Public Distribution System In India Research Articles

A preliminary theoretical examination of the targeted public distribution system in India

A theoretical model of targeting in the public distribution system is set out. In any system of targeting there could be inclusion and exclusion errors. These errors could be reduced by search by the state. The state aims to minimise the costs of food administration subject to keeping the magnitude of the exclusion error bounded. Targeting involves a consideration of the objective poverty level, the official poverty level and the targeted poverty level by the state. The targeted poverty level could be less than the official poverty level if the extent of search is not adequate. The objective poverty level is an increasing function of the above poverty line issue price of food due to exclusion errors, a decreasing function of the procurement price of food and by definition the below poverty line issue price of food. The instruments in the hands of the state are the official poverty level, the above poverty line issue price for food, the procurement price of food and the extent of search. The comparative static implications of the model are set out.

Solving multi-region multi-facility inventory allocation and transportation problem: A case of Indian public distribution system

In this paper, we study an inventory allocation and transportation problem in a supply chain consisting of multiple storage facilities (warehouses) located in different regions of a large geographic area, which is motivated by the case of the Indian public distribution system. The procurement in each region is known and the item procured within a region needs to be allocated for storage in the warehouses of the same region. The demand of each region is satisfied by the warehouses located in the respective regions. Consideration of region-wise aggregated demand/procurement over multiple facilities located in each region makes the proposed study different from the existing literature. There is a mismatch in procurement, demand, and available storage capacity of warehouses across all the regions. Therefore, the problem is to determine an optimal plan for holding inventory at different storage facilities and to satisfy the demand of all regions without shortages by transporting items between different storage facilities. A mixed integer linear programming model is formulated to minimize the total relevant costs over a finite planning horizon. A heuristic devising activity based decision rules is proposed to solve the problem by decomposing the problem into sub-problems. The performance of the proposed approach is compared with the exact solutions obtained using Cplex for several problem instances. The results of the computational analysis reveal that the proposed solution approach is computationally efficient and gives good quality solutions with an average cost deviation from the optimal solution of less than 6%.

Supply chain of the Indian public distribution system: a new paradigm

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to identify the various strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats (SWOT) in the supply chain of the existing Indian public distribution system (PDS) and to analyse the same with a view to arriving at the vital recommended strategies for making the supply chain more effective and efficient.Design/methodology/approachThis paper examines a new hybrid method for improving the usability of SWOT analysis. The analytic hierarchy process (AHP) has been integrated with SWOT analysis. Use of the AHP method on the SWOT factors has yielded analytically determined priorities for the factors included in SWOT analysis and made them commensurable. The main aim in applying the hybrid method was to improve the quantitative information basis of strategy planning processes. The paper was started by listing the various factors of the four different groups of SWOT with reference to the PDS. After further shortlisting, pairwise comparisons were carried out using a software (Super Decisions) to arrive at prioritised factors for each group. The strategy options were then formulated and prioritised on the basis of the existing weightages of each factor.FindingsThe results indicated that use of available ICT solutions as part of the “Digital India” is vital in achieving the most important potential strategy alternatives in improving the supply chain for the PDS.Practical implicationsThe analysis helps in identifying strategies to improve the existing supply chain of the Indian PDS and make it more efficient and cost effective.Originality/valueThis paper provides some useful insight into the SWOT analysis of the Indian PDS with specific reference to the supply chain management issues of the PDS.

Role and Effectiveness of Public Distribution System in India

This paper highlights agricultural productivity and the food security through public distribution system in a brief manner. Agricultural sector is the backbone of the country’s development and sustenance for 65 per cent of the population in rural areas and approximately more than 58 per cent of the population is still dependent on agriculture. Besides this, to achieve an ambitious rate of growth for the country of as high as 9-10 per cent in the Eleventh Five Year Plan, the country needs a strong pull-up support to agriculture sector which should grow at least at the rate of 4 per cent per annum, all the more, since in 2015-16 the growth in agriculture was merely 8.7 per cent which is feared to go even negative next year. The problems of Public Distribution System have not been uniform in the country. In some states the administration is weak and corrupt. In these states deficiencies regarding huge shortage of stocks, fake supply entries in ration cards, diversion of commodities for sale to open market and bogus ration cards are noted. The paper concludes that globally there is enough food for all and that inequitable access and mismanagement is the main problem for food insecurity. To sum up, technical and policy reforms should be sure. Banking and Information technologies have superior rapidly and should permit governments to bring transparency and pace in all applications without extra expenses. In addition, computerization can help in modernizing the PDS. A number of states are already innovating in PDS execution, and improved performance can be seen in some cases. Although the introduction of modern tools such as smart cards may not be a panacea for all the evils, it can solve many of the problems particularly that of pilferage and spurious beneficiaries. They are like low hanging fruits which can be picked up easily.

