A starving man in Indi

year India’s harvests were expected to be record highs; however, the poor will still go hungry. Voice of America states that: “this year’s record production could leave the government with 75 million tons of grain on its hands. With facilities only to store 63 million tons in state-run warehouses, millions of tons could be left out in the open.” Additionally, the government has problems distributing the food, because of the lack for proper funding and organization. This is in dire need of fixing, as 900 million Indian citizens eat less than the government recommended minimums.

Short Video on Child Malnourishment in India

In the state of Uttar Pradesh this issue is taken to an extreme. According to Bloomberg News, “$14.5 billion in food [has gone] missing during the past 10 years,” Business Week says that while there have recently been overflowing reserves located near poverty-filled villages, the food was not being rationed fairly. Instead, the State Food Minister bought the food cheap off the farmers and then sold it to companies at the market price, pocketing the difference. Although there are trials ongoing, no arrests have been made, while there has been no foreign input to push the government into action.

Children hungry in the slums of India

Articles:

http://www.businessweek.com/articles/2012-09-06/indias-poor-starve-as-politicians-steal-their-food#p1

http://www.voanews.com/content/article–in-india-indadequate-storage-could-mean-wasted-food-148848425/370292.html