Affordability of essentials in conflict with accessibility

As extension in lockdown makes people vulnerable to affordability of essential commodities but no accessibility, the Home Minister Amit Shah has appealed the affluent people to help the needy in their own areas. Nothing new in it, if government appeals affluent people to help needy in their own areas till the lifting of lockdown and as such situation demands that government takes initiatives for increasing the purchasing capacity of the people living below the poverty line by extending cash relief to them. No questions on the availability of essential commodities promised by the Union Home Minister but the government will have to come out with workable solution s to the fast declining purchasing capacity of the people who are under lockdown for the last more than 20 days. Worth mentioning is fact that in the country of 1.25 billion population, 269 people were living below the poverty in the year till 2012 according to a report of the then planning commission now called “Niti Ayog” and the number by all possibilities will have double by now in last 8 years. Even if there is no increase in the number of people living below the poverty line in last 8 years the government will have to otherwise also extend monthly cash relief to more than 269 million people across the country to increase their purchasing capacity for the purposes of accessibility to basic essential commodities till the lifting of lockdown. No questions as far as the government’s free delivery of ration to the families living below the poverty line is concerned but ration is not the only essential commodity required for accessibility of such poor people to meals twice a day. The purchasing capacity of people to basic grocery items is a very issue which needs to be addressed on priority.
Reach out to more than 269 million people living below the poverty line with ration and all other essential commodities particularly the grocery items is the only way to win the battle against hunger as otherwise huger could be the cause of more deaths than the COVID 19 pandemic spread. Lockdown may end the COVID 19 death spread but it may also trigger the wave of hunger across the country.
Interestingly so for there is no word from the government on the free delivery of medicine to people living below the poverty line as people occasionally suffer from normal ailments other than critical diseases. Government after withdrawing the annual MPLADs of Rs 5 crores to each one of the sitting MPs numbering about 800 and cutting down 30% of the salaries of the President, Vice President Prime Minister, Ministers , MPS and Governors for a period of two years should not have apparently any difficulty in extending monthly cash relief to more than 269 million people living the poverty line across the country for the purposes of increasing their purchasing capacity required for buying essential commodities. Worth mentioning is the fact that states too are raising funds for the COVID 19 relief. Interestingly people earning more than Rs30 a day in rural areas and over Rs 40 a day in urban areas are placed in the above poverty line as against the United Nations earning slab of 1.9 US dollar totaling to over Rs 130 per day which indicates that Government India has decreased the per day earnings slab only to show improvement in the poverty alleviation trends. Reachout to more than 269 million people living below the poverty line with ration and all other essential commodities particularly the grocery items is the only way to win the battle against hunger as otherwise huger could be the cause of more deaths than the COVID 19 pandemic spread. Lockdown may end the COVID 19 death spread but it may also trigger the wave of hunger across the country.