The Indian Express: New Delhi: Wednesday, July 26, 2017.
Delhi
Lieutenant Governor Anil Baijal has sought a report from the Delhi government
over the functioning of the Public Grievance Commission (PGC) as the State Food
Commission (SFC). The L-G asked for the report after the government sent him a
file seeking his approval to constitute the SFC, after a delay of almost three
years. SFC is a body mandated under the National Food Security (NFS) Act, 2013,
to monitor and ensure the effective implementation of food and
nutrition-related schemes such as Mid-Day Meal scheme and ICDS.
In 2013, the
then Lieutenant Governor Najeeb Jung had notified that the PGC will function as
the SFC. At that time, the Congress government was in power and in July 2013,
the cabinet had approved the constitution of the SFC.
“L-G Baijal
has sought a report from the PGC in terms of its functioning as the SFC under
the NFS Act,” said a letter to the PGC chairman on June 14.
Though the
PGC should have been functioning as the SFC, an RTI reply dated November 2016
states, “The matter is pending with the administrative reforms department to
resolve the issue regarding requisite condition of the constitution of the SFC
for the NCT of Delhi as it is not being fulfilled by the present structure of
the PGC. The present status is that the State Food Commission under this
commission has not been constituted till date.”
Seeing the
absence of SFC in Delhi, NGO Matri Sudha had filed a petition in the Delhi High
Court last year seeking a response from the government. “We moved court since
the PGC was not working as the SFC. Every time we filed an RTI, the reply
stated it was under process. Three years have passed by without an SFC,” said
Arvind Singh of Matri Sudha. The next hearing in the case is in September.
Several
states, including Odisha, Arunachal Pradesh, Jharkhand, Gujarat, Haryana, Chhattisgarh
and Telangana, have a functioning SFC.
.JPG)
.JPG)
