Senior Congress leader Sonia Gandhi on Monday asked the government to complete the population census at the earliest, claiming that around 14 crore people in the country are being deprived of their rightful benefits of free and subsidised foodgrains under the food security law.

Making this assertion in her maiden Zero Hour intervention in the Rajya Sabha, Gandhi said beneficiaries under the National Food Security Act (NFSA) are being identified as per the 2011 Census, and not the latest population numbers and thus many are deprived.

“For the first time in independent India’s history, the decennial census has been delayed by more than four years, despite originally being scheduled for 2021. There is still no clarity on when the census will be conducted,” she said.

Sonia Gandhi also claimed that the Budget allocations reveal that the updated census is unlikely to be conducted this year as well. “Around 14 crore eligible Indians are thus being deprived of their rightful benefits under the NFSA,” she said.

The senior Congress leader said the NFSA, introduced by the UPA government in September 2013, was a landmark initiative aimed at ensuring food and nutritional security for the country’s 140 crore population.

The legislation, Sonia Gandhi said, played a crucial role in protecting millions of vulnerable households from starvation, particularly during the Covid-19 crisis. She also said the quota for the beneficiaries is still determined based on the 2011 Census, which is now well over a decade old.

The National Food Security Act, 2013, provides for coverage of up to 75 per cent of the rural and up to 50 per cent of the urban population for receiving highly subsidised foodgrains under the Targeted Public Distribution System (TPDS), which, according to 2011 Census, comes to about 81.35 crore.

At present, the government provides five kg free foodgrains per person per month under the food security law.

“It is imperative that the government prioritises completion of the census as soon as possible and ensures that all deserving individuals receive the benefits guaranteed to them under the NFSA,” she said. “Food security is not a privilege. It is a fundamental right,” the former Congress chief asserted.

The period for distribution of free foodgrains under the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Anna Yojana (PMGKAY) has been extended for five years from January 1, 2024.