KEY TRENDS

• The National Food Security Act would be formulated whereby each below poverty line (BPL) family would be entitled by law to get 25 kg of rice or wheat per month at Rs 3/- per kg (For more information, please go to next page) 

• The above poverty line (APL) population will be excluded from the targeted public distribution system (TPDS) under the new Food Security Act (draft).

• The new Food Security Bill proposes to reduce the allocation for a below poverty line (BPL) household (e.g. in the case of Antodaya Anna Yojana) from 35 kg of rice/ wheat per month to 25 kg of rice/ wheat per month.

• Many feel that the Government is likely to streamline other food and nutrition related schemes by bringing the new Act.

• There is an alternative draft of the National Food Security Act which has been prepared by a team headed by Prof. Jean Dreze (and was released on 24 June, 2009), which proposes to consolidate, in law, entitlements that are currently in place through eight food and nutrition-related schemes.

• The proportion of population consuming less than 1890 kcal/cu/diem has in fact increased in the states of Orissa, Madhya Pradesh, Karnataka, West Bengal, Rajasthan and marginally for Punjab*

• As many as eight states - Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Gujarat, Haryana, Karnataka, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan – have shown increase in the incidence of anaemia among women in the reproductive age group*

• On the composite index of food insecurity of rural India, states like Jharkhand and Chhattisgarh are found in the ‘very high’ level of food insecurity, followed by Madhya Pradesh, Bihar and Gujarat*

• About 18.7% of the households in the rural area and about 33.1% of the households in the urban area did not possess any card**

• Ration cards were held by 81% of rural households and 67% of urban households

• Below Poverty Line (BPL) cards were held by 26.5% of rural households and 10.5% of urban households**

• Antyodaya card holders were less than 3% of rural households and less than 1% of urban households**

* Report on the State of Food Insecurity in Rural India (2009), which has been prepared by the MS Swaminathan Research Foundation (MSSRF) and the World Food Programme (WFP)

** Report No. 510 on “Public Distribution System and Other Sources of Household Consumption, 2004-05” based on the seventh quinquennial survey on Household Consumer Expenditure carried out during the NSS 61st round (July, 2004 - June, 2005) by the National Sample Survey Organisation (NSSO) in the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation

*** http://www.righttofoodindia.org/data/rtf_act_essential_demands_of_the_rtf_campaign%20_220709.pdf