Extension of Food Grain Scheme

• 30 Jun 2020

Why in News

Recently, many states have demanded for the extension of the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Anna Yojana (PMGKAY).

Key Points

• Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Anna Yojana:
  
  • PMGKAY is a part of Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Package (PMGKP) to help the poor fight the battle against Covid-19.
  • It was announced for a three month period (April, May and June), covering 80 crore ration cardholders. It will come to an end on 30^th June 2020.
  • The scheme aimed at providing each person who is covered under the National Food Security Act with an additional 5 kg grains (wheat or rice) for free, in addition to the 5 kg of subsidised foodgrain already provided through the Public Distribution System (PDS).
  • The beneficiaries are also entitled to 1 kg of pulse for free, according to regional preferences.
• Performance of the Scheme:
  
  • According to the Union Ministry of Food and Public Distribution, a total of 116.02 lakh metric tonnes (LMT) of food grains have been lifted under the scheme.
  • In April, 93% of the food grains were distributed targeting 74.05 crore beneficiaries.
  • In May, the distribution stood at 91% reaching 72.99 crore beneficiaries
  • In June 2020, 71% of allocated food grains have been distributed to 56.81 crore beneficiaries so far.
• Sufficient Food Stock:
  
  • According to the Central government, the Food Corporation of India has “sufficient stock of food grains”.
  • It has a stock of 266.29 LMT rice and 550.31 LMT wheat as on June 28.
    
    • This is excluding the ongoing purchase of wheat and paddy stocks that have not yet reached the godowns.
  • Each month, only about 55 LMT of food grains is required for distribution to ration cardholders.
• Issues Involved:
  
  • There is an excess of food stocks along with widespread hunger in the country.
  • Around 200 million beneficiaries did not get their due in April 2020– in the distribution of additional food grains and pulses under the scheme.
  • In April 2020 the government also allowed the conversion of surplus rice into ethanol for making alcohol-based hand sanitiser.
  • With the beginning of the monsoon, there is a danger of food grains getting rot.

Way Forward

• The food grain provided under the scheme must continue until the impact of Covid-19 pandemic is not reduced. The impact of Covid-19 pandemic is still continuing, many economic activities have not been able to start in their full capacity, and a large number of people are unemployed.
• India has large buffer stocks of food grains that are maintained precisely for meeting emergencies like Covid-19. What is required is a universal Public Distribution System (PDS) to ensure that nobody is excluded.

Source: TH