Right to Food

The planet is capable of producing enough food to appropriately feed everyone. Nevertheless, despite the advancements made over the previous 20 years, 793 million (2015) people worldwide, or slightly more than one in every nine people, still experience daily hunger. Although it has dropped from 18.6% in 1990–92 to less than 11% in 2014–16, this consistently high percentage is still unsustainable.

Starvation as a cause of death may only be determined through autopsy after death in India, where statistics on starvation deaths are nonexistent.

According to international organisations, 38% of children under the age of five are stunted, and over 3 lakh children in India die each year from famine.

According to the Ministry of Women and Child Development, while malnutrition does not directly cause death, it does increase mortality and morbidity through lowering infection resistance.

Prematurity, low birth weight, pneumonia, diarrheal illnesses, non-communicable diseases, birth asphyxia & trauma, injuries, congenital malformations, acute bacterial sepsis, severe infections, etc. are a few of the reasons of child mortality.

Food Rights and Food Security:

• When everyone, at all times, has physical, social, and economic access to enough, safe, and nutritious food that satisfies their dietary needs and food choices for an active and healthy life, then there is food security. The extension of this idea to the family level is called household food security, and it places the emphasis of attention on the members of the families.
• A universal human right, the right to enough nourishment is realised when everyone, without exception, has unhindered physical and financial access to sufficient food or the means to obtain it.
• Several actions must be taken to ensure food security, including: strengthening social protection systems for risk reduction; enhancing the governance of food systems; making inclusive and responsible investments in agricultural and rural areas, in health and education; empowering small producers.
• According to Article 21 of the Indian Constitution, having a right to life does not just mean being alive; it also means having a life that is worthy of respect. However, given the current dire situation, both the federal and state governments as well as various ministries have fallen short of their duties in effectively ensuring food security throughout the nation.

Act on National Food Security:

The current food security programmes of the Indian government are transformed into legal entitlements by the NFSA. About 610 Lakh Metric Tons of foodgrain are allocated annually under the NFSA and other social programmes. The National Food Security Act was introduced in 2006, according to which BPL families in rural and urban regions will be legally entitled to 25 kg of wheat or rice per month at a cost of Rs. 3 per kg.

The National Food Security Act’s purpose

The Act ensures access to an appropriate supply of high-quality food at reasonable rates for people to live a life with dignity, as well as for matters related to or incidental to that, in accordance with the human life cycle approach.

Act on National Food Security

The Act became a law on September 12, 2013, with effect going back to July 5, 2013.

• The Sustainable Development Goals established by the UN General Assembly’s Goal 2 are in conformity with the Act. Goal 2 aims to ensure food security and find long-term solutions to abolish all types of hunger by 2030.
• The goal is to guarantee that everyone, everywhere has access to enough wholesome food to maintain a healthy lifestyle.
• The Act covers programmes including the Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS), the Public Distribution System (PDS), and the Mid-Day Meal Scheme (MDM).

All of the States as well as the Union Territories are putting the Act into effect.

Important Elements of the NFSA:

The following is a description of the Act’s main features:

Coverage:

The NITI Aayog’s determination of the state-by-state coverage was made using data from the NSSO’s 2011–12 Household Consumption Expenditure Survey.

Under the Targeted Public Distribution System, the Act allowed up to 75% of the rural population and 50% of the urban population to receive subsidised food grains (TPDS).

Therefore, the Act covers almost two thirds of the populace to obtain heavily subsidised food grains.

Entitlements:

• The Public Distribution System would offer the food grains at heavily discounted rates.
• The Act guarantees women’s and children’s nutritional support. The MDM and ICDS programmes would grant pregnant and nursing women the right to complimentary, nutrient-dense meals.
• Under the MDM and ICDS programmes, kids between the ages of 6 and 14 would also be eligible to free, nutrient-dense meals. o Pregnant women and nursing mothers are also given maternity benefits worth at least Rs. 6000.
• By designating the eldest woman in the household as the head of the household for the purposes of providing ration cards, the Act further empowers women.
• The Central Government will support the States in meeting their transportation costs for food grains inside the State and will also manage the margins for Fair Price Shop (FPS) dealers in accordance with the standards.
• In the case that food grains are not supplied, the beneficiaries are given a food security allowance.
• Transparency: To ensure transparency, provisions have been developed for disclosing the PDS-related records.
• Who are the National Food Security Act’s beneficiaries?
• Under two categories of beneficiaries, the Act covers two-thirds of the entire population:
• Priority Families o Antyodaya Anna Yojana (AAY) households (PHH)
• AAY households are those headed by widows, disabled people, or those 60 years of age or more without a guaranteed source of support from society.
• Typically, it also considers the households of people who live in poverty. o It also offers assistance for girls and kids.
• People who live in eligible homes, or PHHs, are granted the privilege to receive food grains at subsidised prices under the NFSA. This group includes a sizable portion of priority sector ration card holders. This is an initiative to combat poverty.
• The states and the UTs are responsible for identifying eligible households within the scope of TPDS coverage as specified for each state.