Redesigning the Public Distribution System in India: A Comparative Analysis of the States

Redesigning the Public Distribution System in India: A Comparative Analysis of the States

Public Distribution System in India: Key Issues and Challenges

Food security is essential for a country's growth and in a nation like India where one-fifth of the population is believed to be undernourished it becomes even more important. The government of India runs the largest food security programme known as Public Distribution System to ensure food security to the masses. Public Distribution System (PDS) ensures food availability and economic access to the beneficiaries through the Fair Price Shops (FPS) by providing foodgrains to them at fairly cheap prices. PDS is run by the coordination of centre and state governments. People accessing PDS for meeting their dietary needs has increased over the years and hence the food and nutritional security of masses has improved. It has made a positive impact on poverty reduction, income transfer and nutritional security considerably. Despite all these certain issues like inaccurate identification of beneficiaries, leakages, inadequate storage capacity, and non-viability of Fair Price Shops plague the system. To counter these problems governments have taken up various reforms over the years which have led to the system becoming more efficient comparatively. PDS is the largest food security programme and its efficient functioning is a must for making India a food secure nation.

The Impact of the Public Distribution System in India

In the context of the recent evidence of a revival of the PDS in certain states, its impact between 2004–2005 and 2011–2012 on the nutritional indicators of children aged 7–19 years was studied by state. This exercise showed that the PDS has had a significant impact on the longer-term nutritional indicator in three of the four functioning states and on the short-term indicator in two reviving states. This indicates that the revival has begun to translate into nutritional gains and catch-up growth of children in some states. Two sets of indicators were used to understand the mechanisms through which these gains were attained. One considered the dependence on the calories provided by PDS commodities; this showed a high dependence on PDS for sufficient intake of calories in functioning states and increasing dependence in certain reviving states. The second indicator was an index of dietary variety. This followed a pattern of higher dietary diversity in beneficiary households in most of the functioning and reviving states. These are encouraging results which offer scope for further reforms.

An effective heuristic for multi-period multi-foodgrain inventory transportation problem in India

ABSTRACTThis study investigates a storage and inter-state transportation problem of foodgrains faced by Food Corporation of India (FCI) for the Indian public distribution system. FCI carries out the activities of procurement, storage and transportation of foodgrains in different states of India to meet the monthly demand of each state for different foodgrains without shortages. Due to mismatch in procurement, demand and available storage capacity among the states, the problem is to find the optimal quantity of each foodgrain to be stored in different type of warehouses of all states and transportation plan for movement of each foodgrain between the warehouses. The problem is formulated as a mixed integer linear programming problem for minimizing the total relevant costs with an implicit consideration of reduction of the wastage of foodgrains due to storage in open space. We propose a heuristic-based algorithmic solution approach exploiting the unique structure of the problem and devising activity-based decision rules. Extensive computational experimentation is carried out by randomly generating the problem instances using real data. A lower bounding scheme based on linear relaxation is devised to compare the performance of the proposed solution approach. With the average solution gap of 6.61% with respect to the lower bound, the proposed solution approach is found effective and efficient compared to Cplex for practical size problem instances.

Rescaling the public distribution system in India: Mapping the uneven transition from spatialization to territorialization

The Indian public distribution system operates like a huge machine transferring food grains procured by the federal government from surplus regions at a guaranteed price towards deficit areas where grains are sold at subsidized prices to poor households. The role of India’s regional States has become more significant in recent years with ‘decentralized procurement’. However, the national state has not become a minor actor, sandwiched between the globalization of food flows and decentralization policies. A process of state spatial rescaling is indeed taking place, although limited in scope and uneven across space. Before the 1990s, despite the uncontested power of the central state, sizeable differentiation already existed between States or ‘food zones’, in procurement as well as distribution. Recent rescaling of the policy has given States greater scope for policy innovation, via a ‘territorialization’ process. Nevertheless, despite significant rescaling to the subnational scale and the importance of ‘localization’ and ‘globalization’ trends, the national scale maintains a prominent position in the overall policy framework.

