By IANS,
New Delhi : The empowered group of ministers (eGoM) on food, headed by Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee, is likely to discuss Friday the draft Food Security Bill that proposes to provide foodgrain every month to those living below poverty line (BPL) at Rs.3 a kg.
The eGoM had earlier met on March 18 and then again on April 5 to deliberate upon incorporating Congress president Sonia Gandhi’s suggestion of providing 35 kg of rice or wheat per month to each BPL family at Rs.3 per kg. The eGoM had initially proposed 25 kg of food grain to each BPL family.
They deferred a decision till the Planning Commission gave a report on the number of below poverty level families qualifying for the ambitious social welfare scheme.
Planning Commission Deputy Chairman Montek Singh Ahluwalia, who is a special invitee in the eGoM, is likely to ask the government to follow the recommendations of the Suresh Tendulkar Committee report while determining the scale of poverty in the country, sources said.
According to the Tendulkar committee report, 37.2 percent of the total population belong to the BPL category.
Gandhi, who is also the chairperson of the National Advisory Council (NAC), had urged the government to include destitute and vulnerable households, besides BPL families and those eligible under the Antyodaya Anna Yojana, or poorest of the poor, in the list of beneficiaries.
The last eGoM meet had also asked Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar to give a report on how similar food security legislations had been enacted and implemented in 22 other countries.