The Union Cabinet extended the SARTHAK-PDS scheme until March 2031 with a ₹25,530 crore outlay. By integrating financial assistance and SMART PDS, it leverages AI, ML, and Blockchain to modernize foodgrain distribution, ensure last-mile delivery, and minimize leakages.
Click to View MoreThe government has paused the rice fortification scheme after an IIT Kharagpur study found nutrient loss during storage. Critics say universal fortification ignores anemia’s complex causes, risks groups like Thalassemia patients, and sidelines dietary diversity. The pause enables targeted, evidence-based, and nutrition-focused interventions.
Click to View MoreIndia has emerged as the world’s largest rice producer due to assured MSP procurement, expanding cultivation area and strong export demand. However, excessive dependence on paddy has led to water stress, high fiscal costs, surplus stocks and poor crop diversification, making a shift toward pulses, oilseeds and millets essential for sustainable and nutrition-secure agriculture.
Click to View MoreThe government removed 2.25 crore ineligible beneficiaries using Aadhaar-seeding and data analytics to curb leakage and improve targeting. The move supports fiscal prudence and Shanta Kumar Committee reforms but risks excluding deserving people, making strong grievance systems and an updated coverage cap essential to protect the right to food.
Click to View MoreHonest welfare is vital for true social justice in India. Corruption, leakages, and poor targeting weaken welfare schemes and harm the poor. India must ensure transparency through technology, social audits, and ethical governance so every welfare rupee upholds dignity and delivers genuine, equitable transformation.
Click to View MoreThe "hunger tipping point" refers to a critical, irreversible food system collapse caused by climate change, conflict, and economic shocks. India, a key global player in the fight against hunger, must leverage its institutional strengths to build resilient, sustainable, and farmer-centric food systems.
Click to View More
© 2026 iasgyan. All right reserved
