Food Security or Food Sovereignty: The Required Need of the Era

摘要

Almost half the population of India is suffering from starvation. The concern of the welfare government to provide the required calories to the poor men, women and children is a constitutional obligation to achieve the goal of social justice. If bagsof grain are exposed to the open sky even in the rainy season, then it is better to make them available to the needy. In this respect, the Food Security Bill 2013 is the most challenging but humane ambition. This challenge will go on increasing in geometrical progression, whereas the food grain production increases in arithmetic progression. This has created another problem of seed dependency for multinational seed producing companies. Indian farmers were once sovereign in terms of seed, preserving themfor the next crop season. But now, in the name of the high-yield variety of seed and high production, the farmers have lost their traditional seed storage rights. These high variety seeds require heavy investments in fertilizer, water and pesticides, all of which have a negative impact on the environment, climate and quality of soil. At the same time, the cultivable land area is shrinking due to the development plan, the construction of housing colonies, the establishment of industry or factories, andthe construction of roads, educational institutions and hospitals. This paper seeks to discuss the pros and cons of the National Food Security Act 2013.