RAINING OF CASH!-INDIANS BEING DIRECTLY "PAID" BY THE GOVERNMENT

India is the only country where citizens, especially poor in terms of income, are showered with subsidies for every thing to the tune of trillions of rupees, whether they are justified or not. The leaky Public Distribution System (PDS), supposed to deliver the basic needs of food grains and sugar to all families below the poverty line bench marked by the government, entails almost one lakh crore every year though it is an open market secret that a significant portion of the grains earmarked by the government is siphoned of by unscrupulous and lumpen elements, many beneficiaries short circuited in the process. Time and again the ruling government had shown their incapability or apathy in curtailing such colossal misappropriation of public resources to such a staggering extent. Against such a back ground comes the declaration from no less a person than the Prime Minister of the country who declared that in stead of subsidized food grains each beneficiary would be paid cash directly under the electronic Direct Cash Transfer policy being implemented soon. Here is a take on this grandiose plan of the government.

"Singh summarised the challenges at the meeting. "This is a programme in which the implementation capacity of our government will be tested. We must ensure at all times that there is no duplication of effort and technology is used to the fullest for efficiency gains. The timelines we have set for ourselves are ambitious. Fifty one districts are to (have a) roll out from January next year and 18 states from April. And, the rest of the country later in 2013." All ministries and departments engaged in transferring benefits would be quickly moving to the electronic Direct Cash Transfer (DCT) system, based on the Aadhaar-payment platform. Schemes are identified for movement to this system. The road map for each scheme will follow a schedule under which 51 districts will be covered from January 1, 2013, a full 18 states from April 1, 2013, and the rest of the country from April 1, 2014, or earlier. The Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) has set up a cell of technical experts to facilitate Aadhaar-enabled DCTs and help individual ministries. The department of financial services is helping in the movement to universal financial inclusion through individual bank accounts for all. The PM stressed the funds meant for direct benefits, such as pensions, scholarships and healthcare benefits, must reach the intended beneficiaries without delays. "Apart from these direct benefits, the government also provides an amount of over Rs 300,000 crore in subsidies, which, too, must reach the right people," he added. The PM also called for coordinated effort between the finance ministry and UIDAI. "The twin pillars for the success of the system of DCTs that we have envisioned are the Aadhaar platform and financial Inclusion. If either of these pillars is weak, it would endanger the success of the initiative. I would expect the finance ministry and the Unique Identification Authority to work in close coordination to achieve a collective goal," he said.

It is difficult to understand the boldness of a government, especially towards the end of its term to indulge in such massive distribution of cash to millions of people using the electronic Identity system of Aadhar. If one looks at the working of Aaadhar itself during the last two years, there are thousands of citizens who have been left out and even those cases already processed are waiting to receive their ID cards indefinitely. Assuming that every citizen is covered by Aadhar ID system, how can the banking infrastructure at present cope up with millions of new accounts needed to be opened by beneficiaries? What happens if bank facilities are not available nearby? What about delays that may be caused by an inefficient bureaucratic set up in processing the papers? What if the bank account holder misuses the funds credited to his account for drinking and gambling which is a major social curse in Indian society? With illiteracy prevalent widely what happens to those who cannot operate bank accounts? Is it not opening the flood gates of corruption in a country which is seeing huge financial scams taking place under the very nose of the citizens? Like these there are going to be hundreds of issues which need to be sorted out before rolling out such a difficult scheme all over the country. Impending elections should not the driving force for changing the existing PDS which, in spite of its many deficiencies, has stood the test of time. Probably this is a fit case for judicial intervention which only can stop this reckless policy of the present government in squandering tax payers money!

V.H.POTTY
http://vhpotty.blogspot.com/
http://foodtechupdates.blogspot.com

EUROPEAN AGRICULTURE TO FACE TURMOIL- BIG VERSUS FARMS

Transformation of agriculture from small farms to big industrial conglomerate activity over the last 50 years has certainly ensured that those countries with plenty of wealth are never starved of food. But it has also resulted in significant over production of food with enormous wastage being experienced across the food chain. While food losses in poor countries are attributed to lack of infrastructure and limited access to technology, losses in developed countries are more due to apathy and gluttony in consumption. If to day's environmental problems causing global warming are attributed to big scale burning of fossil fuels by nations richly endowed with wealth, there is the blame game floated by well to do countries pointing out the accusing finger to the poor mans "earthen hearth" that provides some succor to the people here in cooking whatever little food they can lay their hands on! Added to this precious food materials like Corn, Soybean, Palm oil etc are being diverted to make bio-fuels for running automobiles in wealthy countries. The fact that agriculture farms are getting bigger and bigger each year in Europe and the US, edging out millions of small farmers into oblivion is slowly sinking now and the forthcoming gathering of European farmers to protest against such brutal changes in the policy spectrum favoring industrial agriculture is an ominous pointer to what this planet is going to be confronted soon. Here is a take on this new development.

