CPI(M) seeks withdrawal of proposed NFSA amendment
Describing the proposed amendment to the Food Security Act (NFSA), which seeks to change the entitlement criteria under the Antyodaya Anna Yojana (AAY) from a
Describing the proposed amendment to the Food Security Act (NFSA), which seeks to change the entitlement criteria under the Antyodaya Anna Yojana (AAY) from a household-based system to a per capita system, as “anti-poor”, the CPI(M) on Tuesday accused the Union government of attempting to gradually dilute and weaken the legislation. The party demanded that the proposed amendment be withdrawn immediately. The government has proposed increasing the food grain entitlement to 7 kg per person from the present 5 kg per person. This change does not help larger households either, the CPI(M) Polit Bureau said in a statement, pointing out that the entitlement would continue to remain capped at 35 kg per month, regardless of family size.
At the same time, the party said it would substantially reduce the food grain entitlement of smaller households, which are currently guaranteed the full 35 kg under the existing scheme. The amendment would, the Left party said, “disproportionately affect the poorest and most vulnerable sections of society,” including elderly couples, widows, persons with disabilities, tribal families, landless agricultural labourers, daily wage workers, persons with chronic illnesses and small nuclear families whose food security depends on the AAY, irrespective of household size. “The amendment will adversely impact states, particularly the southern states that have successfully implemented family planning programmes and consequently have smaller average household sizes.
These states will suffer a significant reduction in their overall foodgrain allocations despite their achievements in population stabilisation,” the Polit Bureau said. The CPI(M) said the government had, for years, ignored the demand to revise the beneficiary lists under the NFSA, which continue to be based on the 2011 Census. According to some estimates, nearly
14 crore eligible persons remain outside the ambit of the legislation because of the outdated data. “This anti-poor amendment exposes the Union Government’s attempt to gradually dilute and weaken the Food Security Act, a landmark legislation enacted as a result of sustained people’s struggles to establish food as a legal right,” the Polit Bureau said.
The BriefWire