CCEA approves distribution of fortified rice through government schemes to tackle malnutrition
To address the issue of malnutrition among the poor, the Center on Friday announced that it will supply fortified rice through government schemes like PDS and PM-POSHAN in three phases by 2024, a move that will cost the central exchequer Rs 2,700 crore. Will cost Rs. Per year. A decision in this regard was taken in the meeting of the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday.
The Prime Minister, in his address on the 75th Independence Day, had announced that fortified rice would be provided through all central government schemes by 2024. The fortified rice is made as per the standards set by the food regulator FSSAI which prescribes blended rice with three micronutrients – iron, folic acid and vitamin B12.
Briefing the media about the decisions of the cabinet, Information and Broadcasting Minister Anurag Thakur said that the CCEA has implemented Public Distribution System (PDS), Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS), Pradhan Mantri Poshan Shakti Nirman-PM Poshan in a phased manner. Approved the distribution of fortified rice in this manner. (erstwhile Mid-day Meal Scheme) and other welfare schemes (OWS).
He said the entire cost of fortifying rice would be around Rs 2,700 crore per year and would be borne by the central government as part of the food subsidy. He said that the fortification would provide nutrition to every poor person of the country to overcome malnutrition and deficiency of essential nutrients in women, children, lactating mothers.
Food Secretary Sudhanshu Pandey said in a separate media briefing that the first phase of implementation, under which 35 lakh tonnes of fortified rice was to be supplied through ICDS and PM-POSHAN, got slightly delayed due to the COVID pandemic. The first phase started only in October 2021 and around 17 lakh tonnes of fortified rice was lifted, he said, adding that the first phase was implemented under the budgetary provision of the Ministry of Women and Child Development.
He said that with the approval of the cabinet, the regular implementation of the program starts now as the cost of fortification will be borne as part of the food subsidy bill. In addition, Pandey said the cost of rice fortification is estimated to be Rs 2,700 crore per year. In the second phase, Targeted Public Distribution System and other welfare schemes will be covered in all aspirational and high burden districts by March 2023. In the final phase, all remaining districts will be covered by March 2024.
The Secretary said that the government had distributed fortified rice through PDS in 11 states and about 4.30 lakh tonnes of food grains in their identified districts in 2019-20. Till March this year. The states are Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Chhattisgarh, Uttar Pradesh, Odisha, Telangana, Madhya Pradesh, Uttarakhand and Jharkhand.
Asked whether the country has sufficient capacity to supply fortified rice kernels (FRKs), Pandey said around 1.75 lakh tonnes of FRK is required in the second phase, while the mills have a capacity of 2.5 lakh tonnes. “We are already ahead of capacity building. And going forward, we wanted to give certainty to the policy in the production ecosystem and that is why all the standards have been formalised. Be it FRK premix standards, FRK kernel standards , or the blender is being strengthened by FRK manufacturing or rice mills,” he said. A bag will have separate packaging for fortified rice with the ‘Red’ mark on it. There is no problem with the effectiveness of fortified rice for 1.5 years, he added.
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