Tamil Nadu to incur Rs 1,000 cr additional burden on Food Bill

The chief ministerhas urged the Centre to provide a legally binding assurance over its committed quantity of foodgrains to states at Rs 3 per kg

The newly introduced proviso in the Food Bill would lead to an additional burden of Rs 1,000 crore to the state, said chief minister J Jayalalithaa.

In a letter to the Prime Minister, she said:"The newly introduced proviso leaves the fixation of the issue price to the discretion of the central government. In the event that the issue price is fixed at the economic cost of rice, this would place an additional huge financial burden of around Rs 1,000 crore on the government of Tamil Nadu"

She also urged the Centre to provide a legally binding assurance over its committed quantity of foodgrains to states at Rs 3 per kg or at least at the current price applicable for above poverty line families of Rs 8.30 per kg, and highlighted the lack of enough clarity on this subject.

The state in the past had suggested the Centre to cover the entire urban population or at least 75 per cent of the population on a par with rural areas as households eligible for allocation of subsidised foodgrains. But, it has not yet been accepted, she said.

It also sought amendments to the ordinance including guaranteeing a much longer term for an assured level of subsidy from the Centre and import of foodgrains when warranted to ensure continued supply. She said the centre should not leave the states to fend for themselves after providing limited financial assistance.

A provision to obligate the Centre to import food in times of scarcity is very crucial to make this legislation truly a Food Security Act. 

As part of its implementation, the respective states are also obliged to prescribe guidelines and complete identification of the eligible households within 180 days of the commencement of the ordinance. However, this has been extended to 365 days as the identification of eligible households by the state is contingent on the completion of the National Population Register and Socio-Economic Caste Census (SECC),

"I am not sure whether even one year's time is a realistic time frame. This issue also may need to be revisited," said the chief minister.

While some of the key issues have been addressed in the first set of amendments proposed, there are still some outstanding issues that would require to be addressed before the present National Food Security Bill truly assures food security to the country, she said.