Social Safety Nets for Food Security and Nutritional Outcome among Rural Indian Adults

Sandhya S. Kumar, Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS)
Madhushree Sekher, Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS)

As policy interventions, the Public Distribution System (PDS) and Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MNREGA) were expected to be crucial in addressing food security in India. This empirical study aims to demonstrate the association between food security safety nets and nutritional status among adults aged 15-49 years. Based on analysis of data from 855 eligible adults from across India, the paper argues that although obesity is associated with the PDS programme, the PDS did not show any association to address the problem of underweight individuals in the sampled population. Achieving nutrition security through economic security by way of the MNREGA programme must also be reviewed.