Need for Food Security in India
Because of the following reason given below food security in India is needed:
- Overpopulation: India’s population is continuously increasing at a rapid rate which has increased from 3.6 million tons in 1951 to about 41 million tons in 2015 this is one of the reasons that lead to the need for food security.
- Hoarding and Black marketing: This hoarding and black marketing activity have increased the inadequate supply of food because some traders hoard the food grains and create a shortage of food grains to push the prices high and to make an extra profit this leads to an artificial crisis of food shortage in the country.
- Corrupt administrative services: As in the country, the government has taken various measures like rationing, price control, zoning, etc to prevent the shortage of food or an adequate supply of food but as the administrative machinery is totally corrupt, it hardly gives benefit to general masses of the country.
- Unequal production of food grains: Most of the production of food grains is only by some states like Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, and Andhra Pradesh. So sometimes it is very difficult to transfer food grains from one region to another.
- Poverty and Natural calamity: In general, there are usually poor people below the poverty line who are food insecure whereas other people are food insecure just at the time of natural calamity, As at the time of natural calamity there is a shortage of food which leads to rising in price and some people can’t afford it.
Food Safety Index (2021-2022)
Food Security – Definition, Need and Food Insecurity
Food Security is multi-dimensional and means something more than getting two square meals. Food security is described by the United Nations Committee on World Food Security as, having physical, social, and economic access to adequate, safe, and nutritious food that fits their food choices and dietary needs for an active and healthy life at all times. There are three dimensions to food security:
- Availability: This includes the confluence of food production within the country, food imports, and stock stored in government granaries.
- Accessibility: It refers to food being reachable to each person without discrimination
- Affordability: It refers to the presence of enough money to buy sufficient, safe, and nutritious food to meet one’s dietary needs.
Thus, food security is ensured in a country if a sufficient food supply is available for everyone, has the means to purchase food of acceptable quality and there is no barrier to access.
Table of Content
- Meaning of Food Security
- Agriculture and Food Security
- Factors Affecting Food Security
- Meaning of Food Insecurity
- Different Levels of Food Security
- Need for Food Security
- Food Security Programmes of India
- Current Framework for Food Security
- Challenges Related to Food Security in India
- FAQs on Food Security
Food Security