Food Policy Reforms: A Rapid Tour of Possibilities

Abstract

Reform of India's food policies is on the front burner. This paper takes a rapid tour of the reform possibilities in the areas of storage and logistics, procurement and distribution. The paper proposes a method for determining the needs for seasonal storage and discusses what ought to be targets for capacity creation. This is followed by an examination of the policies toward storage and reforms in procurement. The paper lays out the principal components of reforms in distribution. These are pursued in greater detail in the context of three states: Chhattisgarh, Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh.