After much dithering, the Government on Wednesday adopted the Ordinance route to implement the Food Security Bill that guarantees right to highly subsidised food grain to 67 per cent of the population. The Union Cabinet approved the Ordinance and sent it to President Pranab Mukherjeefor promulgation.
The move has attracted criticism from the main Opposition BJP, which termed it as an election gimmick. Under the Ordinance, people coming under the Antyodaya Anna Yojana will be given wheat at Rs 2 per kg and rice at Rs 3 per kg.
Those falling in the Below Poverty line (BPl) category will get wheat at Rs 4.15 per kg and rice at Rs 5.65 per kg. The Above Poverty line (APl) population will get wheat at Rs 6.10 per kg and rice at Rs 8.30 per kg.
However, all householdsm covered under the Targeted PDS will get wheat at Rs 2 per kg and rice at Rs 3 per kg itself.m APl families will get food grain at 5 kg per individual per month with the maximum of 25 kg per household, but the BPl families and those under the Antyodaya Anna Yojana will get 35 kg subsidised food grainper month.
The subsidy burden of providing cheap food grain to 75 per cent of the rural and 50 per cent of the urban population would be Rs 1.25 lakh crore.m The Congress feels that the implementation of the dream mproject of party president
Sonia Gandhi will be a game changer for the coming Assembly and lok Sabha polls. Congress general secretary in-charge of communication Ajay Maken said: “It was the commitment of the Congress party under the leadership of Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi to provide food security to the poor people of the country. It is because of their persistent efforts that the Ordinance will see the light of day.” mHowever, leader of Opposition in lok Sabha Sushma Swaraj slammed the waym the Government brought the Ordinance.
“The Monsoon Session is due in July itself and the Government has recommended an Ordinance for the National Food Security Bill. This is a deliberate attempt to denigrate Parliament. Why this hurryIJ Are they going in for early electionsIJ” Swaraj wrote on Twitter.
BJP spokesperson Nirmala Sitharaman termed the Ordinance as an election gimmick and accused the Congress of running away from a debate on the crucial issue in Parliament.
She said by bringing an Ordinance towards the fag end of the UPA Government’s tenure, the Congress was trying to score some brownie points which may help the party face the public after big scams and corruption cases came to light during its rule.
The intention of the Congress is not to help the poor, but to garner votes during them elections, she said. “They are not interested in having a debate because many facts or many gaps in this Bill will be highlighted by all political
parties and their own lack of clarity, their own lack of preparedness in presenting a comprehensive well-drafted Bill will come out. I think this is just an election gimmick rather than a sincere desire to help the poor with food security,” she said.
The BJP had made it clear that the Food Security Bill has important implications on society, on the Budget and on the way the Indian poor would be given food security and thus needed to be discussed. It had suggested that the Monsoon Session of Parliament be advanced and no special session was required for the passage of the Bill.
However, Maken countered the arguments saying that if the Opposition wanted they could have allowed the passage of the Bill in the Budget Session itself.
Regarding how the Government will counter the staunch opposition of the Samajwadi Party, which hadmearlier forced the Cabinet to defer the Ordinance, Maken said that talks were held with all parties to arrive at some sort of agreement.
NCP leader Sharad Pawar had already come on board over the legislation.Moreover, with the Congress providing support to the JD(U) Government in Bihar during the confidence vote and to DMK’s Kanimozhi in Rajya Sabha polls, the Government is likely to get support of MPs from these parties to pass the Bill in Parliament.
Also, with the JD(U) likely to support it, Samajwadi Party chief Mulayam Singh Yadav would not go all the way out to dislodge the UPA Government on this issue at the moment, sources said. Also, the Congress reprimanded Steel Minister Beni Prasad Verma on Wednesday for criticising the SP president in order to mollify him.