Right to Food Campaign urges the government to safeguard food sovereignty and food security for all Indians while negotiating at the WTO Bali Ministerial Conference

                                                          Press Release

We urge Government of India to safeguard food sovereignty and food security for all Indians while negotiating at the WTO Bali Ministerial – Protect farmer’s livelihoods and expanded PDS

The Right to Food campaign will also take this issue up with Indian Parliamentarians asking them to raise this in the Parliament as this affects the livelihoods of our farmers and our ability
to fight against hunger

Production, procurement, storage and distribution are all important components of ensuring food security. Unfortunately, in the National Food Security Act (NFSA) the Government took a minimalistic view by focussing only on distribution despite the demands by many for a comprehensive law. Even the minimal entitlements for food given under the NFSA are now under threat because it is claimed that the public procurement to the extent of the foodgrain requirements of the NFSA violate the WTO Agreement on Agriculture (AoA) that India is a part of. Although the NFSA is being blamed, the allocation under the NFSA is only about 3 million tonnes higher than the current amount. This WTO Agreement can be used as an excuse to dismantle or weaken the PDS and replace it with cash transfers.

भोजन का अधिकार अभियान,झार​खंड राज्य सम्मलेन

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Callous Indifferent attitude of Statutory Human Rights Bodies in respect of dealing starvation death and Hunger related issues in Odisha (Few case studies)

Human Rights Bodies like National Human Rights Commission, State Human Rights Commission has been constituted to protect human rights of the people in the country.  As  per  Protection of Human Rights Act,1993,  these  statutory bodies   are required to   hear  the  complaint cases  relating to violation of human rights  and give justice  to the  victims by directing appropriate authority  to take  action against the law violator  and  awarding   compensation to the affected persons.  But the callousness and  indifferent attitude  of  these  bodies  has  endangered  the life and  livelihood  of the  common people  and standing as  stumbling  block  for protection  of human rights. I cite  herewith  few examples  in this regard.

A Renewed PDS

Photo:Forbes India

EPW: K R Antony,Yogesh Jain ,Samir Garg 

An efficient public distribution system (PDS) is a life support extended by the State to people living below the poverty line, which, the way it is officially defined, is more like a “starvation line”.

Many states have been supplying essential food items and kerosene to poor households through the PDS with varying degrees of success but supply of only wheat/rice, iodised salt and sugar alone is not adequate to meet the nutrition needs of the people.

India Matters: Bihar - A reality check

India Matters: Bihar - A reality check

Mahadalits is a term coined by Chief Minister Nitish Kumar for the poorest and most marginalized among Dalits. 21 castes are included in the Mahadalit category, ostensibly for their socio- economic development and for better targetting of government schemes. Bihar has also become the first state to set up a Mahadalit Development Commission. Some view this as Nitish Kumar's attempt to carve out a voter base of his own. But the chief minister says the development of Mahadalits is at the top of his priorities and that his vision of development is an inclusive one. The chief minister has flaunted economic data to show how effective policies and governance have created a resurgent Bihar. But how do these claims translate on the ground, particularly for those at the centre of the state's politics?