Informal monitoring and enforcement mechanisms in public service delivery: Evidence from the public distribution system in India

This paper shows that social networks provide informal monitoring and enforcement services that can curb leakages and improve the efficacy of public service delivery. We examine India's targeted public distribution system, under which poor households are entitled to subsidized grains and fuel. We show that Scheduled Castes (SCs) are more likely to buy grains when facing SC delivery agents, but there is no difference in the take up of fuel. We develop a theoretical framework positing that increased informal monitoring and enforcement drive our findings. We test our theory using observational survey data and unique data that we collected. Our empirical results provide strong support for the testable implications.

Statistical Modeling and Forecasting of Food Grain in Effects on Public Distribution System: An application of ARIMA Model

This study made an attempt to forecast and best fitted trend of Public Distribution System in India by using Box and Jenkins methodology of univariate Auto Regressive Integrated Moving Average (ARIMA) model. For empirical analysis a set of rice, wheat and total food grains for procurement, off take and stocks in PDS were considered for analysis with available annual data from 1972–2013 and forecasted values were estimated for 2017. The validity of the model were verified based on minimum value of AIC (Akaike Information Criterion), SBC (Schwarz's Bayesian Information Criterion), MAPE (Mean Absolute Percentage Error), maximum R2 etc. The work give a clear and complete view of Public Distribution System which takes a vital role in Food Security. ARIMA(2,1,1), ARIMA(1,1,2) and ARIMA(0,1,1) were found the best fitted models of total food grains for all three parameters. Predicted values of total food grains were observed 64.14, 58.24, 45.96 million tonnes in the period 2017 for all three parameters such as procurement, off-take, and stocks respectively.

Two Stage Indian Food Grain Supply Chain Network Transportation-Allocation Model

This paper investigates the food grain supply chain, transportation allocation problem of Indian Public Distribution System (PDS). The different activities of Indian food grain supply chain are procurements, storage, movement, transportation and distribution. We have developed a mixed integer nonlinear programming model (MINLP) to minimize the transportation, inventory and operational cost of shipping food grains from the cluster of procurement centers of producing states to the consuming state warehouses. A recently developed chemical reaction optimization (CRO) algorithm is used for testing the model which gives the superior computational performance compared to other metaheuristics.

Structural mapping of public distribution system using multi-agent systems

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to develop a framework for mapping the Indian Public Distribution System (PDS) using multi-agent system (MAS). The entire PDS supply chain from purchase to the distribution is mapped in detail by integrating stages of PDS supply chain. Design/methodology/approach – Literature related to PDS, food grain supply chain (FGSC) and MAS is reviewed and critically assessed. Based on this a framework is proposed which will help in improving functioning of PDS. Findings – The PDS has many shortcomings arising from its complex structure and practices which are used to implement it. The authors propose an MAS to model it in which each entity will be modelled as an agent. The authors propose two stages of supply chain. First stage models the processes from procurement to storage of food grain and second stage model the distribution process. Practical implications – This paper will be of interest to the policy makers and decision makers involved in the PDS by providing the shortfalls in the system and also suggesting a method to model the PDS based on practices of food supply chains. Originality/value – This paper provides the decision makers in the PDS, a framework to model and assess the entire supply chain. This will help them in effective implementation of the PDS and also improve in the areas of concerns which are pointed the study.

