With many states reeling under drought, National Human Rights Commission chairperson H L Dattu today batted for bringing the affected people under the targeted public distribution system to ensure food for all.
Dattu said there was no dearth of policies and programmes for ensuring food for all, but the focus now should be on their effective implementation, especially for proper stocking and distribution and avoiding wastage, which remain areas of concern.
He referred to government reports as per which 254 districts in ten states were reeling under drought and a quarter of population was severely affected.
"How can we extend the services of providing foodgrains under TPDS to a large section of society reeling under the effect of drought, as a short term and long term strategy, also needs to be made part of the discussion with reference to Right to Food and National Food Security Act," he said at the Conference on Right to Food organised by the Commission.
"The ultimate goal of National Food Security Act, integrated with various social welfare schemes, should be that nobody should fall prey to begging for food,"
He also stressed on analysing impact of steps like transferring direct subsidy and urged all sections of society to become a "watchdog" and work towards ensuring that programmes are implemented in right earnest instead of falling prey to the "allurements of pilferage".
"It is not only for the governments but for all sections of society to work towards ensuring that the programmes and schemes towards ensuring food for all are implemented in right earnest so that nobody sleeps without food.
"The people themselves need to become watchdog of the welfare schemes instead of falling prey to the allurements of pilferage. They must stop thinking about the government as a separate entity from them," Dattu said.
He said that the criticism of the government,particularly on food security front, cannot take away the responsibility on the part of the every citizen of the country.
Mentioning several programmes such as the 'Antodaya Anna Yojna' (AAY), Targeted Public Distribution System (TPDS) and many others, Dattu said, "There is no dearth of policy and programmes. The question can be raised only about their effective implementation."
Noting that there was improvement in food grain production, Dattu said that its stocking and distribution among the needy continues to remain a point of concern.
"It pains to know that 15 per cent of food worth Rs 92 thousand crore per year is wasted during production, harvesting, transportation and storage, as per a study by Union Ministry of Food and Processing Industries," he said.
"It needs to be discussed as to what extent the efforts
to check the leakages in the TPDS have been effective as well as the impact of efforts like transferring direct subsidy," Dattu said.
"Issues such as shortage of storage facilities, the issue like location of PDS shops need to be looked into. If the centres for distribution of food grain under TPDS are located at long distance, it becomes difficult for people to approach them.
Dattu said that the Food Security needs to be studied as per agricultural practices and the challenges facing them in the wake of falling ground water levels at a rapid speed which was causing an alarming situation of drought in several districts of the country.
Referring to government reports as per which 254 districts in ten states reeling under drought and a quarter of population set to be severely affected, Dattu said that there was a need for discussion on how the services of providing food grain under TPDS can be extended to a large section of society reeling under the effect of drought with reference to Right to Food and NFSA.
"Failed monsoon is severally affecting our agriculture which is heavily dependent on the vagaries of the weather. The issue of crop rotation to conserve our soil and water levels as well as our food requirements needs to be addressed with a missionary zeal," he said the Conference on Right to Food organised by the Commission
"The ultimate goal of National Food Security Act, integrated with various social welfare schemes, should be that nobody should fall prey to begging for food," he emphasised.
