The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs has approved to utilize part of stock of pulses in the buffer maintained by the Department of Consumer Affairs, for meeting the protein component under various schemes of Central Government providing nutrition to various target groups/beneficiaries.
To give effect to the decision, the CCEA has told the concerned Departments/Ministries to carry out suitable amendments in their schemes/guidelines to enable them to take/provide pulses from the buffer in kind under their respective Schemes.
All the concerned Ministries/Departments will make necessary changes in their schemes and assess requirement of pulses within next three months of the approval. Supply of pulses from the Central buffer would commence based on such requirement indicated by these Ministries/Departments.
The objective of the approval is to enable the concerned administrative Ministries/Departments to ensure that pulses from the buffer are utilized as in ’kind’ component of the Centre’s contribution in such schemes.
The concerned Departments may revert to the current system of making nutrition available only in case of non-availability of pulses in the buffer. Ministries/Departments or their agencies providing food/catering/hospitality services have also been enabled to make suitable provision in their Commercial arrangement to ensure that the requirements of pulses for such operations are met through the central buffer.
The approval also aims to maintain adequate supply of nutrients/pulses under the various schemes/programmes of Government including Mid DayMeal(MDM) scheme, hospitals, etc. as well as Ministries/Departments or their agencies providing food/catering/hospitality services.
Also, the cost of pulses supplied to states will not be higher than the market price.
For a sustainable buffer operation, availability of regular and assured channels of disposal wherein a committed quantity is taken/lifted from the buffer at regular periodicity may be of critical importance. This would facilitate optimal utilization and efficient management of pulses in buffer through regular/planned rotation of pulses and replacement of stock through fresh crop on continual basis.