Topic: Issues relating to poverty and hunger
Q4. “The persistence of hunger in India reveals a crisis of governance, not of grain”. Explain the statement. Examine institutional bottlenecks in implementing food-security schemes. Evaluate how decentralisation and community participation can bridge these gaps. (15 M)
Difficulty Level: Medium
Reference: InsightsIAS
Why the question:
India’s paradox of food surplus coexisting with widespread hunger, highlighting governance and institutional challenges in implementing the National Food Security Act and related schemes.Key Demand of the question:
The question requires explaining how hunger in India reflects governance failure rather than food scarcity, identifying key institutional weaknesses in food-security delivery, and evaluating how decentralisation and community involvement can improve governance outcomes.Structure of the Answer:
Introduction:Mention India’s food surplus and continued hunger, showing the paradox as a governance issue.
Body:
- Explain the statement by linking food abundance with poor access, coordination failures, and policy design gaps.
- Examine institutional bottlenecks such as PDS leakages, weak grievance systems, poor inter-agency coordination, and digital exclusion.
- Evaluate how decentralised governance, social audits, panchayats, and SHGs can strengthen transparency, inclusion, and accountability.
Conclusion:
Suggest building community-led, transparent, and convergence-based food governance to realise constitutional obligations under Articles 21 and 47.
