Food Security Why continue with a scheme that costs over Rs 2 lakh crore?
Food subsidy bill will be lower next year as PMGKAY (Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Anna Yojana, which offered additional free foodgrain over and above NFSA ¥ entitlement due to Covid provisions from March 2020), will end on December 31. Subsidy bill in FY 2023-24 will be only slightly above pre-pandemic levels.
The enduring benefit from the food security scheme will be to reduce chronic malnutrition which is endemic in a sizeable percentage of the population. These people are essentially helpless and keep repeating the same habits that cause malnutrition. They are also those who have been "deprived" of acceptable living conditions for generations, and this dates back to the terrible conditions of pre-independence India. Statistics of underweight children, child stunting and child wasting show just how difficult it has been for India to reverse the ill-effects of malnutrition. One could argue that India will have done much better in agriculture and other such fields if chronic ill-effects of malnutrition were not there.
Modi government has reformed the Poshan scheme for delivering food to children, has widened access through one-nation, one-ration card measure, and kept tabs on failing or sickly children so more help can be given. Yet, this has not alleviated the criticism of the Poshan scheme.
Modi government has worked on sanitation which is another significant factor in malnutrition. Centre ensured near universal access to household toilets which in turn reduces the accumulation of toxic waste in the soil and in nearby water. This is now being doubled down with a focus on solid waste collection, safe disposal of waste, recycling and removal of landfills, treating sewage waste, reducing industrial effluents, cleaning rivers/ water bodies, and giving clean drinking water to every household!
The Modi government has also taken bold steps in health by implementing a very comprehensive vaccination programme that aims to reach 90% of its targets. In addition, it has provided vaccinations for common diseases like diarrhea and pneumonia. It is tackling poor public services delivery through targeted efforts in Aspirational (most deprived or backward) districts in India. Modi govt has also given free tertiary medical care to 40% of the population and is building primary health and maternal wellness centres close to the people §. These health centres will give free medical care and do preventative measures like screening and dietary advice. It is reducing drug costs through Jan Aushadhi stores and travel costs through telemedicine. As a result, healthcare costs have fallen dramatically for the poor and lower middle classes.
Eliminating food poverty and absolute poverty through the food security scheme is probably the first necessary step towards eliminating chronic malnutrition. When a person is free of the ill-effects of malnutrition, he or she becomes more resilient to disease, becomes physically stronger and aspirational; and because of this, he or she takes better care of themselves and the family. All of Modi's other schemes are amplified by it.
In conclusion, we should expect very favorable outcomes from these anti-poverty schemes taken together. India will benefit from improving the quality of its people, which makes them more capable, more ambitious and more likely to work smarter and harder.
(NB. The aspirational person also benefits enormously from: proper housing, access to clean cooking fuel & electricity, new roads, fast highways & expressways, cheap rail travel, better rail travel, public transport, affordable air travel, strong law and order ♫, personal bank accounts, direct money transfer, free accident cover, social security for old people & working mothers, more money from farming, work opportunities from self-help groups and farmer producer organisations, jobs from tourism, opportunities to work abroad, work from new industrial projects, work from infra projects, jobs from a strong economy, higher nos of formal jobs, skills training and quality education, specialist centres of excellence, science labs in schools, research facilities and supercomputers in universities, industry collaborations with acaedmia and government, innovation centers and push for adopting new technologies, massive push for strong manufacturing, cheaper logistics costs, cheap home-grown electricity, growth in renewables, biofuels and green hydrogen for lowering energy imports, waste-to-wealth, growth in core industries, growth in electronics/ semiconductors/ drones/ toys/ others in PLI schemes, explosive growth of new business startups and unicorns, massive growth of local equity investors, record FDIs, easier credit for entrepreneurs and traders, ease of doing business, ease of living, cheap internet, digital payments, 4G & 5G, proper land ownership records, support for soldiers and stronger defence, powerful response to enemies, support for Indians trapped abroad, better relations with most countries, better infrastructure and more recreational facilities. Modi's government has done some good work here too.
♫ Law & order is a state responsibility. It is a matter of record that most opposition-held states fail miserably in this regard. Judiciary adds to the peoples' misery by locking them away and creating enormous pendency in their cases.)
§ 135,000 health & wellness centers are functional against the target of 150,000 HWC (11/12/2). 80m telemedicine have happened from these centres (under e-Sanjeevani). All 150,000 done Twitter update (31/12/2020)
