The story so far: The Centre recently released a Standard Operating Procedure (SOP), or a set of guidelines, for the smooth implementation of its rice fortification distribution scheme, days after a fact-finding team alleged that fortified rice was being distributed in Jharkhand without the consent of beneficiaries.
In a report published on May 16, a multidisciplinary team of activists and e asked the Jharkhand government to stop supply of fortified rice, claiming that it was leading to adverse effects among the tribal population of the State. The fact-finding team also discovered that some communities in the State had rejected fortified rice, assuming that PDS shops were supplying ‘plastic rice’ mixed with normal rice given the unusual appearance of some fortified rice grains.
Last month, the Union Cabinet gave its nod to distribute fortified rice under various government schemes to address widespread malnutrition, anaemia and micronutrient deficiencies. The Centre had in 2019 launched a pilot scheme for fortified rice and its distribution under the Public Distribution System (PDS) for three years to deal with anaemia.
