PM hopes food security bill will be passed soon

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh Thursday hoped that the food security bill will soon be passed by parliament.

"We have recently issued an ordinance towards food security law. The food security bill is now before parliament and we hope it will be passed shortly. This law will benefit 75 percent of our rural population and half of our urban population," Manmohan Singh said in his address to the nation from the ramparts of the Red Fort on India's 67th Independence Day.

"Under the law, about 81 crore Indians would be entitled to receive rice at Rs.3 per kg, wheat at Rs.2 per kg and coarse grains at Rs.1 per kg. This is the largest effort of its kind in the whole world.

"We have been able to implement this law only because of the hard work of our farmers," Manmohan Singh added.

The prime minister said that after the enactment of the food security legislation, its implementation will be one of the government's main priorities.

"We have already started working in this direction in partnership with states. Computerization of the public distribution system will be speeded up," he added.