Food Security Bill: Time To Act

The basic objective of the Congress led- United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government’s proposed Food Security Bill is to address the acute problems of hunger and malnutrition in India. Despite of having a number of food intervention schemes and entitlements, relating to social security, child nutrition and healthcare, the malnourishment become an everyday reality in India. Most childhood deaths are mainly attributed to malnutrition. One in every four persons is malnourished and one in every three malnourished children in the world lives in India. It requires a firm political commitment in fighting hunger and malnutrition in systematic way and to make India a malnourishment free country. The Bill, in effect, addresses nothing except making a cosmetic change from already existing schemes.