NREGA 150 Days | NFSA Final Deadline | Jharkhand Jan Adhikar Yatra | West Bengal NFSA Yatra | Delhi Public Hearing | UT Cash Transfer
Secretariat RTF Campaign
Dear Friends,
On Gandhi Jayanti, this is a special mini-update to mark the final deadline for the implementation of the National Food Security Act (NFSA) on 30 September, which itself has been “illegally” postponed thrice. This occasion coincides with a number of state actions and events, especially in Eastern India which has witnessed a spate of NFSA launches recently.
1. Announcements
National Food Security Act: This map shows the rollout of the NFSA across India. In addition, this detailed table compiles basic information on each state's inclusion and exclusion criterion, eligibility lists of beneficiaries and toll free helplines, where available. The flurry of recent NFSA launches especially in the Eastern states have also coincided with a series of campaign actions.
Jharkhand: The NFSA was formally launched on 25th September, even though the distribution of new ration cards has yet to be completed. From 1-11 October, the campaign along with a range of social movements have launched a Jan Adhikar Yatra across 4 different routes to converge in Ranchi on 11 October 2015: South Chhottanagpur, North Chottanagpur, Palamu and Kolhan. For daily updates, please “like” this facebook page and see this webpage with route charts, press releases and photos. For more details, please contact Ankita Aggarwal at aggarwal...@gmail.com and Dheeraj Kumar at dheerajp...@gmail.com
West Bengal: The NFSA has been implemented in three districts and 13 more are likely to be covered by November. The selection of beneficiaries has been particularly tardy with a farcical month-long registration programme in August. So, the state campaign has organised an extensive awareness yatra from 26th September - 9th October with motorbike rallies on 5 routes commencing from the Assam border, Bay of Bengal, Bangladesh border, Odisha border and Jharkhand border (invite, route charts). For more details, please contact Anuradha Talwar at pbk...@gmail.com, Fr.Jothi at jot...@gmail.com and Jamir Mohammad at rtfwes...@gmail.com
Odisha: The NFSA will be rolled-out with the distribution of ration cards on 2nd October and beneficiaries will receive subsidised grain from early November in 14 districts. So, the campaign has planned a Jan Adhikar Yatra in early November. For more details, please contact Raj Kishore Mishra at rajkish...@gmail.com
Chhattisgarh: The state which has its own food security legislation plans a Jan Adhikar Yatra in November. The Right to Food Campaign and several other peoples’ movements will join hands in this initiative. For more details, please contact Gangabhai at chaup...@gmail.com
Bihar: The state campaign had organised an extensive Jan Adhikar Yatra from Gaya to Samastipur from 26th July to 5th August 2015 which focused on issues of education, healthcare, nutrition and sanitation (concept note, route chart, poster, parchas, invite). For more details, please contact Rupesh at koshi...@yahoo.com
North Eastern States: The NFSA was implemented in Tripura and Meghalaya in September and is expected to be launched in Mizoram and Manipur by the end of the year. For more details, please contact Sunil Kaul at sunil....@gmail.com
Delhi: The union territory was among the first states in the country to operationalise the NFSA. However, the distribution of new NFSA ration cards is fraught with discrepancies. So, the Delhi Rozi Roti Adhikar Abhiyan organised a public hearing on 22nd of September, 2015 at the Gandhi Peace Foundation. For more details, please contact, Anjali Bhardwaj at anjal...@gmail.com, Annie Raja at nfiw...@gmail.com, Dipa Sinha at dipa....@gmail.com and Amrita Johri at amrit...@gmail.com
Cash Transfer: On 1st September, the central government launched a direct benefit transfer programme to replace the public distribution system (PDS) rations with direct cash in bank accounts in 3 union territories of Chandigarh, Puducherry and Dadra and Nagar Haveli. This is despite the earlier debacle of the state-government led cash transfer initiative in Puducherry. The apparent aim is to expand and rollout this initiative nation-wide by January despite the evidence stacked against the replacement of food rations with cash. In fact, the leakages in the PDS have substantially fallen in the last decade to as much as 32% in 2011-12, even before the Food Act. Even the LPG subsidy switch has largely resulted in only ghost savings.
NREGA: The Central government has announced that 14 drought-affected states and 3 union territories will receive an additional 50 days of work for each household i.e. 150 days in total. The Odisha government has increased the cap to 200 days. But though this is a welcome move, it needs to be acknowledged that only 6% of households hit the 100-day mark in 2014-15, with the average being just 40 days. Further, only 27% of payments were made within the stipulated 15 days.
4. Events
Date | Theme | Venue | Location | Organisors | Reports |
2015 | |||||
November (t.b.c) | Jan Adhikar Yatra | t.b.c | Chhattisgarh | various organisations including the state Right to Food Campaign | |
November (t.b.c) | Jan Adhikar Yatra | t.b.c. | Odisha | various organisations including the state Right to Food Campaign | |
1 - 11 Oct | Jharkhand Jan Adhikar Yatra | across 4 routes: South Chhotanagpur, North Chotanagpur, Palamu and Kolhan | Jharkhand | various social movements | Webpage (press releases, route charts and photos) |
26 Sept - 9 Oct | State-wide Awareness Campaign Programme | 5 routes across 13 districts | West Bengal | West Bengal Right to Food and Work Campaign | |
22 September | Delhi Rozi Roti Adhikar Abhiyan | Gandhi Peace Foundation | Delhi | Delhi Rozi Roti Adhikar Abhiyan | |
26th July to 5th August 2015 | Bihar Jan Adhikar Yatra | Gaya to Samastipur | Bihar | Bihar Right to Food Campaign |
In solidarity,
Secretariat, Right to Food Campaign
G-46, First Floor, Green Park, New Delhi 110016, India
Email: righttof...@gmail.com | Phone - 91 -11 -29849563
Website: www.righttofoodcampaign.in | Follow our updates on Facebook and Twitter