GS 3 (General Studies 3)

Issues related to direct and indirect farm subsidies and minimum support prices; Public Distribution System- objectives, functioning, limitations, revamping; issues of buffer stocks and food security; Technology missions; economics of animal-rearing.

 

PDS

Objective:
→Food security
→Price stabilisation

Function:
→Procurement
→Transportation
→Rationcard
→identifying the poor and needy:
IMAGE= Table

Limitation:
→MSP procurement approx of 10%Farmers.
→Procurement limited to few states like punjab, haryana, Andhra pradesh etc.
→Excessive buffer stock….leads to subsidy expenditure.
→Poor infrastructure for grading and other facility.
→Loss due to pshiphon off is about 40%.

 

Revamping:
>12^th five  year plan’s working Group on PDS and Food Security’s reccomendation:
→PDS or TPDS only for  BPL.
→only rice + Wheat should be distributed…..others like sugar should be left to market.
→FPS(Fair Price Shop) should be allow to sale all other unregulated commodities at market price to oerate viably.
→Bufferstock should be managed thorugh Export/Import to meet fluctuation along with internal sale and procurement.
→Private player should be allowed for non subsidised food storage and transportation and procurement…..to check pshioponing of materials (aprox 40% gets pshiphoned off

 

Issue of Buffer stock and Food security:
@FAO=3Pillars of Food security:
1)Avaibility 2)Affordablity 3)Stability of price 4)Nutrition.

Inida sepecific(To achieve above):
1)Boost production:
>bcoz surplus regions like Punjab ,Haryana, AP etc cant be relied upon for further inc in population.

2)Limited presence in internation market:
>India produces 22% of world paddy and  12% of Wheat.
>But world trade in rice=10% of india;’s domestic production.
>So, if we focus on export…..It will at max benefit us 10%......but will significantly bring down international Price making it less profitable…..and our farm is not so techy to bear low price shock.

3)Ensure regional food security:
>Kerla has 3% of population and enjoys share of 12% of PDS of food grains.
>While state like bihar benefits least from any operation of PDS.
>Private player should be increased in PDS business atleast for APL(not BPL).
.

4)Stablisation of price:
>Buffer stock.

5)Subsidised food grain to poors:
>PDS.

 

 

Tech Missions:

 

 

Economics of Animal Rearing:
→Livestock= 4% of GDP / 26% of Agri GDP.
→India’s Milk yeild per animal=50% of world avg.
     =Reason for Loss of Diary potential(Per cow):
       >Breeding +Health and management+Feeding(Major)
       >Gov action:
         >>Rashtriya Gokul Mission= for indigenious cow….breeding + yeild↑
         >>E-Pashu Haat Portal= a platform for farmers and indeginous breeder…all info of certified breed are availble …farmer can order breeding for her cow.
         >>National Program for Bovine Breeding= for Artificial Insemination.

→India’s Meat yeild per animal=20-60%.

→Experience shows states like J&K,H.P, Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan, Gujrat, Kerala etc….where livestock accounts for sizeable share of agri income has less poverty.

 

Challenges:

→Green house Gas:
    Ruminant livestock generates a significant proportion of anthropogenic GHG emissions, and thereby contribute to Climate Change. Ruminants such as cattle, sheep, goats, and buffalo produce meat and milk through  fermentation inside intestine– a digestive process in which microbes decompose and ferment food in the digestive tract or rumen. This process produces methane which is emitted via belching

→Disease:
    FMD,BQ, PPR, Ifluenza

→Lack of Vatinary doctor although livestock is same as humans in india population wise.

→Lack of institutional finace
   Livestock sector has received less then 40% Credit(Short , medium or long term).
→Market is dominatied by informal intermediaries….who exploits producers.

→Lack of slaughter hause….about 50% of meat production comes form unregistered slaughter house, makes-hift slaughter houses.

 

function

Authority	Role	Details
National sample survey organization	Conduct sample survey of consumer expenditure every five year	Consumer expenditure is the expenditure of household on some basic goods and services. The expenditure on this basket of goods is the basis of poverty line.
Planning commission	Estimates state wise poverty such as number of people below the poverty line.	Uses NSSO household expenditure data
Central government	Allocates food grains to each states based on state wise poverty estimates of planning commission and population projections of the register general of India as March 2000	The number of BPL families has been calculated using 1993-94 poverty estimates by Planning commission. This number has not been revised despite the release of new poverty estimates by the planning commission in 2004-52011-12.
Ministry of rural development	Comes out with criteria for inclusion and exclusion from BPL list as part of its BPL census	Criteria for classification of BPL families, as per BPL census 2002, include parameters like size of land holding clothing owned, food security means of livelihood.
State government	Identify eligible households	Based on above criteria