"Behind tractors, several hundred protesters, some of whom have been cycling or walking for weeks in the Good Food March, gathered for a mass brunch outside the European Parliament in Brussels, where a reform of the costly pan-EU farm system is being discussed. From the culinary Slow Food movement to the Friends of the Earth environmental group, eight major organizations set up the march to push demands to drastically revamp policy away from industrial farming. The coalition united under the slogan "EU farm policy must be fundamentally changed" regarding a new seven-year program that kicks in after 2013. Within the 27-nation EU, the protesters charge that farming is geared far too much toward big agribusiness at the exclusion of family farming. The demonstrators carried signs saying "Size does matter" and "No to mega sties," in their calls for small farming initiatives. They claim that large farms and agricultural multinationals are endangering the environment with chemicals and genetically modified organisms, while also increasing pressure on food prices. "We are going around and around, and nobody wants to take responsibility for the current situation and the misery in which the agricultural world is in," said Erwin Schopges, chairman of the Belgian Milk Producers Association, after he had an argument over milk prices with EU Farm Commissioner Dacian Ciolos outside EU headquarters. The 50-year-old Common Agricultural Policy has been a cornerstone of EU plans and was instrumental in staving off the threat of hunger early on before it got mired in overproduction and runaway subsidies that distorted the global agricultural markets and gave rise to trans-Atlantic trade conflicts.
"How can the EU citizens continue to accept this agriculture?" said Green farmer Jose Bove, who is vice chairman of the European Parliament's farm committee. The European Commission has made proposals to promote employment and growth in rural areas to make sure the bloc's 16.7 million farmers can continue to keep a leading place in world farming, but Wednesday's protesters want it geared more away from industrial farming and subsidies that help undercut global prices.
"We want fair conditions for farmers, a greener countryside and an end to policies that are harming poor people in developing countries," said Stanka Becheva of Friends of the Earth".

Whether such demonstrations and protests will have any impact on the powerful monopolistic industrial organizations remains to be seen. If the American experience is any indication, small farmers are unlikely to win this unequal battle. Take the case of Genetically Engineered foods which have crept into the American diet virtually unnoticed and unsolicited, dominating the food landscape of that country to day because of a benign government eternally obliged to the GM food lobbyists for their political and financial support, consumer interest taking a back seat. The cursed "subsidy system" that benefits big farmers is perpetuating a situation where small farmers whether in America, Europe, Asia or Africa are continuously being throttled. Unless another revolution takes place to unshackle theses unfortunate victims from this type of "neo slavery", this planet is going to be a poorer place to live for millions of its denizens.

V.H.POTTY
http://vhpotty.blogspot.com/
http://foodtechupdates.blogspot.com

FOOD SECURITY-ANOTHER PERSPECTIVE

Providing food for the poor who have no access to affordable food materials both for calorie as well as nutrient requirement is indeed a laudable mission and Government of India (GOI) must receive full kudos for conceiving the giant Public Distribution System (PDS) with good intentions. Unfortunately all good intentions do not get translated into reality and to day's condition of the PDS is best described as pathetic for which the same government is responsible. In stead of learning lessons from a program which has gone haywire, GOI seems to be trapped in the quagmire committing more mistakes, intentionally or otherwise, pushing the country deeper into economic bankruptcy  Many suggestions have been made from time to time by well meaning experts regarding the direction in which PDS must be "rerouted". However GOI seems to be obsessed with garnering votes through a scheme for supplying the food grains practically free which can only expand the "pilferage" of grains by the politician-mafia nexus that operates to day with total impunity! An alternate proposal put forward by some experts calls for a transparent distribution system through issuing coupons or so called food stamps with which beneficiaries can get their entitlement from any retailer nearby. Here is a take on this new option suggested by them.

"If the government has transferred responsibility to the private sector in education, a fortiori, it also ought to put its faith in the private food trade when it comes to food subsidy. Curiously, the Food Security Bill before Parliament is all about government bureaucracy and government departments, with implications of administrative expenses overshooting the operational expenses. To be sure, food coupons are not the panacea to the vexed problem of targeted subsidy, but it is infinitely better than a PDS system that leaks like a sieve. Warts and all, the coupon system at least ensures a minimal role for bureaucracy and completely does away with state procurement, besides doing away with the problem of food rotting in the open, exposed to the elements. If students can be redirected, as it were, to private schools, the poor should be called upon to go to a kirana store in the vicinity, armed with food coupons given by the government. In fact, the initiative on the education front needs to be emulated across sectors — food, health and defence personnel; kirana store has been used more in a metaphorical sense herein. The crippling burden on government hospitals can be managed to a great extent through health coupons a la an insurance policy that is the open sesame for entry into cleaner and more effective, albeit infinitely more expensive, private hospitals".

The massive annual subsidy estimated at 70-80 thousand crore rupees coming out of the national exchequer is nothing but a wastage of resources by this economically turbulent country and to think that most of it is going to line the pockets of politicians, bureaucrats and brokers is really disturbing to the conscience of every honest citizen. No one knows who really deserves food grains at low cost when the family income has increased very significantly, especially after the implementation of various schemes of the GOI to guarantee employment in rural areas. Almost all urban families are well off compared to their counterparts in rural areas with relatively moderate income and why they should receive subsidies is baffling. With real and reliable economic statistics not available, it is time that a more precise and dependable method is evolved to identify families who are really poor and restrict the subsidies only to them through efficient and strict management system. Probably only a fraction of the number that receives subsidy may be eligible if the truth is brought out. Food coupons must be tried out at least on a limited scale to test its effectiveness in checking massive pilferage taking place at present.

V.H.POTTY
http://vhpotty.blogspot.com/
http://foodtechupdates.blogspot.com