Launch food-for-work scheme to use surplus foodgrains: Kisan Sabha tells Centre

The govt, saddled with massive surplus stocks of grains, should launch a food-for-get the job done programme to get grains to the needy relatively than permitting them to rot in godowns, the All India Kisan Sabha (AIKS) mentioned in a statement on Wednesday.

On June one, the Food Corporation of India (FCI) experienced ten.four crore tonnes of foodgrains. By no means before has the govt stored this kind of a significant amount of foodgrains. This is 8.33-crore tonnes in excessive of what the govt desires for operational and unexpected emergency needs, AIKS, the CPI(M)-backed farmer organisation, mentioned.

The unwillingness of the BJP govt to use the grain for community distribution is the most important induce of this create-up of stocks, the farmer organisation alleged. These types of a massive create-up of foodgrains adversely has an effect on farmers as it works to depress prices in the open up industry, wherever a huge vast majority of farmers has to market their crops in the absence of community procurement services. Together with this, the FCI has been pressured to incur a significant amount of expenditure on sustaining the grains, even more elevating the financial value of the grains.

“It is prison to hoard this kind of a significant amount of grains for the duration of a disaster this kind of as the existing, when hunger and food insecurity have an effect on a huge vast majority of persons in India. It is utter callousness that rather of opening its granaries for feeding the hungry, the BJP-led Central govt is hoarding grain and depriving persons of food,” it mentioned.

“This grain belongs to the persons and the surplus will have to be distributed absolutely free of value to all needy and the govt should run (a) food-for-get the job done programme with it to develop employment,” AIKS mentioned.

It also demanded instant extension of the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Yojana for the full year, universalisation of the provision of subsidised grains and use of foodstocks to massively develop employment possibilities as a result of the Mahatma Gandhi Countrywide Rural Employment Ensure Plan.

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