Samacheer Class 10 Social Science - Food Security and Nutrition

Tamil Nadu is well known for its many nutrition and welfare programmes aimed at improving the health and food security of its people. Some of the important programmes are the following. The Puratchi Thalaivar M.G.R. Nutritious Meal Programme, the famous Mid-Day Meal Scheme, provides free cooked meals to schoolchildren and was a pioneering scheme in India. The Integrated Child Development Services scheme runs Anganwadi centres that give supplementary nutrition to small children, pregnant women and nursing mothers. The Public Distribution System supplies rice and other essential goods at low prices through ration shops. There are also special schemes providing eggs, pulses and additional nutritious food to children and mothers. These programmes have helped Tamil Nadu to reduce hunger and malnutrition and to improve school attendance.

The Green Revolution was born in India mainly because of the serious food shortage that the country faced in the 1950s and 1960s. After independence, India's population was growing rapidly, but agricultural production was low and still used old, traditional methods. The country suffered repeated crop failures and had to import large quantities of food grains, especially during the severe droughts of the mid-1960s, which made it dependent on foreign aid. To overcome this crisis and to become self-sufficient in food, the government, with the help of scientists such as Dr. M. S. Swaminathan and Norman Borlaug, introduced high-yielding variety seeds, chemical fertilisers, pesticides, assured irrigation and modern machinery. This new strategy, launched mainly from the late 1960s, sharply increased the output of wheat and rice and came to be called the Green Revolution.

The Minimum Support Price (MSP) is the price fixed by the Government of India at which it agrees to buy certain crops directly from the farmers. It is announced before the sowing season for important crops such as wheat, rice and pulses, on the advice of the Commission for Agricultural Costs and Prices. The main purpose of the MSP is to protect farmers from a sharp fall in prices at harvest time, when there is often a glut in the market. It assures farmers that they will receive at least a fair, guaranteed price that covers their costs and gives them a reasonable return. This encourages them to grow more food grains, helps the government to build up buffer stocks through agencies like the FCI, and thus strengthens the food security of the country.

The Public Distribution System (PDS) is a government programme through which essential commodities such as rice, wheat, sugar and kerosene are supplied to the people at low, subsidised prices. It works through a large network of fair-price shops, also called ration shops, spread across the country. The government, through the Food Corporation of India, procures food grains from farmers, stores them, and distributes them to these shops, where people can buy them by using ration cards. The main aim of the PDS is to ensure food security, especially for the poor, by making essential goods available at affordable prices and by protecting people from price rises and shortages. The Targeted Public Distribution System now gives special benefits to families living below the poverty line, and the National Food Security Act of 2013 has further strengthened the system.

Purchasing power means the ability of a person to buy goods and services with the income that he has. Several factors affect it. The first is the level of income: the higher a person's income, the greater his purchasing power. The second is the level of prices; when prices rise during inflation, the same income buys fewer goods, so purchasing power falls, while a fall in prices increases it. The third is employment, since regular and secure employment provides a steady income and raises purchasing power. The fourth is the rate of taxation, because high taxes reduce the money left for spending. Besides these, the level of savings, the availability of credit, and the size of the family also affect purchasing power. Together these factors decide how much a person can actually buy and therefore his standard of living.

The new Agricultural Policy of India has several important objectives aimed at improving farming and the condition of farmers. Its main objectives are as follows. To achieve a high and steady rate of growth in agricultural production so that the country remains self-sufficient in food. To make efficient and sustainable use of the country's land, water and other resources in a way that protects the environment. To raise the incomes and improve the standard of living of farmers, especially small and marginal farmers. To promote the use of modern technology, improved seeds and scientific methods of farming. To encourage the growth of agro-based industries and the proper marketing of farm produce at fair prices. And to ensure food and nutrition security for the growing population of the country. Thus the policy aims at the all-round development of agriculture.

Suggested approach: Visit the market, note the types of sellers (farmers, middlemen), goods sold, price ranges, bargaining patterns, storage facilities, measures for quality control, and services (weighing, transport). Record how the market provides direct farmer-to-consumer sales, reduces intermediaries, ensures fresh produce availability, and influences local prices.

Suggested steps: Note services offered (outpatient, maternal/child care, immunization), staff available (doctors, nurses, ASHAs), operating hours, medicine and vaccine availability, referral system, public-health programmes implemented (e.g., nutrition counselling), and patient flow. Prepare a short report summarizing findings and suggestions for improvements.