Is more inclusive more effective? The ‘New Style’ public distribution system in India

The targeted public distribution system (TPDS) of India—world’s largest food safety-net program—has a reputation for poor targeting, rampant corruption and low impact. Five states of India modified TPDS by reducing targeting, lowering grain prices to Rs.1–3 per kg and tightening its administration. This paper assesses the impact of changes in the TPDS on household food consumption using data from a repeated cross-section of Indian households from five rounds of representative consumption surveys between 1993–1994 and 2009–2010. We use the Difference-in-Difference (DID) method to identify the policy impact, first on consumption of food-grains, and second, on food expenditure. We find that modifications in TPDS led not only to an increase in the purchase of subsidized grains from fair-price shops, but also to diversification of the food basket of poor households. We also find evidence for reduction in the diversion of grains from TPDS to the open market in reform states. Finally, we present suggestive evidence that a food policy reform is likely to fail if price and targeting policy components are not accompanied by effective administrative measures to reduce corruption and improve the logistics of subsidized food distribution. These are important findings for India’s own National Food Security Act (NFSA) and for other food safety-net programs throughout the developing world.

Implementing National Food Security Act in India: issues and challenges

Purpose – National Food Security Act 2013 (NFSA) is a unique step taken by Indian government to fight against hunger and protect right of the people for food. With its peculiarities like the life cycle approach, women empowerment, consideration of vulnerable sections in society and proposed reforms in public distribution system (PDS), NFSA is a promising effort for food security in India. The purpose of this paper is to put forth various aspects of NFSA and to identify issues and challenges for its implementation in the light of Indian PDS. Design/methodology/approach – Understanding the implications of NFSA, mapping the existing system of foodgrains distribution in India and analysing existing literature and secondary data available from assorted sources are the steps followed in this endeavour. Findings – Limited resources and exponentially increasing population, lack of infrastructure, operational inefficiencies and poor performance of the PDS are the major hurdles in successful implementation of the proposed act. This study gives emphasis on the need of major reforms in procurement, storage, movement and distribution of foodgrains strategies. Research limitations/implications – This paper focusses mainly on the operational and strategic aspects of PDS and its implications on NFSA. There is a wide scope for future research on sustainability of the act through agricultural and biotechnological innovations, financial analysis and strategic aspects. Originality/value – This study is an unique attempt of mapping and auditing of the entire complex value chain of the Indian PDS for implementation of NFSA. As NFSA is going to redefine the food security aspects, this pioneering work will be useful for researchers and policy makers working in this field in India and other developing countries.

Food Security and Public Distribution System in India

This study was conducted to assess the temporal changes in the status of food security in India. The food security was assessed in terms of its basic pillars—availability access and absorption. Findings reveal that though there has been a remarkable improvement in the status of food security in India, the presence of food insecurity on a large scale erodes the large chunk of sheen from the glory of economic development in India. Several initiatives have been taken to tackle the challenge of food security, and the public distribution system (PDS) has been the most important instrument of ensuring food security in India. It has been observed that its contribution to poverty reduction and food security improvement has been increasing over time.

A study on the efficacy of the Public Distribution System in India with special emphasis to the functioning of agricultural warehousing agencies

