Food Security

Food is essential for living as air is for breathing but food security means more than just two square
meals. In the 1970s, food security was understood as the “availability at all times of adequate supply of
basic foodstuffs” (UN, 1975). Amartya Sen added a new dimension to food security and emphasised the
“access” to food through what he called ‘entitlements’ — a combination of what one can produce,
exchange in the market alongwith state or other socially provided supplies. Accordingly, there has been
a substantialshift in the understanding of food security.The more comprehensive concept of food
security was captured in the definition presented at World Food Summit in 1996: “ Food security exists
when people, at all times have physical, social and economic access sufficient, safe and nutritious food
which meets their dietary needs and food preferences for an active and healthy life.”

FAO identifies four main elements of food security

• Food availability-The availability of sufficient quantities of food of appropriate quantity, supplied

through domestic production or inputs including food aid.
• Food Access-Access by individuals to adequate resources-entitlements-for acquiring nutritious
diet.
• Utilization- Utilization of food through adequate diet, clean water, sanitation and health care to
reach a state of nutritional well being where all physiological need is met.
• Stability- To be food secure, a population, household or individual must have access to adequate
food at all times. They should not risk losing access as a consequence of sudden shocks. Stability
is thus needed in both availability and access.

Food security in India is an issue of immense importance where more than one fourth of the population
is estimated to be poor and one half of all children, malnourished in one way or another. Food security
in India can be dated back to the famine of Bengal in 1943. Since then India has been aiming self
sufficiencyin food. To achieve it, the Green Revolution was introduced in india in 1968. The green
revolution had three elements.
1. Continual expansion of farming areas
2. Doubling the output of crops on existing lands
3. Making the use of genetically used seeds.

Statistical results
India has become self-sufficient in food grains during the last thirty years because of a variety of crops
grown all over the country. But the main reasons for food insecurity arose because of an inefficient
distribution system and lack of government vigilance. In the wake of high incidence of poverty levels,
three important food intervention programmes were introduced in the 1970s:
1. Public distribution system
2. Integrated child development services(1975)
3. Food-for-Work(1977-78)

Among these PDS is an important constituent of the strategy for poverty eradication and is intended to
serve as a safety net for the poor whose number is more than 33 Crores and are nutritionally at risk.

Since independence the overall food production has increased from 50 million tones in 1950-
51 to209 million tones in 1999-2000. The level of procurement and reach of the PDS have increased
considerably over time. Food for work progroammes have also helped the poor to increase their
purchasing power.However, all is not well with the food security policy particularly with reference to the
PDS.

Back draws of the PDS

1. Due to urban bias and lack of transparency and accountability, PDS could not function
efficiently.
2. Due to poor targeting the system that was being misused by all irrespective of the standard of
living.
3. Inefficiency of the entire bureaucracy of food i.e. food does not reach to the poor.

Thus, in spite of achieving self sufficiency in food grain production the main reasons for food
insecurity in india were
 due to the inefficiency of the food distribution system
 lack of government initiative to successfully implement the food programmes
 abject poverty in several parts of india that limited economic access to food.
 Rising food demand due to an ever growing population

Some areas that suffurred are places like Kalahandi and Kashipur in Orissa where famine-like conditions
have been existing for many years and where some starvation deaths have also been reported.
Starvation deaths are also reported in Baran district of Rajasthan, Palamau district of Jharkhand and
many other remote areas.

Right To Food Case

In April 2001, People’s Union for Civil Liberties (PUCL) filed a “writ petition” on the right to food in
the Supreme Court. This petition was filed at a time when the country’s food stocks reached
unprecedented levels while hunger in drought-affected areas intensified. Initially the case was
brought against the Government of India, the Food Corporation of India (FCI), and six State
Governments, in the context of inadequate drought relief. Subsequently, the case was extended to
the larger issues of chronic hunger and undernutrition, and all the State Governments were added
to the list of “respondents”. As mentioned earlier, the public interest litigation (PIL) initiated by the
PUCL petition is known as the “right to food case”.