Manmohan warns of impending food security problem THE HINDU Online edition of India's National Newspaper Thursday, Dec 20, 2007
Special Correspondent
Global trends will put pressure on both availability and prices
Manmohan Singh
NEW DELHI: Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Wednesday cautioned that availability of basic food items and their prices could come under increasing pressure, and India could be affected by “the clouds on the global financial market� and a slowdown in the U.S. and other leading economies.
In his opening remarks at the National Development Council meeting, convened here to approve the Eleventh Plan draft, Dr. Singh pointed out that there was need for enhancing stocks of foodgrains and considering buffer stocks for pulses and edible oils. “I will be failing in my duty if I do not draw your attention to the impending problem of food security. Global trends in food production and prices and our patterns of consumption are going to put increasing pressure on both the availability and prices of basic food items.�
The Prime Minister expressed confidence that the Eleventh Plan would succeed in achieving the targeted 10 per cent growth by the terminal year but, at the same time, cautioned about the negative global developments. “There are some clouds on global financial markets following the sub-prime lending crisis. There are worries that the growth of the U.S. and other leading economies may slow down and some may even go into recession.�
This could impact the country’s exports as well as capital flows, as India’s external sector now accounted for almost 40 per cent of the GDP (gross domestic product). Hence, “we cannot be fully immune to international developments.� Key sectors
Dr. Singh pointed to subsidies and the power sector as major areas of concern, and asked the States to work in tandem with the Centre to ensure that subsidies were targeted at the actually needy.
He warned that regional disparity and the increasing rural-urban divide, coupled with poverty, could lead to lopsided development.
It was to guard against this that the Eleventh Plan allocated more than 50 per cent of the gross budgetary support (GBS) to the key sectors of agriculture, health and education.
“We need to ensure that the quality of education provided in our rural areas, the health service in our rural areas and the infrastructure in rural areas are all of the same quality and standard as those available in the urban areas. This is absolutely essential if we have to mitigate impoverishment and large-scale migration from rural areas.�
