Lok Sabha Question No. 3534 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2019-12-10
Subject: Supply of Essential Food Items to Tamil Nadu
Ministry: CONSUMER AFFAIRS, FOOD AND PUBLIC DISTRIBUTION
Asked by: Dr. T. Sumathy (a) Thamizhachi Thangapandian

## GOVERIiIMENT  OF !NDIA

## rvltNlsTRY  oF coNsuMER AFFAIRS, FOOD & PUBLIC DISTRTBUTION DEPARTMEI{T  OF FOOD AND PUBLIC DISTRIBUTION

## LOK SABHA

## UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 3534 TO BE AI|SWERED ON tOr.Ir DECEMBER,  20{9

## SUPPLY OF ESSENTIAL FOOD ITEMS TO TAMTL NADU

## 3534. DR. T. SUMATHY (a) THAMIZHACHI THANGAPANDTAN:

Will the Minister  of GONSUMER AFFAIRS, FOOD AND PUBLTC

DISTRIBUTION  sctiTar rrrril, ur<\_+ gk grffiaT,  fur{q d'* be pteased to state:

- (a)  whether the Union Government is providing  rice, wheat, pulses, edible oil and kerosene at subsidized  price to Tamil Nadu to extend the coverage of  the  Public Distribution System (PDS) to  all  priority households;
- (b) if so, the details thereof and the details of supply provided monthly and subsidy provided per kgs/unit of each commodity;
- (c) whether it is a fact that the subsidy rates were fixed a long back and was not increased  for a long time till date;
- (d) if so, the details thereof and the reasons therefor; and
- (e)  the measures taken by the Government  to increase  the supply of these essential  food items to Tamil Nadu and also the subsidy given on them?

## ANSWER

MINISTER OF STATE FOR MINISTRY  OF CONSUMER  AFFAIRS,  FOOD & PUBL!C DISTRIBUTION

(SHRI DANVE RAOSAHEB DADARAO)

- (a) to (e): Union Government  is distributing  rice, wheat and kerosene  at subsidized rates to beneficaaries under the Targeted  Public Distribution System (TPDS) across al! States/Union  Teritories including  Tamil adu. However, Government of lndaa is not implementing  any scheme, at present, for distribution of pulses and edible oils at subsidized rates through TPDS.

Goverage under the  ational Food Security Act, 2O{3 (NFSA), for receiving  highly subsidized foodgrains  is under two categories, namely, households covered under the Antyodaya Anna Yojana (AAY) and priority households. Accordingly, for the AAY and priority households identitied by the Government of Tamil Nadu, within the coverage determined  for the State, monthly 193221.10  tons of rice and 8893.02 tons of wheat is being allocated for eligible households  at Rs.3/2 per kg for rice/wheat.  ln addition, 99773.138 tons of rice and 4592.O7O tons of wheat is also being allocated, @ Rs.8.3O/6.{O per kg for rice/wheat, to Tamil Nadu as  rtide ovey' allocation to protect their average  annual offtake under erstwhile Targeted Public Distribution System, as per provisions  of NFSA.

The difference between  the Economac Gost of foodgrains  and the subsidized prices under NFSA i5 borne by the Gentra! Government as food subsidy,  which is dynamic. With the increase of Minimum  Support Price (MSP) of  foodgrains and correspondang  increase in  the  cost of procurement incidentals, the  economic cost  of  foodgrains  gets increased, resulting  in increasing  per unit food subsidy also. At the current level of Economic  Gost, the per unit subsidy for allocation  of foodgrains  out of Gentral pool stocks for eligible AAY and priority households  is Rs.33.O2 per kg for rice and Rs.23.06 for wheat. For tide over allocation, the per unit subsidy is Rs.27.72 per kg for rice and Rs.{8.96 per kg for wheat. The per unit subsidy is uniform across al! the States/UTs including Tamil Nadu.

Allocation of kerosene is made by Government  of India to various States/UTs, including  Tamil Nadu for cooking  and lighting purpose on quarterly basis. Further distribution  of  PDS Kerosene within the States/UTs  under PDS network to various categories of ration card holders/ consumers is made by the concerned States/UTs. Scale and criteria  of distribution are also decided by respective States/UTs. The details of quarter-wise  allocation of PDS Kerosene  to State Government of Tamil Nadu during the current financial year is as under:

| Quarters (2O19-2Ol   |   Allocation (in Kilo Liter) |
|----------------------|------------------------------|
| Quarter I            |                        48444 |
| Quarter 2            |                        32292 |
| Quarter 3            |                        32292 |

The average subsidy on PDS kerosene during April to Septembert 2O{9 is Rs.8.52 per litre.