Evaluation Study on Role of Public Distribution System in Shaping Household and Nutritional Security India

It has been observed that even though the Indian economy has achieved remarkable economic growth along with a decline in poverty over the last two decades, improvements in nutritional status have not kept pace with this economic growth. The National Sample Survey (NSS) data also documents that the per capita cereal consumption steadily declined for both the rural and urban population between 1993-94 and 2011-12. This study examines the reasons for the disjunction between economic advancement and nutritional improvement in India by analysing the role and performance of the Public Distribution System (PDS) in determining food consumption patterns and nutritional outcomes over a period of time.