Imperfect law

Changes in Food Security Act imperative

The counsel by a committee of secretaries to restrict the application of the National Food Security Act (NFSA) chiefly to the deserving sections of the population seems sound and logical. This legislation, though meant to ensure the poor an easy access to basic food, has some ill-advised provisions that make its implementation an economic burden. The most imprudent of these is the arbitrarily determined norm of covering about two-thirds of the entire population (75 per cent rural and 50 per cent urban) under this law. This seems too high considering that the poverty level is now much lower. Equally questionable