Implementation of the National Food Security Act (NFSA), 2013 in Odisha on July 4 this year seems uncertain as the State has raised certain issues before the Central Government.
This was once again communicated to the Union Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food & Public Distribution by the State Food Supply & Consumer Welfare Department on Thursday. Previously too, Commissioner-cum-Secretary FS&CW Madhu Sudan Padhi had sent a missive to the Centre regarding the issues which need to be addressed.The FS&CW Department has stated that the NFSA, 2013 would be implemented in the State only after identification of priority households under the Act and issue of ration cards to them.
Meanwhile, the State Government has constituted a taskforce, which has finalised eight exclusion criteria and five auto exclusion criteria for implementation of the NFSA. The Government is likely to approve it soon.Besides, the State has decided to use the NPR database and invite applications from priority households after notifying the exclusion criteria.The RPF is in the final stage. Based on the recommendation of the State taskforce, the digitisation of beneficiaries would be done in a phased manner in the entire State starting with the Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation (BMC) and Bhubaneswar block.
Accordingly, ration cards would be issued to the priority household beneficiaries after a due process, sources said.
The FS&CW Secretary has mentioned about the progress made by the State Government in end-to-end computerisation, targeted public distribution system (TPDS), supply chain management system (SCMS), digitisation of ration cards, tracking transaction of fair price shops and grievance redressal mechanism and a State-level project management unit (PMU).
The State has, however, raised issues which need to be addressed by the Central Government. The major issue is that there is no mention of the scheme of Annapurna under the NFSA. There are about 64,800 numbers of old and destitute beneficiaries who are being provided with 10 kg of rice per beneficiary per month free of cost.
Secondly, there is also no mention of the welfare institutions, hostels, SC, ST and OBC scheme and emergency feeding scheme under the NFSA.Odisha has over 4 lakh SC & ST students in Government run hostels but get rice at BPl rates for only 66,000 students. The department has requested the Central Government to increase allocation of food grains to meet the needs of SC, ST students.
Besides, hot cooked meal is being provided to about two lakh old, infirmed and indigent beneficiaries for 365 days in the KBK districts.