tamil Nadu are not interested as they have a universal PDS and do not want to move towards a targeted system."

Currently, all households in Tamil Nadu are entitled to 20kg of free foodgrains per family per month. “It is essential to ensure that the PDS, which functions most effectively in Tamil Nadu, and is the pride of the state, is not allowed to suffer in anyway by imposing unrealistic time lines," chief minister J. Jayalalithaa wrote in a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 29 September, urging him to extend NFSA implementation in state by a year.

“A way to ensure that states implement the law is by increasing the issue price under APL (above poverty line) and BPL (below poverty line) categories," said the second official. “But this a politically sensitive issue and no final decision has been taken by the government."

Central issue price is what states pay to get their share of PDS foodgrains, which are then distributed among beneficiary households. For instance, the issue price for a kg of wheat for the BPL category is 4.15 and under the targeted PDS system, while it is 6.10 per kg for the APL category.

Unlock a world of Benefits! From insightful newsletters to real-time stock tracking, breaking news and a personalized newsfeed – it's all here, just a click away! Login Now!

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Sayantan Bera
Sayantan is a National Writer with the Long Story team at Mint, covering food and nutrition, agriculture, and rural economy. His reportage is based on granular ground reports, tying it with broader macroeconomic realities, with a sharp focus on people and livelihoods. Beyond rural issues, Sayantan has written deep dives on topics spanning healthcare, gender, education, and science.
Catch all the Politics News and Updates on Live Mint. Download The Mint News App to get Daily Market Updates & Live Business News.
More Less
Published: 02 Oct 2015, 12:58 AM IST
Next Story footLogo
Recommended For You
Switch to the Mint app for fast and personalized news - Get App