As extension in lockdown makes people vulnerable to affordability of essential commodities the mere presence of essential commodities is not the grave concern. For accessibility of the people of lower middle classes to essential commodities government will have to reach out to them to check their purchasing capacity so that they don’t find themselves in a state of starvation during the lockdown period. Nothing new in it, if government appeals affluent people to help needy in their own areas till the lifting of lockdown. Situation looking more grim than the previous year 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 government but question can be asked if the government does not find out a 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 doubled by now in last 9 years. Even if there is no increase in the number of people living below the poverty line in last 9 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 meeting day to day expenses for the routine eatery items . The purchasing capacity of people to basic grocery items is a very serious issue which needs to be addressed on priority.
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 but the United Nations earning slab for below poverty line people is 1.9 US dollar totaling to over Rs 130 per day which indicates that Government India has decreased the per day earnings slab by Rs 100 only to show improvement in the poverty alleviation trends. 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 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 but the United Nations earning slab for below poverty line people is 1.9 US dollar totaling to over Rs 130 per day which indicates that Government India has decreased the per day earnings slab by Rs 100 only to show improvement in the poverty alleviation trends. 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.
