Context

• World Food Day is observed annually on October 16 by the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) and this day serves as a reminder of the global commitment to achieving food and nutritional security.
• Despite significant strides in agriculture over the years, such as increased food production through advanced farming methods and improved incentives for farmers, achieving true food security remains a global challenge.
• The theme for this year’s World Food Day, Right to Foods for a Better Life and a Better Future, underscores the ongoing need for a balanced approach to ensuring access to food, especially in the context of evolving socio-economic dynamics.

Current State of Global Food Security

• The global food security scenario, according to the FAO’s State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World (SOFI) report, is concerning.
• Approximately 2.33 billion people continue to experience moderate to severe food insecurity.
• This represents a serious challenge for those committed to providing food and nutritional security.
• Efforts to address this issue often involve a combination of policy initiatives, innovations in agriculture, and targeted interventions.
• However, the complex interplay between economic policies, subsidies, and accessibility to food creates a challenging landscape for achieving the desired outcomes.

The Policy Perspective of India’s National Food Security Act (NFSA)

• A Transformative Step to Ensure Food Security
  • Enacted in 2013, NFSA aimed to provide subsidised food grains to approximately two-thirds of the Indian population, making it one of the most ambitious social welfare programs.
  • The primary focus was to ensure that the most vulnerable sections of society had access to basic food staples such as rice, wheat, and coarse grains, which would be made available at highly subsidised rates of Rs 3/kg, Rs 2/kg, and Rs 1/kg respectively.
  • The NFSA sought to legally guarantee food security, moving from a welfare-based approach to a rights-based approach, ensuring that access to food became a legal right for eligible citizens.
• Tied to Global Right to Food Movement
  • The Right to Food approach aimed to address hunger and malnutrition, especially among marginalised communities, by ensuring a steady supply of essential food grains through the Public Distribution System (PDS).
  • The PDS, which had been functioning since the 1960s, received a substantial boost under the NFSA as it became the primary mechanism for the distribution of subsidised grains to eligible households.
• Covers a Wide Demographic
  • The NFSA covered a wide demographic, with an estimated 800 million beneficiaries, including children, pregnant women, and lactating mothers.
  • The Act also introduced provisions for nutritional support, such as free meals for children in schools and anganwadis (rural child care centres), to address malnutrition among young children.
  • The inclusion of such provisions highlighted a recognition of the link between access to food and improved nutritional outcomes, as well as the importance of targeting food support towards vulnerable populations.
  • Moreover, it aimed to empower women by making the eldest female the head of the household for the purpose of receiving food rations, thus ensuring a degree of gender sensitivity in the implementation of the policy.

Concerns and Criticism of NFSA

• Economic Sustainability
  • The implementation of the NFSA raised several questions and concerns regarding its economic sustainability and its long-term impact on India’s fiscal health.
  • The decision to provide such large-scale subsidies came at a significant cost to the government.
  • The NFSA’s subsidised pricing structure, while well-intentioned, required a substantial increase in the food subsidy bill, which became a considerable burden on the Union budget.
• Criticism Regarding Policy’s Expansive Scope
  • At the time of NFSA’s enactment, India's poverty ratio was estimated by the Planning Commission to be about 21%.
  • However, this estimate was contested by NGOs and subsequently revised upwards to 29% by the Rangarajan Committee, which led to questions about the targeting efficiency of the NFSA.
  • Even with the revised estimates, the Act’s provision for covering roughly two-thirds of the population with subsidised food grains appeared overly generous to many policy analysts.
• Challenges Due to Inefficiencies within PDS
  • The PDS, though instrumental in delivering food to millions, has historically been plagued by issues of corruption, under-reporting, and distribution inefficiencies.
  • Studies revealed that a substantial portion of the subsidised food did not reach the intended beneficiaries, being siphoned off or misappropriated along the supply chain.
  • This resulted in a significant portion of the food subsidy being wasted, raising questions about the effectiveness of the delivery mechanism under the NFSA.
• Debate About the Role of State in Providing Social Welfare
  • Critics argued that while the Act aimed to fulfil a humanitarian goal, it risked creating a dependency on subsidised food, which could undermine the incentive for beneficiaries to achieve economic self-reliance.
  • This debate highlighted a key tension in the policy approach—between ensuring immediate relief for the hungry and fostering a long-term path towards empowerment and self-sufficiency through economic opportunities.

Current Government’s Approach to Poverty and Food Distribution

• The discussion becomes even more pertinent when considering the current government’s poverty metrics.
• The Multi-dimensional Poverty Index by NITI Aayog suggests a significant reduction in India’s poverty ratio, from 29.13% in 2013-14 to 11.28% in 2022-23.
• If such a reduction is accurate, it raises the question of why the distribution of free food continues to cover over 800 million people.
• This inconsistency points to deeper issues within the policy framework. Providing free food beyond a certain threshold, to around 15% of the population, could be seen as a politically motivated decision rather than an economically sound one.
• The allocation of resources towards such broad-based subsidies may detract from more productive investments that could foster long-term food security.

Way Forward

• Need for Strategic Investments Over Subsidies
  • Critics argue that these extensive subsidies, particularly those on food and fertilisers, constrain the potential for more strategic investments in agriculture.
  • Areas like agricultural R&D, precision farming, micronutrient fortification, and educational initiatives for women could yield greater benefits in terms of enhancing food security.
  • Studies from institutions (like the ICRIER) indicate that a considerable portion of subsidies—between 25% and 30%—fail to reach the intended beneficiaries due to systemic inefficiencies and leakages.
• Reforming the Subsidy Regime
  • Reforming the existing subsidy regime requires the government to adopt a courageous and strategic approach, with a clear plan for implementation over a relatively short lead time of six to twelve months.
  • Such a reform could involve digital solutions to create a more transparent and efficient distribution system.
  • Digital tools and platforms can play a pivotal role in building a more robust agricultural system that supports the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) of Zero Hunger by 2030. 

Conclusion

• World Food Day serves as a crucial reminder of the progress made and the challenges that remain in the quest for food security.
• While policies like the NFSA represent significant efforts towards achieving this goal, a more targeted and efficient approach is needed to ensure that resources reach those who need them the most.
• As the global community renews its commitment to eliminating hunger, a balanced approach combining subsidies, technological advancement, and strategic investment can pave the way for a future where food and nutritional security is accessible to all.