Lok Sabha gives a clarion call for eliminating hunger

New Delhi May 4 (UNI) The Lok Sabha today gave a clarion call to banish hunger from the land, describing poverty as a curse and saying that growth was meaningless unless it was inclusive.

Members cutting across party lines said this would require, among other things, implementation of a comprehensive food and nutritional security scheme. A strong view point was that it was the lack of political will that was coming in the way of providing the people food and nutritional security.

But the problem brooked no further delay for those who have had their fill talk to the poor of the wonderul times to come.

The arena of the debate was a Private Members Bill and the resolution in this regard was moved by Mr Naveen Jindal, a Congress MP, an industrialist and a sports personality. The resolution was moved by Mr Jindal on December 15, 2006.

Resuming discussions on ''The need for a comprehensive food and nutrition security scheme,'' the Members said the government should come out with a concrete action plan with a roadmap to eliminate hunger from the country.

Mr Kiran Rezu(BJP) deplored that even after more than 60 years of country's independence, at least 35 per cent people live below the Poverty line and do not even get two square meals a day.

He said the high growth rate of more than 9 per cent was a meaningless exercise with hunger being on the increase.

He demanded that the Right to a balanced diet, primary health care, education and drinking water be made a fundamental right, so that deaths do not occur due to hunger and starvation.

While S K Kaarvendhan(Congress) stressed the need for increasing food production to help fight poverty and hunger, Mr B Mehtab( BJD) wanted to know from the government if it had evloved any such plan to achieve the objective of a hunger free India.

Mr Mehtab said hunger casts its darkest shadow on children and women.

Mr Francis Fanthome(Nominated) quoted statistics to indicate the magnitude of the problem and said if it is not tackled it will have dire implications for the future.

UNI