According
to the government, efforts to strengthen the agriculture sector have
led to record production of foodgrain in recent years
New
Delhi: The government is committed to enacting the National Food
Security Bill, which legally entitles poor families to five kilograms of
subsidised grain per person per month, an official document said
Thursday. UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi Wednesday appealed to the
opposition to help pass the bill in public interest. According to a
handbook on the achievements of the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) in
the past nine years, there has been a more than threefold increase in
food subsidy during this period, reflecting the government's commitment
to ensuring adequate food at affordable prices for all.
According
to the handbook, while the government provides wheat at Rs.2 per kg and
rice at Rs.3 per kg for poor families, the subsidy burden will be to the
extent of Rs.18.10 per kg and Rs.21.63 per kg for wheat and rice,
respectively. The document said efforts to increase foodgrain production
have yielded results. Efforts to strengthen the agriculture sector have
led to record production of foodgrain in recent years. Agriculture
credit has increased fivefold to help small farmers improve
productivity, it said. Stocks are at record levels - rice at 347 lakh
million tonnes and wheat at 427 lakh million tonnes.