Centre extends food law deadline by six months

Jaipur: The Centre has given six months' moretime to the states for rolling out the National Food Security Act (NFSA),  said Union Food Minister Ram Vilas Paswan. The deadline, which has already been extended twice for implementing the food law, was ending on April 4.  Only 11 states and Union Territories have so far implemented the National Food Security Act which was passed by Parliament in September 2013. The rest 25 states/UTs have not implemented it yet. 

"The central government has further given six months' time to the states to implement the NFSA," Paswan told  reporters here.  The deadline has been extended for the third time so that  the remaining states adopt and implement the law within six months, the minister added. The law aims at providing legal entitlement to 5 kg of  subsidised foodgrains per person per month at Rs 1-3/kg to  two-thirds of the country's population. The Centre had given stern warning to remaining states  that it will stop supply of subsidised APL foodgrains if they fail to meet April deadline. 

At present, the Centre is allocating foodgrains to 11 states/UTs as per the new food law, while the rest are getting foodgrains quota as per earlier PDS norms.  Despite extension of the deadline twice, only 11 states/UTs - Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan, Himachal Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Maharashtra, Karnataka, Delhi and Chandigarh have so far implemented the Act, some of them fully and others partially.  

To ensure proper distribution of PDS supplies, Paswan said that the Centre has also decided to give a fixed cash amount of Rs 87 per quintal, to be contributed equally by Centre and the state, to ration shop dealers. On storage, the Minister mentioned that there is sufficient godown space to keep foodgrains and there would be no storage of old stock beyond 18 months in the FCI godowns.  In Rajasthan alone, state-run Food Corporation of India  (FCI) has a storage capacity of 22 lakh tonnes, while the  state government has opened 232 procurement centres. On impact of crop damage due to unseasonal rains on  farmers, Paswan said that the Centre was reviewing the  situation in the northern states and considering their demand on humanitarian ground.

He said that the Centre would consider states' demand to  simplify the norms of National Calamity Relief Fund to accommodate every farmer whose crop has been perished up to 25 per cent.  The Rajasthan government had earlier demanded one lakh tonne of wheat free for supply to farmers whose rabi (winter)  crops have been ruined in recent rain-hailstorm havoc, and now  it has raised the demand to 4.85 lakh tonnes, he added. Asked if the Centre would provide any relief to farmers whose crop loss is up to 25 per cent, Paswan said there was a proposal to give relaxation on partially-damaged foodgrain  based on nutritive value, and procuring agencies like FCI could asses the standards of foodgrain. 

Quality relaxation norms were adopted in Madhya Pradesh,  and for other states the matter was being assessed, he added. Rajasthan Minister for Food and Civil Supplies Hemsingh  Bhadna said the state chief minister had asked the centre to  provide the maximum relief to affected farmers, and provide  4.85 lakh tonnes of free wheat to them.