The study analyses the effectiveness of the public distribution system in India with special emphasis to the functioning of public sector agricultural warehousing agencies such as Food Corporation of India (FCI) and Central Warehousing Corporation (CWC), engaged in the procurement, transportation, storage and distribution of food grains. The data for the period of 2007-08 to 2011-12 has been collected from secondary sources and has been interpreted. The study shows that the current procurement trends of food grains would not sufficient to meet the allocation and the future requirements in the twelfth plan period. The per capita net availability of rice and wheat declined marginally, while the total availability of cereals and other pulses increased significantly. The total cost of food subsidies contributed about 5 % of agricultural GDP during the last 5 years. The main reason for increase in economic cost of food grains is the higher procurement prices which also lead to rising food subsidies. Instead of open-ended procurement policy in India, a need-based procurement system has to be implemented. I. Introduction: India has seen tremendous progress in agricultural produce as it has quadrupled its food grain production since independence. Indias food grain production has mounted over 250 million tons in 2011-2012 from a mere 120 million tons in 1980. Rice and wheat accounts for over 75% of all food grain output. These staples are vital for household food security and constitute a major source of calories especially for over 300 million deprived populations in the country. (Rehman et al., 2012). Given that about two-third of Indian population make their income from agriculture and an average Indian household spends about 30% of its budget for food grains, the structure and efficiency of Indian food grain marketing is not negligible in Indian economy. Food grain marketing consists of all the activities involved in the movement of food grains from producers to consumers. In order to ensure food security in the nation, Government of India formulated a food grain management strategy focused on procurement of food grains at remunerative prices from the growers; its storage and movement; maintenance of buffer stocks and ensuring availability of food grains to the public at reasonable prices. The overall responsibility for management of food grains given to the Ministry of Consumer Affairs and Ministry of Food and Public Distribution, Govt. of India. The procurement of food grains by Government is primarily intended to provide remunerative prices to farmers, thereby avoiding distress sale of food grains; and to build up a stocks to ensure the supply of subsidized food grains to the needy and poor. The responsibility for distribution of food grains to the beneficiaries vests with the respective State Governments. The Public Distribution System (PDS) is the most important channel through which the Government ensures food security at the micro level. India has a large programme of public distribution, mainly food grains, through a network of Fair Price Shop (FPS), both in rural and urban areas. With more than 460 thousand FPS, its reach in rural areas is sometimes better than the open market. The PDS is the largest food subsidy programme in India, and perhaps in the world. It reaches out to nearly 10.5 crores households in the country and provides food grains at subsidized rates. Despite this, India continues to have one of the worst track records globally, as far as the commitment to tackle hunger and malnutrition is concerned. (Bhat and Hussain; 2012). However, PDS in India was widely criticized for its failure to serve the population below the poverty line, its urban bias, negligible coverage in the states with highest concentration of rural poor and lack of transport and accountability ( Sawant and Jadhav, 2013). In 1997, the Govt. of India launched a revised scheme of distribution known as the Targeted Public Distribution System (TPDS) to benefit the poor and to keep the budgetary food subsidies under control to the desired extent One of the foremost objectives of the TDPS is to insulate the poor form rising market prices for food grains Under TPDS, food grains were distributed as a two-tier delivery system to households below poverty line (BPL) and above poverty line (APL), with each BPL family receiving a set quota of food grains per month at heavily subsidized prices. The TPDS is an important instrument of policy aimed at reducing poverty through the mechanism of delivering desired requirements of food grains at highly subsidized prices to the population below the poverty line. In addition to TPDS, Govt. of India initiated a number of schemes to further support the deprived such as Antyodaya Anna Yojana, Annapurna scheme,

Food subsidy, income transfer and the poor: A comparative analysis of the public distribution system in India's states

The Targeted Public Distribution System (TPDS) – the largest food subsidy program in India – has been a dismal failure in targeting the poor. The present paper examines its performance in three Indian states – Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra and Rajasthan, based on primary data collected for this study. As real income transfers through food price subsidies are a tiny fraction of expenditure per person under this scheme, a contribution of the present study is to model determinants of real income transfers through subsidised wheat, rice and sugar. The analysis throws new light on how income transfers vary with economic status of a household, inequality in the distribution of land in a village, amount of food price subsidy, transaction costs of buying from ‘fair price shops’ (FPS), and supply shortages. The policy implications of these results are profound. Desperate measures such as a universal food subsidy enshrined in a proposed National Food Security Act are rejected on the grounds that the enormous leakages and wastage under the present TPDS would only get worse. Assertions that a universal food subsidy is the only option consistent with the right to food are rejected as mistaken. Instead, it is worthwhile to overhaul the PDS within the existing outlay.

Service quality measurement of the public distribution system in the food grains supply chain

The public distribution system (PDS) is state run supply chain for food grains in India. The PDS in India is the largest distribution machinery of its type in the world. Many studies have been carried out across the world to understand the food grains supply chain in the private sector. This study is an attempt to understand the government-run food grains supply chain which has an obligation to fulfil social responsibility. The survey technique used to identify the influencing factors through factor analysis. Subsequently, analytical hierarchy process technique recognises the priority and rank of the service quality dimensions. This paper suggests measures to improve the service quality dimensions of the authorities, which helps to improve the perceived level of consumers’ satisfaction level.

Public Distribution System in Rural India: Implications for Food Safety and Consumer Protection

Public distribution system in India, a government created system intended to ensure food security and supply of other essentials to the rural poor has failed to protect the interests of the poor. The failure has been primarily due to corruption in the system. This paper focuses on the magnitude of such corruption at micro level, its implications and suggestions for revamping. The role of Consumer Clubs which have been established in the rural schools to strengthen PDS and to provide food security was examined in this context.