We hear government telling us that the high presence inflation in food has dwarfed economic growth. We also hear government telling us that in view of the perilous production of oil seeds and their conversion into edible oil, we needed to import a high quality to break-even between supply and demand. Our Planning experts are telling us that food grains growth would stabilize once the monsoon hits India. Monsoon did hit India, and very severely that the flood devastated many areas with its fury. Even the national capital was not spared.
The Supreme Court had faulted the government for having amassed food grains more than the stock required and due to clumsy storing, the entire stores got devastated by the rats that ate what was supposed to be given for distribution amongst the poor through Public Distribution System and through Antodya Anna Yojana. The Court ordered their free distribution with a time tag. But our iron clad bureaucracy is sitting tight and is in the process of devising a plan to distribute the food grains. When and how will be the reason that there will be delay?
The Planning Commission is of the view that the total BPL families in India are around 6.25 Cr. However, the States do not agree. They estimate the BPL families at 10.7 Cr. Why a head count was not taken is any body’s guess. As against Antdodya Anna Yojana, the beneficiaries entitled to benefits has been reackoned as 2.5 Cr. However, the State government has been able to enlist 1.82 Cr households, and they have been given Ration cards. While 0.68 Cr needs to be accounted, the subsidy for 2.5 Cr households have been calculated, and the amount budgeted and will be released pro rata. What will happen to the budget relating to 0.68 Cr will lie in the wilderliness.
Government, according to Economic Survey (Page 205, Table 8.29) says that in 2008-9, the production of oil seeds was 281.57 lakh tones of which edible oil was produced to the extent of 85.98 lakh tones, while 67.20 lakh tones was imported of which 83% was accounted by Palm Oil. So the available oil was 153.18 lakh tones when the actual requirement was only 132.80 lakh tones. The imported oil in surplus was 20.38 lakh tones which accounted for 15.34% excess. During 2009-10, 255.09 lakh tones was the production of oil seeds and converted into edible oil was 82 lakh tones. The import figures went staggering to 101 lakh tones. The total available oil was 183 lakh tones against the requirement of 138.18 lakh tonne. The difference was 44.82 lakh tones which accounted for 32.44% in excess of demand. Another factor was these oil were imported at ‘nil’ duty for Crude and 7.5% for Refined against the normal 45% and 52.5% and the loss on this account was in the region of Rs 25,000 Cr. Added to this, government thought it wise to release Rs 15 per Kg on imported oil for release through PDS. The recurring expenditure stand at Rs 1,500 Cr!
The question that comes to the fore is why are we importing in excess of what is required. There will inevitably be a closing stock which will become next year’s opening stock. What happened to that? The excess of import during the next year, what will happen to that? To whom do these reserves sold or given?
During 2008-09 an amount of Rs 43,668.08 Cr was released as agricultural subsidies which grew by a staggering 39.69 % over 2007-8 and upto Dec 29, 2009, Rs 46,906.68 Cr was spent which was in excess of 7.42 % over the full year’s spending of 2008-9. This was the time, the Government announced time and again, food inflation going to double figures and crossing 16%. During the same period, our Planning Commission stood ground with the theory that India’s agricultural growth will be 4% and to reduce it in the last quarter to negative 0.20%. Just to upset them, the agricultural growth turned positive and recorded 0.20% growth.
Our Government talks of austerity. Government is committed to fiscal consolidation. Bringing down the fiscal deficit from 5.5%. Our Planning Commission talks of apparatus to enhance growth through paradigm change growth models. While all these are professed, there is waste, excess expenditure, unexplainable imports, poor support to India’s domestic sector which is in the wilderliness.India, paradox, thy name?
The number inconsistencies, will anybody reveal the correct figures. Where is the accountability vis-a-vis facts,figures, subsidies, necessity, decision makers?
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