Food Stamps
Food stamps are a good idea for social food schemes:
- Offer food stamps to the BPL families as benefits by employers or from govt.
- Food stamps give you ability to buy a certain amount of food grains/vegetables.
- You could technically offer several food 'plans' that you can choose from to fit to your taste.
- South Indians could opt for more rice and lesser wheat
- North Indians could opt for more wheat and lesser rice
- The proportions can be decided based on the cost to the govt. to provide for such food.
- Food stamps are offered as quantity of food rather than rupee value
- Not exchangeable for any other good. It will be an offense to avail it for anything else.
- Any trader can sign up for this distribution system. They can be paid a small incentive for selling more food under food stamp scheme. Incentives on consistency of sales as well to ensure no hoarding of food for when rates are better.
- Trader has to buy food stocks from the open market.
- Reimbursement is given by govt. at fixed national rates.
Advantages:
- Prevents diversion of money for food to poor to alcohol, other non-essential purchasing.
- Will strengthen trader distribution system since they have incentive to setup empanelled shops.
- Multiple Traders will try to purchase at lower price than govt. fixed rate and cause better competition.
- Govt. does not have to worry of setting up ration shops everywhere.
- Govt. PDS system's leakage issues are no longer a worry.