Cuts in ration of 81 crore people is govt's New Year gift: Congress

Congress on Tuesday objected to the Narendra Modi government's decision to discontinue Pradhan Mantri Garib Anna Kalyan Yojana (PMGAKY), saying that it is the Prime Minister's "New Year gift" that cuts the ration of 81 crore people by half.

At the same time, it said, the Prime Minister is the Modi government is "falsely trumpeting" the remaining 5 kg of grains mandated under the National Food Security Act as a historic decision benefiting the poor though the main beneficiary will be his government which will save over Rs one lakh crore by discontinuing PMGAKY.

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Congress General Secretary (Communications) Jairam Ramesh alleged Modi had opposed the food security programme when he was Gujarat's Chief Minister.

"Chief Minister Modi opposed the NFSA. From MGNREGA to the NFSA, CM Modi opposed pro-people UPA policies, but PM Modi takes credit for them. He truly is the U-Turn Ustad," Ramesh said in a statement.

The party also asked the government to include nearly 10 crore people who should hold ration cards as per food security programme but excluded because of the inordinate delay in the 2021 Census.

It also asked the Modi government to immediately implement the June 2021 Supreme Court that mandated it to give ration to all migrant workers even if they do not hold ration cards. It also objected to the government "illegally" limiting maternity entitlements to Rs 5,000, that too only for the first child, against NFSA provision of Rs 6,000 per child.

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Ramesh described the decision to discontinue PMGAKY as a "regressive decision", which was taken without consulting the state governments or taking Parliament into confidence.

He said 81 crore Indians were eligible for 10 kgs of food grains for the past two years but now they will get only 5 kg, which is a sudden reduction of rations by 50 per cent. The PMGKAY provided an additional 5 kgs of food grains to beneficiaries under the National Food Security Act (NFSA).

He said the government was forced to provide extra rations during the Covid-19 pandemic due to the "deep economic distress", which "still prevails today".

"Every basic necessity is more expensive than it was at the time of the UPA government, incomes of the majority of Indians have not risen, and unemployment is at a record high," Ramesh said referring to 'Hunger Watch' survey which found that 80 per cent of people report some form of food insecurity with India ranking 107 of 121 countries in the Global Hunger Index 2022.

"The UPA government enacted the Right to Food into law in September 2013 to ensure no Indian goes hungry. The Modi government must uphold this principle in today’s situation of widespread distress caused by their own mismanagement of the economy. The Modi government needs to be reminded that providing rations under NFSA is not a gift to the people of India, but their right," Ramesh said.