national food security act: Even though the National Food Security Act (NFSA) has been passed by the parliament and notified by the government, concerns about the benefits of the NFSA continue to linger. It has neither satisfied the activists who had fought a long struggle to get this act passed nor has it satisfied the sceptics who see this as mere populism and a waste of public money. Nonetheless, the fact that the bill was adopted unanimously by both houses of parliament with support from most political parties does imply that the NFSA even with its limitations is seen as an effective tool in India’s fight against malnutrition and food insecurity. For the sceptics, much of the debate that preceded the enactment of the NFSA revolved around the issue of cost of the NFSA and its impact on the economy. These ranged from a conservative estimate of Rs 1 Lakh crore to as high as Rs 3 lakh crore per year. However, most of these estimates are either exaggerated and include many other costs not related to the NFSA or are pure and simple fictitious numbers. The actual cost of the NFSA is expected to remain within the proposed limit of Rs 125000 crores as given in the financial memorandum of the bill.
Posted on: Tue, 08 Jul 2014 06:26:49 +0000
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