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Introduction:

The National Family Health Survey (NFHS) conducted in 2019-21 shows that a considerable proportion of young children in India face food insecurity, which raises concerns about their development and future well-being. To achieve the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 2 of zero hunger, India must take strategic initiatives to eliminate food insecurity and ensure affordable access to nutritious food for all.

The National Food Security Act, 2013 aims to provide subsidized food grains to approximately two-third of the country’s population. The enactment of this landmark legislation, brought a paradigm shift in approach to food security, from welfare to rights-based approach.

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Role of NFSA in eliminating hunger and malnutrition:

1. According to a UN report number of undernourished people in India has declined by 60 million between 2006 to 2019.
2. Improved access to food grains have improved the hunger outcomes amongst the poor and underprivileged.
3. Wide coverage of the 2/3rd population have increased resilience in the poor against income shocks.

Various apprehensions and concerns raised in WTO against the Food security Act:

• According to the influential developed countries, the fixation of minimum support prices for agricultural products by the government puts a control on the prices of these products which, in turn, limits the profits of the big corporate houses.
• The government of India buys wheat, rice, sugarcane and now even pulses from the farmers for fulfilling the objectives under NFSA. This protects the farmers from clutches of such corporations and global traders.
• The government not only buys agricultural products and food grains but also provides it to two-third of the population—840 million people on subsidised rates through public distribution system. Due to this, the big corporations are deprived of potential customers and at the same time, poor people are also safeguarded against exploitative prices. This also ensures food security in those states where food grains are not produced in sufficient quantity.
• Due to this policy, the government exercises control over agriculture which, in turn, prevents big corporations from assuming central role in this regard.

Conclusion:

It is to be understood that the rules of WTO were not geared to help agrarian economies, farmers and consumers. If a consensus emerges against allegedly ‘trade-distorting’ subsidies at the WTO, then India will be forced to alter the provisions of the National Food Security Act. The food bill has revolutionized the access to food grains; however, the need is to move towards nutritional security and not just food security. Further the structural bottlenecks in the implementation food bill should be corrected by leverage of technology.

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