The Nation which is rich yet poor
As a Nation , India , is always striving to be rich and Indian is still branded as “Developing” country .More than half of the population lives under the poverty line, Indian doesn’t have the ration to feed the kind of population leaving in Poverty or to put it in other words who can’t afford one of the of basic amenities of life If ,as an Indian introspect and ask these following questions i)Are we a Poor Nation? Do we really don’t have the ability to feed our own people?
One of the primary products of India is Food grains, then how do India still fall short of Feeding its own people? Do we export all that we produce? Or exactly what happens to India’s Produce?
India’s Produce and Export
India has produced 255.36 million tonnes of food grains during 2012-13 as compared to 259.29 million tonnes during 2011-12(Production of rice is likely to be 104.22 million tonnes. Wheat production is likely to be 93.62 million tonnes.) India looked at exporting 40 million tonnes of shipment of rice and wheat.**
We can safely assume that the rest of the produce is actually for local consumption and storing for the times of need. The remaining food grains should easily suffice to alleviate the hunger for the Indian population
Local market and Consumption
Various Varieties’ of Food grains priced according to their grade are available at Local Shops, Super Markets which caters to the ever bulging urban and rural population. The urban population with a good chunk of disposable income consumes the finer qualities of grains.
The state Governments across India subsidise food grains according to the grade and variety and makes it available for the common man through various fair price shops. Few States are even distributing a Kilogram of Food grains at Rs.1/- which, from our perspective should place food at the lap of the poorest of the poor. In some States the Government ensures noon meals are served at Public schools so that it will encourage the local population to send their children to schools.
All in all, the pictures looks good and we may assume that India manages its produce well and it reaches people off all strata of society.
Dark Reality
In reality, the Food grains don’t reach people, to whom it must reach necessarily.
“Every day some 3,000 Indian children die from illnesses related to malnutrition”**
A government-supported survey published earlier this year found that 42 percent of India's children under 5 are underweight; almost double that of sub-Saharan Africa.**
The above lines clearly depicts the state of affairs in India and especially how poor people have been left to fend for themselves
Country like India ,in which Agriculture is a major source of revenue , it must have a great and flexible system for producing , procuring and storing the produces but unfortunately it falls short across the spectrum especially in having good storage facilities.
“So what actually happens to the tonnes and tonnes of produce? The answer is simple; they “ROT”, because of the lack of proper storage facility, the grains rot. They are untouched for years and years and they just go to the dumps.
Who’s at fault?
Right from the top most Government official to the common man. The government officials are just turning a blind eye to the millions and millions of food grains getting wasted. The common man is not raising his voice so that he can help the poor and hungry to get what is being wasted.
“It is an extraordinary paradox created by a rigid regime of subsidies for grain farmers, a woeful lack of storage facilities and an inefficient, corruption-plagued public distribution system that fails millions of impoverished people”.**
The system is so corrupt and rigid that these grains are neither open for local consumption nor open for export despite a need for income from exports to reduce a record current account deficit.
The food ministry is pressing the government to increase exports, but India's creaking transport system means that a large portion of grains will simply not be able to get to ports even with global prices jumping a fifth last year.
There is also problem of creaking transport system which hinders the transportation of food grains for local consumption and for exports. The Port congestion is also adding to the exporters woes as the grains have to wait for some time, this adds extra time and cost to the exporter’s pocket.
This situation continues even after the Supreme Court has ordered to distribute the excess grains for free for the poor and needy.
What can be done?
• Build grains warehouses and silos and leave supplies exposed to rodents and the weather.
• Effective and Efficient Distribution of excess food grains to poor and needy
• Flexible and non-corrupt Government policies and officials
• Able transport system aiding in local distribution and exports.
Simple but well planned things like stated above makes a big difference. India must wake up to the reality and address the issues as soon as possible, otherwise as a Country it fails to protect its population from one of the basic malaise of life called Hunger and Poverty , in spite of having all the tools in aiding to avoid them.
