Chennai, July 7:
Tamil Nadu Chief Minister C. Joseph Vijay has urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to reconsider the proposed amendment to the National Food Security Act (NFSA), cautioning that it could adversely impact lakhs of vulnerable families in the State.
In a detailed letter to the Prime Minister, Mr. Vijay requested the Union government to retain the existing provision of providing 35 kilograms of food grains per month to every household covered under the Antyodaya Anna Yojana (AAY), irrespective of the number of family members.
The Chief Minister expressed concern over the proposed amendment to Section 3(1) of the NFSA, which seeks to shift the entitlement from a household-based system to a per capita distribution of 7 kilograms per person per month, subject to a ceiling of 35 kilograms per household.
He warned that if implemented without modification, the amendment could significantly reduce foodgrain allocation for a large section of Tamil Nadu’s poorest population. According to official estimates, the State has over 18.6 lakh AAY ration cards, covering nearly 69 lakh beneficiaries belonging to the most vulnerable sections, including widows, elderly persons, persons with disabilities, landless labourers and daily wage earners.
Mr. Vijay pointed out that the current system ensures a fixed quantity of foodgrains for each household, thereby safeguarding families against hunger and malnutrition regardless of size. In contrast, the proposed per-person allocation, combined with a household cap, could disproportionately affect States like Tamil Nadu, where the average family size is relatively small.
He further argued that the amendment could inadvertently penalise States that have successfully implemented family planning measures, particularly in southern India.
Highlighting Tamil Nadu’s robust Public Distribution System, the Chief Minister noted that the State has consistently gone beyond Central norms to ensure food security and nutritional support for its citizens. He stressed that rice supplied through the system remains the staple diet for AAY beneficiaries and cannot easily be substituted through market purchases.
“Any reduction in entitlement would impose a severe financial burden on these households, pushing them towards hunger, poverty and malnutrition,” he said.
Emphasising that the NFSA was enacted as a measure of last-resort protection for the poorest, Mr. Vijay underscored the need to preserve its original intent of providing simple, unconditional and household-based support.
He urged the Centre to reconsider the amendment in the interest of protecting food security and ensuring that vulnerable families are not deprived of essential nutrition.