Food Bill gets stuck over BPL definition,up for fresh scrutiny

In the end,the draft of the Food Security Act got marked for fresh scrutiny on Monday after Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee,who heads the EGoM,decided to task the Planning Commission with the exercise of bringing more clarity on different aspects,including issues relating to exact number of BPL beneficiaries,the nutritional value that they would gain,and the future projections on grain production.

“It’s all economics and does not reflect the political promise (by the Congress),” Antony reportedly told the EGoM. He suggested that states be allowed to fix the number of BPL households with the number of ration cards as the benchmark and let the Planning Commission fix the numbers. He was backed by Joshi,who read out the relevant part of the Congress manifesto while pressing for provisions like community kitchens.

Ahluwalia stood on the other side of the argument,dubbing the proposal to allow states to fix numbers as an ‘economic disaster’. Home Minister P Chidambaram said there was a need to forecast production and procurement of food grains in the next five years to ensure food security in drought situation.

Considering the importance that Gandhi attaches to the legislation,the Planning Commission has been given three weeks to complete its task and report back to the empowered panel. Monday’s meeting came about after a two-page note from Prime Minister Manmohan Singh,highlighting contentious aspects in the draft Bill,was forwarded to Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar by Mukherjee. The two-page note,sources said,was based on a communication from Gandhi to Singh.

Pawar said the draft food security legislation would be undergoing changes. “It will have to go to the Law Ministry for appropriate changes to be made before being brought before the Cabinet,” he said. Given the need to plug legal loopholes in the mechanism providing legal rights to the poor to foodgrain at Rs 3 per kg,officials of Pawar’s ministry said the draft legislation would take a while before becoming law.

Briefing reporters after the meeting,Pawar said the exact definition of BPL was one of the sticky issues. He,however,denied that he had received any letter from Gandhi on the subject. Sticking to the 25 kg per BPL family proposal,Pawar said this was as promised in the Congress manifesto and committed in President Pratibha Patil’s address to Parliament in June.