In the wake of stiff opposition by mainstream and separatist groups over implementation of National Food Security Act (NFSA), Jammu and Kashmir government today sought to clear the confusion, saying no one will be left hungry as there would be no shortfall of the ration supplied to the state.
The government also said improvements in the legislation would be made, if need be.
"There is a negative perception over the NFSA that it is against the interests of the people, which it is not. The NFSA will benefit the people by providing a majority of them highly subsidized ration," Minister for Consumer Affairs and Public Distribution Chowdhary Zulfiqar Ali told reporters here.
"The state will continue to get 7.51 lakh metric tonnes of ration from the centre and there will be no reduction in that. We assure that no one will be left hungry in Kashmir," Ali said.
The minister said it was not good to indulge in politics over the issue of ration and made it clear that the government would do whatever is required to improve the ration supply to the people of the state.
Any legislation can be amended even if it is a central legislation. And then no body can stop us from getting our own legislation, the minister said.
"If we feel the need to enhance the scale of the ration supplied to the people, we will do that. The government will do whatever is required to be done," he said.
Ali said after NFSA is implemented, food grains would be a matter of right for the people and compensation would be paid by the Department if any one fails to get the ration.
Under NFSA, food grains will become a matter of right for the people. If my department is not able to provide ration to anyone, we will pay compensation, he said.
The minister said after the implementation of NFSA, 119.13 lakh people would be covered in the state.
While 74.13 lakh souls will get highly subsidized rations
at the rate of Rs two per kg (atta) and Rs three per kg (rice), another 45 lakh souls will get rations at the rate of Rs eight (atta) and Rs 10 per kg (rice), he said, adding people in these categories would be entitled to get five kgs ration per head.
The minister said 13.77 lakh souls under AAY category would continue to get 35 kgs ration per family, irrespective of the number of family members.
The Minister said around six lakh people, comprising persons with income of more than Rs 25 lakh per annum, persons holding constitutional positions including Ministers and Legislators, employees of the State and the Central Governments in the Gazetted cadre and a person owning more than 80 kanals of land individually or 250 kanals of land in joint family shall be kept out of NFSA.
He said for such families food-grains would be made available on OMSS (Open Market Sale Scheme) rates.
Ali said under the Act, every pregnant woman and lactating mother would be provided free ration and Rs six thousand allowance for taking other supplementary diet.
He said the department has so far enrolled about 22 lakh families in the state under the Act.
In Jammu region, 12,58,929 forms have been distributed, while 10,41,465 forms have been submitted back. In Kashmir, 13,07,081 forms have been distributed, while as 11,52,707 forms have been submitted back, he said.
Ali said the department was collecting the data of the population on the basis of which a policy will be made and a reasonable ration scale would be maintained in the state keeping in view the circumstances here.
"We are collecting the information and making a data bank on the basis of which we will make a policy. There is no streamlined system as of now, we are trying to streamline the system," he said.
Opposition National Conference and separatist groups have said that the people of Kashmir will be deprived of adequate food grains since rice is the staple food in the Valley.
Ali, however, said it was the National Conference which gave a go ahead to the implementation of the Act in the state during its rule in 2011.
