Odisha’s own food security scheme a welcome step

Access to adequate nutritious food is a human right and no human being should be deprived of such non negotiable rights. The recent decision of the Government of Odisha to ensure food security out of State’s own scheme for the left out poor under provision of the National Food Security Act (NFSA) because of fault in inclusion criteria is most welcome. But while maintaining the much needed welfare measures, there must be a plan to make the people of the State capable of access to sufficient healthy food which has been missing in the present Government’s economic policy for about two decades of its rule.

Odisha remains to be a poorest State in India with unemployment, lower wage rate, sub human living condition, huge distress migration and a majority of its working  population having been denied of owning productive assets such as land, quality education, skill and finance capital. The ruling parties of the State at various times have been continuously encouraging the extractive industries to exploit the natural resources of the State while neglecting adequate investment to raise the economic standard of the common masses who are still everyday struggling with various odds.

Though a large majority of rural poor are making a living out of agriculture, forestry and fishing, but the State Government has not made substantial investment to bring change in these sector by act of planned spending on rural basic infrastructure, land reform, drinking water, irrigation, electricity, communication, marketing mechanism of rural produces, service sector, primary health and primary education sector.

The most employment-generating manufacturing sector has a very minimal presence in the State. On the other side, the protective laws and social security measures and the State sponsored schemes under rights and entitlements have been ineffective. The Minimum Wage Act, the Social Security Act and protective laws for the vulnerable sections, such as women, children and wage labourer, SCs and STs are most ineffectively applied in the justice delivery system of the State.

The socio-economic condition of the rural poor have further marginalised with capitalist centered liberal economic policies marked by alienation from productive resources and increasing in the number of landless wage labourers. The persistent issues of seasonal employment, lack of employment, low income and low productivity with low physical capacity to engage as wage labour have contributed to the increase of many forms of insecurities including food security among the marginalised poor and its most vulnerable sections.

In the present context, the responsibility of addressing the issues of poverty, hunger and food security must not be distributed between Centre and State Government; rather it must be a combined effort in true federal spirit. Any one dying of starvation, hunger and extreme poverty without minimum food, irrespective of his/her social identity and place of living, is a citizen of this country and above all, a human being. Access to food is reflection of economic and social condition that empowers a person to enjoy that right which has to be ensured by the State. Food security is not just about distribution of 5kg rice which is a very limited understanding about the basic objectives of the purpose. The quantity and quality of food grain must include rice and other necessary items to make a complete food basket for a living.

Studies have found that the people of the State are poor because of the macro-economic policies of the Government and continued social and educational backwardness. Odisha needs a special category treatment from the Centre considering the incidence of large number of poor people below poverty line and specially the presence of large number of marginalised sections, Adivasies, vulnerable tribal groups, forest dwellers, people living  in inaccessible areas, Dalits, caste-discriminated communities, seasonal migrant workers, landless agricultural workers, fisher folk and most backward classes of population depending on traditional livelihood sources.

The Centre also needs to follow preferential treatment while dealing with most sensitive food security issues of a poor and backward State having natural resources and whose natural resources are being used by the Central public sector undertakings, such as Nalco, NTPC, MCL, SAIL etc for national interest and wellbeing of the whole country. The over exploitation of mineral resources in the State has given rise to many problems, including the acute poverty.

The decision making power over the utilisation of the State’s forest, water, minerals, coast, banking, communication, railway, port, airways are being controlled by the Centre whereas the role of the State has been largely marginalised. For a long time, many of the resource- rich States who are also poor have been demanding rights over natural resources, minerals, and change in the tax policy under federal governance but there has been curtail of rights which are more visible in recent years after liberalisation.

This is affecting the public spending of the State while allocating resources for the welfare of the poor. Odisha has been running with huge public debt to meet its plan expenses and very little left for non-plan expenditure.

It is being observed that the relatively more developed States having universal public distribution system, such as Kerala and Tami Nadu, are demanding increased share from the Centre to meet the mandate of food security. But, in case of Odisha with targeted PDS, the Centre is not considering to cover the additional eligible beneficiaries.

It is also said that the decision of the Central Government has been politically motivated violating the federal structure principles and many times depending on ruling alliances between parties at Centre and State with emergence of powerful regional parties and the dependency of national parties has been increasing in coalition Government.

It is being accused that the State charity for poor has been used as an instrument of gaining support of the poor to continue in the power to rule without making any major economic change in their life. In the present scenario, the State welfare has been helping the feudal, upper caste/class land owning groups and corporates to continue their hegemonic control over resources with help of bureaucratic control, corruption and violence against the marginalised sections.

In order to pacify the anger and distress of the marginalised poor, who are also voters in large numbers, the populist schemes are best suitable to puzzle them in the absence of transformative political education and liberate political ideologies of equality and rights over resources. The absence of organisation of the poor further minimises their bargaining power.

However, experience shows food at subsidised rate to the poor in rural areas and urban locations have productive impact over economic growth that encourages production and local employment by arresting distress and vulnerable condition in lean period and maintaining minimum level of social security.

The food security scheme in form of subsidised rice mostly paid by the Center is also helping the rice and wheat growing farmers because of large scale State procurement through MSP.

It is suggested that the management of food security schemes be dealt with locally by empowering local PRIs with decision making power, adequate resources and infrastructural facilities. The criteria of beneficiary selection must be clear and transparent before the public to exclude the undesirable elements while the inclusion must be open to include all the deserving poor.