India's 2013-14 total food subsidy stands at Rs 1,30,000 cr

The Food Security bill which has been cleared by the Cabinet will now go to parliament for discussion this week

India's total food subsidy is seen at Rs 1,30,000 crores to cover expenditure for its Food Security Bill which aims to expand cheap food provision for the poor, Food Minister K.V. Thomas said on Tuesday.

However, the amendments to the bill approved by cabinet on Tuesday  shos that  the estimated food subsidy is about Rs 125000 crores.

The budget puts spending on food subsidies for 2013/14 at Rs 90,000 crores and Finance Minister P. Chidambaram said in his speech announcing the budget on February 28 he would set aside an extra Rs 10,000 crores for the bill.

The Food Security bill will now go to parliament for discussion this week, the minister added.