Dinesh Kamath's Editorial 'Positive and negative sides of NFSA' that was published in Newsband

Positive and negative sides of NFSA

It is high time Indian government seriously implemented the National Food Security Act (NFSA). The Centre has managed to get two States, Tamil Nadu and Kerala, to agree to the implementation of the Act. The State says it will implement the Act and also continue its universal public distribution system (PDS) coverage.

One clear advantage of joining the national food security system now is that the computerisation and Aadhaar seeding process may result in the elimination of bogus cards and beneficiaries. A national food security law holds good for States with weak food security systems.

We often hear ration of substandard quality, ration reduced, ration sold elsewhere, ration infected, ration abandoned etc. When are we going to attend to these complaints? Quality food is very important. There is a lot to improve in the country's rationing. Here NFSA can prove to be useful.  

States and centre have been at loggerheads even on important policy like food security. Such people centric programmes should be accorded too priority and even if there is disagreement on other matters, the welfare of people must not be effected.

To avoid to and fro transport in terms of cost and loss suggested, give priority to rice or wheat or minor millets by procuring locally and storing them locally. This will bring down the cost and losses in transportation. The central government must insist that the state governments implement in to-to the food security bill. Rice and wheat are produced under chemical inputs and thus carry chemicals in them [non-healthy foods] and minor millets are produced mainly under non-chemical inputs and thus healthy food.

The negative side of the NFSA is that it is a coercive method of the Centre to make a state like Tamil Nadu to implement National Food Security Act. Tamil Nadu has already been doing good to the poor people by giving rice without a price and is doing further good for them by Amma canteens. Now the NFSA implementation creates additional burden to assure rice as per the Act. Since the Government has weeded out bogus cards by Aadar card linking, only bonafide beneficiaries will get the benefit out of the existing system. Yet the State has to bear additional cost on NFSA and State has to make fund correction for this permanent commitment to the cause of people’s welfare.

Thus, one should see both the positive and negative side of NFSA.