ISLAMABAD:
The government has told the Supreme Court that a strict price monitoring system will be established at grass root level in consultation with all provinces and in line with the recent decision of the Council of Common Interests (CCI) for the restoration of the executive magistrate system.
In compliance with the court’s June 9 order in the suo motu case over the increase in flour prices, Ministry of National Food Security and Research Secretary Seerat Asghar submitted a report in the apex court on Tuesday, a copy of which is available with The Express Tribune.
The report states that the affordability of flour is not entirely dependent on the ‘availability’ factor. “Affordability primarily depends on economic activity in the country, which has remained stagnant in recent years mainly due to shortage of energy,” the report states. “Recent indicators show that economic activity is gaining momentum and most of the economic indicators have started moving in the right direction.”
In fixing the support price for wheat, the report adds, the government will seriously consider its impact on food inflation. “The federation will intensively engage with the provincial governments for marketing reforms to improve distribution of food items and encourage the provincial governments to resolve any governance hiccups in this regard,” the report says.
Additionally, the ministry’s report says the government will increase Utility Stores Corporation (USC) outlets, especially in rural areas, and will promote the sale of small size packets at USC outlets in order to enhance access of low income households. “The industry and production ministry may develop a mechanism by which essential food items sold by USC should be provided to low income households, instead of providing to all consumers,” the ministry has proposed.
The report adds that the federal government will encourage provincial governments to increase the number of weekly ‘sahulat bazaars’.
After the court’s intervention, the subsidy for USC has increased from Rs12. 80 billion to Rs17 billion, the ministry said. Likewise, the number of USCs has also increased from 5,939 to 6,939. During 2012-13, around Rs40 billion in subsidies was allocated by the federal and provincial governments for the delivery of cheaper wheat flour.
The Benazir Income Support Programme (BISP) has also proposed an increase in the existing allocation of Rs70 billion to Rs118 billion in the budget for 2014-15, the ministry says. “It is also planned to provide Rs1,500 per household per month as financial support to 5.3 million families all over the country. Concrete steps will be taken in order to improve the transparency of BISP.”
Regarding a time-frame to resolve the issue of food insecurity and accessibility, the report says this will remain a focus area on a medium to long term basis.
The report also revealed that the government is planning to launch a National Health Insurance Scheme for the poorest segment of society. “Under the scheme, health insurance coverage will be provided to 100 million people. The scheme will be implemented in phases. In the initial phase Rs1 billion will allocated for the Health Insurance Scheme during the fiscal year 2014-25,” the report states.
During the hearing of the case on Tuesday, Asghar told the three-judge bench of the apex court, headed by Justice Nasir ul Mulk, that the provincial governments have estimated that it will take one year to implement the food security plan. The bench, however, directed all provinces to give their feedback over the ministry’s report. The hearing of the case is adjourned till next week.
Published in The Express Tribune, June 25th, 2014.
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When there is big question mark on our national food security policy and there is a disconnect between national food security policy and provincial agricultural policies, it is impossible to ensure food security for the masses especially during certain crisis like drought, floods or crop failure due to other reasons. We are excellent to draw a rosy picture on papers but we are very sluggish on ground whether at policy planning level or at implementation level. Food security policy, agricultural policy, integrated crop management policy, integrated agricultural inputs management policy and commodity marketing policy, all have forward and backward linkages. Only an integrated approach can meet the challenge of food insecurity on sustainable basis.