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National

PDS outgo will rise: Pawar

Gargi Parsai

NEW DELHI: Union Food Minister Sharad Pawar said on Wednesday that at least 62.1 million tonnes of foodgrains would be required annually for the Public Distribution System alone once the Food Security Act, as proposed by the National Advisory Council (NAC), comes into effect.

This quantity would be for the PDS the alone, apart from the requirement for other welfare schemes, strategic reserves and the open market sale scheme for market intervention.

Mr. Pawar said he had read in the press about the recommendations of the NAC and that it would be “presumptive” on his part to say what shape the Act would take. “We have not received anything so far and have only read in newspapers about the recommendations. Irrespective of the fine print [of the proposed Act], it is certain that the outgo from the PDS will increase substantially from its current level once the Act is implemented.”

The Ministry procures on average 50-55 million tonnes of foodgrains annually. This year it procured 57.4 million tonnes. The distribution of foodgrains through the PDS, which was just 12 million tonnes in 2001-02, already jumped to 43.8 million tonnes this year, the Minister said at the Economic Editors' Conference here.

“According to rough estimates prepared by the Ministry, after reading about the NAC recommendations in the media, a quantity of 62.1 million tonnes would be required for an estimated 9.70 crore priority beneficiaries and 8.90 crore general beneficiaries. This apart from the other welfare schemes, OMSS, strategic reserves, buffer stock etc.,” Mr. Pawar said.

At present the government provides discounted foodgrains to 6.52 crore Below the Poverty Line families and allocates varying quantities of grain for 11.5 crore Above the Poverty Line families.

On Saturday, the NAC recommended that the government provide in phases subsidised foodgrains to at least 75 per cent of the country's population — 90 per cent in rural areas and 50 per cent in urban areas.

Asked from where the additional foodgrains will come, Mr. Pawar said, “I'll have to see,” and added that a decision on nationalising foodgrains by the Jawaharlal Nehru government was withdrawn in 10 days.

“I recollect in good old days when I was young and was in Congress. In AICC, the decision was taken and in 10 days the decision was withdrawn. Jawaharlal Nehru was Prime Minister at that time.”However, he indicated that despite good stocks of wheat, rice and sugar and expectations of “record foodgrains production,” the government will withhold any decision to allow exports of these commodities.

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