Food security’s importance

• The Bengal Famine of 1943, which occurred under British colonial rule, is seen to be the root cause of the current worries about food security in India.
• Food security is of highest importance to a nation because it will also favourably affect the other factors affecting a nation’s growth:
• It will strengthen the agricultural industry.
• Additionally, it will help the government control food costs.
• Given that agriculture is a labor-intensive industry, a growth in this sector would lead to increased employment opportunities. As a result, poverty would decline and the economy would thrive.
• The general health of the population would improve if nutritious food was available.
• For both national and international security, food security is crucial.
• The National Food Security Act’s importance
• Global food security refers to everyone having access to affordable, wholesome food at all times. It is distinguished by food availability, accessibility, use, and stability.
• The right to eat is not explicitly stated in the Indian Constitution.

Before the NFSA was passed, the right to life guaranteed by Article 21 was understood to include the right to a dignified existence, which might include the right to food and other requirements of life.

Requirements under the NFSA:

• The duties of the federal government, state government, and local governments are explicitly stated in the NFSA.
• The Central Government’s Duties
• Under the TPDS, the Central Government shall distribute to the State Governments the necessary food grains from the central pool.
• The number of people living in eligible households must be taken into consideration when the government distributes resources.
• In accordance with the allotment to the State Governments, the Central Government will also pay for the transportation of food grains.
• Give the State Governments support in paying for the costs associated with intrastate movement, handling of the food grains, and FPS margins.
• Create and maintain a variety of storage facilities.
• State governments have a number of duties to fulfil, including implementing and overseeing the various programmes.
• To get the food grains to the recipients, arrange intra-state distributions.
• Determine the homes that are qualified and the recipients, and make sure they can benefit from the programmes.
• To store the food grains that have been allotted, construct and maintain scientific storage facilities at the district and block levels. o Create institutionalised licencing policies in compliance with the Public Distribution System (Control) Order from 2001 for the FPS.
• Authorities in the area have obligations:
• They are in charge of making sure the Act is implemented correctly.
• The State Government may give them additional responsibility for carrying out the TPDS.
• The duties assigned to local governments by the state governments would be their responsibility to carry out.

Issues with Food Security

There are several obstacles to overcome in the fight against food security, among them are:

Climate Change: The unpredictable rains and rise in global temperatures make farming challenging. A change in temperature affects not only crops but also fisheries, cattle, and other creatures that are raised for food.

Lack of Access: Access to isolated regions is limited. Due to access issues, the tribals and other populations residing in distant locations are unable to take advantage of the programmes implemented for food security.

Overpopulation: A significant rise in the population without a corresponding rise in agricultural output leads to a food scarcity.

Non-food crops: The area planted with agricultural crops has decreased as a result of crops used for biofuels and colours.

Migration from rural to urban areas: This is problematic since it makes it difficult to decide which PDS shop to purchase subsidies from.

Ways to improve NFSA’s efficiency include:

• In order to increase agricultural productivity, the government should implement integrated policy frameworks and offer options for greater food storage.
• The process will be made more efficient by using information technology from the time that food grains are purchased until they are distributed.
• The recipients should have access to details about the entire process, from the quality of the food grains to the storage facilities where the grains were kept.
• The misunderstanding would be effectively eliminated by a single-ration-card system, especially for migrants, as this would provide the recipients the freedom to choose from any PDS outlet.
• Add all the states to the Integrated Management of PDS (IMPDS) coverage area.
• By using their current or existing ration card with biometric/Aadhaar-based authentication on an electronic Point of Sale (ePoS) device installed at the FPSs, migratory NFSA beneficiaries who frequently move their residence in search of temporary employment, etc., are now given the option to lift their entitled quota of foodgrains from any Fair Price Shop (FPS) of their choice anywhere in the country.
• All state governments have updated IMPDS with otp authentication as a result of the outbreak. Authentication via biometrics was previously used.

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