India's Poor Need More Purchasing Power, Not Doles

Literature on best practices around the world too showed that 'income policy approach' rather than 'price policy approach' is more efficient in achieving equity ends and this has been successfully adopted by many countries across the world. Specific criticism of subsidy schemes are particularly open to corruption and mismanagement, besides posing a heavy burden on government budgets.

It has been amply proved that poverty and food insecurity exist for want of access to education, healthcare and, most significantly, gainful employment. This very 'income policy approach' in achieving equity has already been very skilfully demonstrated in India with the success of the well-known 'Anand Model' of dairy development. It is, therefore, more prudent to revisit this model, especially in the present context of the proposed food security scheme.

While dwelling on the food security scheme vis-a-vis the 'Anand Model', it would be worthwhile to spool back the erstwhile food aid programme of the UN. The objectives underpinned in the programme were, to a certain extent, similar to those proposed in the food security scheme of India. The UN programme was contemplated to provide food security to the third world nations by distributing the accumulated surplus food commodities in the developed countries. This programme, however, came under severe criticism for its misapplications, besides using food aid as a tool for expansion of the commodity trade in the third world markets by the donor nations!

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